Bird Watching in Japan & Asia: Blakiston's Fish-owl

Showing posts with label Blakiston's Fish-owl. Show all posts

2026-06-30

Birdwatching in eastern Hokkaido (January 12-15, 2026) 1

I led a week-long tour of eastern Hokkaido for guests from Australia.

In addition to seeing popular birds, such as the Steller's Sea-eagle, Red-crowned Crane, and Blakiston's Fish-owl, we were also able to spot Solitary Snipe, Ancient Murrelet and Asian Rosyfinch.

Solitary Snipe

Red-necked Grebe

Greater Spotted Woodpecker

Ancient Murrelet

Hokkaido Sika Deer

Hokkaido Squirrel

Steller's Eagle

White-tailed Eagle

Eurasian Jay

Eurasian Nuthatch

Harlequin Duck

Blakiston's Fish-owl

Glaucous Gull

2025-11-10

Birdwatching in Shiretoko (July 11-12, 2025)

What I was hoping to encounter on this trip to the Shiretoko Peninsula was Blakiston's Fish-owl, which I hadn't seen in winter. On the night of July 11th, I arrived at the Fish-owl Observatory just after 6pm, and within an hour I heard its deep call coming from the mountains. Soon after, a male came down to the river, caught and ate two fish, and was replaced by a larger female. Apparently she was raising her young, the female flew off into the forest with the fish in her mouth. During my three-hour stay, they visited two times each.

At Shiretoko Pass, I was able to see a pair of Pine Grosbeaks up close and encounter a school of Fork-tailed Swifts.