Sounds like you had an enjoyable trip! I love the place and would really like to get out there again before too long - if you're going again i really recommend Karuizawa, a short shinkansen ride from Tokyo up into the mts, plus Hokkaido if you want to experience wilderness, believe it or not.
Thanks for the recommendations, Mike - Karuizara sounds very accessible. I guess that Hokkaido winters might be a bit harsh for birding - perhaps autumn would be a good time to plan a trip......
Lynne Webster said
Mon Dec 17 3:25 AM, 2012
sid ashton wrote:
The first time I went to Japan on a business trip I was served lightly barbecued Sparrow on skewers. Got halfway through the first skewer-full before they told me what they were.
Ugh, shudder. I know that is meant to be a delicacy in the Kyoto area, but I have never seen or tasted it!
sid ashton said
Sun Dec 9 6:19 AM, 2012
The first time I went to Japan on a business trip I was served lightly barbecued Sparrow on skewers. Got halfway through the first skewer-full before they told me what they were.
Mike Duckham said
Sun Dec 9 4:40 AM, 2012
Sounds like you had an enjoyable trip! I love the place and would really like to get out there again before too long - if you're going again i really recommend Karuizawa, a short shinkansen ride from Tokyo up into the mts, plus Hokkaido if you want to experience wilderness, believe it or not.
Lynne Webster said
Mon Nov 12 5:24 PM, 2012
In September I had 2 weeks in Japan. It was not designed as a birding trip, but I still managed to get out on a couple of very productive and enjoyable birding sessions, and I think some aspects of these are worth sharing.
Tokyo Amidst the many miles of ugly concrete, the Japan Wild Bird Society has rescued and maintains a few acres of wetland and woodland squeezed between the mega-warehouses of the fruit and veg wholesalers. The Tokyo Bay Wild Bird Park is well worth a visit. Easiest access is by monorail - full details of this and the modest entry fee are all on the Internet. There is a panoramic view of a small lagoon from the visitor centre, with close up views of many waders, such as black winged stilt, with many roosting cormorants and hunting ospreys. When we were there, a mini twitch was under way in the woodland as a not very common Asian brown warbler was showing well. The volunteer guides are very friendly and helpful, but speak little English.
Kyushu In the south west island of Japan, we stayed in Kumamoto and took a short ferry ride to Shimabara (seeing various shearwaters and brown boobies). There we met up with an Australian ex-pat bird guide, John Wright, who took us up Mount Unzen to stake out a little pond where woodland birds habitually drink. Varied tit and grey streaked flycatcher were particularly pleasing. We then drove to a paddy field area in Isahara, where many passerines and raptors were feeding on the grasshoppers and other insects in the rice stubble. The undoubted highlight was good views of an Amur falcon. We saw around 60 species that day.
John was a knowledgeable guide with excellent local knowledge, johnandrewwright@gmail.com I found him through contacting Tommy Onita via his very useful website, JapanBirdwatching.com
Thanks for the recommendations, Mike - Karuizara sounds very accessible. I guess that Hokkaido winters might be a bit harsh for birding - perhaps autumn would be a good time to plan a trip......
Ugh, shudder. I know that is meant to be a delicacy in the Kyoto area, but I have never seen or tasted it!
Tokyo
Amidst the many miles of ugly concrete, the Japan Wild Bird Society has rescued and maintains a few acres of wetland and woodland squeezed between the mega-warehouses of the fruit and veg wholesalers. The Tokyo Bay Wild Bird Park is well worth a visit. Easiest access is by monorail - full details of this and the modest entry fee are all on the Internet. There is a panoramic view of a small lagoon from the visitor centre, with close up views of many waders, such as black winged stilt, with many roosting cormorants and hunting ospreys. When we were there, a mini twitch was under way in the woodland as a not very common Asian brown warbler was showing well. The volunteer guides are very friendly and helpful, but speak little English.
Kyushu
In the south west island of Japan, we stayed in Kumamoto and took a short ferry ride to Shimabara (seeing various shearwaters and brown boobies). There we met up with an Australian ex-pat bird guide, John Wright, who took us up Mount Unzen to stake out a little pond where woodland birds habitually drink. Varied tit and grey streaked flycatcher were particularly pleasing. We then drove to a paddy field area in Isahara, where many passerines and raptors were feeding on the grasshoppers and other insects in the rice stubble. The undoubted highlight was good views of an Amur falcon. We saw around 60 species that day.
John was a knowledgeable guide with excellent local knowledge, johnandrewwright@gmail.com
I found him through contacting Tommy Onita via his very useful website, JapanBirdwatching.com