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Welcome to Birdquest

JAPAN

Friday 20th May - Sunday 5th June 2011
(17 days)

Hokkaido Post-Tour Extension to Friday 10th June (5 days)

Leaders: Pete Morris and Chikara Otani

Group Size Limit: 12

Tour Category: Easy to Moderate

The remarkable Okinawa Rail was only described to science in the 1980s and is now threatened with extinction due to introduced predators! (Pete Morris)

(Note: This is a summary of the tour. For more information please download the detailed itinerary. The button is at the top right of the page.)

At the opposite end of the vast continent of Eurasia from the British Isles lies another archipelago – the islands of Japan. Westernized and yet profoundly Oriental, Japan remains an enigmatic land to westerners, few of whom know much about it beyond its shiny consumer exports.

Stretching from the sub-tropics in the Ryukyus to the cool temperate latitudes in Hokkaido, these beautiful islands with their jagged and broken coastlines possess some of the most striking scenery in East Asia. We are used to thinking of Japan as densely populated, but this is true only of the coastal lowlands. Over four fifths of the land surface is hilly or mountainous and there is a much greater percentage of forest cover than in western Europe. To this day, away from the large cities, Japan remains an essentially rural country, despite the population of 120 million. Nowhere in Japan is far from the sea and this has an immeasurable influence on the landscape and the people.

Japan’s avifauna shows a number of parallels with that of the British Isles, not least the great number of vagrants which each attracts. However, due to its greater distance from the mainland, its many islands and its wider range of climatic conditions, it has a richer avifauna and, in particular, a considerable number of fascinating endemic and near-endemic species ranging from the beautiful Japanese Robin to the relatively recently-discovered Okinawa Rail. It is these endemics which appeal most to the visitor and this tour is specifically designed to find as many of them as possible. Our travels will also show us many other exciting East Asian birds ranging from the stunning Fairy Pitta to the secretive Malayan Night Heron. This unusual tour provides a unique opportunity to see the best that Japan has to offer in late spring and early summer and is an essential trip for anyone seriously interested in Palearctic birds.

A visit to upcountry Japan (the ‘real’ Japan) is an experience in itself and one that requires of the traveller a spirit of adventure and a willingness to adapt to new ways of doing things. Simple things like eating Japanese food, sleeping on futons and bathing in an ‘ofuro’ are very different from back home, but will be great fun if you are tolerant of cultural differences. The difficulty of travelling around in a country where few people speak a foreign language of any kind is the main reason why only a few non-Japanese birdwatchers have explored the islands. A superb travel infrastructure, mostly comfortable accommodations, interesting food and friendly, helpful people make travelling through Japan a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

We will begin our adventure on the main island of Honshu where we will first explore the lakes and marshes of the Pacific coastal lowlands in search of the uncommon Japanese Marsh Warbler and attractive Japanese Reed Bunting. Leaving the sprawling metropolis of Tokyo behind, we will then travel into the scenic forested mountains of the central part of the island, looking for a suite of breeding passerines including the localized Japanese Yellow Bunting and Japanese Thrush before turning our attentions to famous Mount Fuji. We will search the slopes of the perfectly shaped volcano that epitomizes Japan for another of Japan’s specialities, Japanese Accentor.

The next leg of our journey will see us travelling southwards to the Izu Islands, in search of its island endemics, which include Izu Islands Thrush and Ijima’s Leaf Warbler. We will then travel back to Tokyo by ferry, hoping to see Tristram’s Storm-Petrel among the thousands of Streaked Shearwaters and other seabirds during the exciting voyage.

After that we will explore the warm temperate woodlands of southern Kyushu where we will hunt for the stunning Fairy Pitta and White-bellied (or Japanese Green) Pigeon amongst an excellent supporting cast of forest species. We then fly southwards along the chain of the Ryukyu Islands, visiting Amami-Oshima, Okinawa and Ishigaki-jima. On these verdant islands we will search for enigmatic endemics such as Ryukyu Serpent Eagle, the amazing Okinawa Rail, the secretive Amami Woodcock, Ryukyu Robin, Ishigaki Tit and the beautiful Lidth’s Jay, as well as other interesting species including Malayan Night Heron.

During the optional extension we will visit the northern Island of Hokkaido. On this dramatically scenic island we will seek out a selection of northern breeders including Hazel Grouse, Black Woodpecker, the spectacular Siberian Rubythroat, Lanceolated, Middendorff’s and Gray’s Grasshopper Warblers, and Yellow-breasted Bunting, as well as breeding Red-crowned Cranes and the world’s largest owl, the huge Blakiston’s Fish Owl.

Birdquest has operated tours to Japan since 1987.

Bonin Islands Extension: The remote and seldom visited Bonin Islands house another endemic, the Bonin Islands White-eye (formerly mistakenly placed with the honeyeaters, as Bonin Islands Honeyeater). There are also endemic forms of Japanese Woodpigeon and Japanese Bush Warbler that may in the future be split. In addition, the long ferry journey to and from the islands, or between the islands, offers an excellent chance for additional seabirds including, amongst others, Bonin Petrel, Bannerman’s Shearwater, Matsudaira’s Storm-petrel, Wedge-tailed Shearwater, Brown Noddy and Sooty Tern. If we are very lucky we will even see the rare Short-tailed Albatross or White-necked Petrel! Due to an infrequent ferry schedule, a visit will add up to a week to the holiday and the price will depend on the number of participants and the extension duration. Please indicate when booking this tour if you are interested in this optional extension and we will let you know the potential cost once the number of interested participants is known.

Accommodation & Road Transport: The western-style and Japanese-style hotels are mostly of normal Birdquest standard. At Miyake-jima, Yamburu and Mi-ike, we will be staying in Japanese-style guesthouses (minshukus). The minshukus will be spotlessly clean and quite comfortable, but it should be appreciated minshuku are quite simple establishments with Japanese-style futons to sleep on rather than conventional beds and bathroom facilities are shared. Accommodation on the overnight ferry outbound to Miyake-jima is in twin-berth cabins. At Rausu, where we spend one night, the minshuku is very small, so there will be several people in each room and bathroom facilities are shared. Road transport is by minibus and roads are good.

Walking etc: The walking effort is easy throughout, but the long daylight hours in the northern islands tend to result in some long days in the field.

Climate: It will be warm or hot in most areas, but will range from cool to warm in upland areas on Honshu and on Hokkaido. There will be a mixture of dry and sunny and wet and overcast conditions, with rather high humidity in the south.

Bird Photography: Opportunities will be worthwhile.

Tour Price: £4490, €5300, $6740 Tokyo/Tokyo. Post-Tour Extension: £1320, €1560, $1980. Price includes all transportation (including all flights), all accommodations, all meals, some drinks, all excursions, all entrance fees, all tips for local drivers/guides and for accommodations/restaurants, leader services.

Single Room Supplement: £330, €389, $495 (excluding the night on the Miyake-jima ferry). Post-Tour Extension: £110, €130, $165.

Deposit: £450, €530, $660. Post-Tour Extension: £140, €160, $200. If booking more than 12 months before departure, the initial deposit is only £150, €180, $220.

International Airfares: Return fares from London cost about £740, €880, $1110. We can also arrange international air travel from many other departure points. Please contact us about your air travel requirements.

Linking Birdquests: This tour can be linked with Western Pacific Odyssey in 2011. Please contact us for further information.

The superb Amami Woodcock is just one of the many endemics and specialities that we target on this tour. Sadly it is threatened with extinction due to introduced predators! (Pete Morris)

The gorgeous Fairy Pitta, another endangered bird, is a prime target on Kyushu (Pete Morris)

Also on Kyushu, we should get some great views of gorgeous Ruddy Kingfishers (Pete Morris)

As well as the obvious targets in the Ryukyu Islands, we'll take some time out to admire the glorious Roseate Terns (Pete Morris)

Spring will be in full swing on Hokkaido which is a paradise for Locustella warblers such as this Lanceolated Warbler (Pete Morris)

View Map Download Detailed Itinerary 437kb

Report From May 2009/June 2009 Report From May 2007/June 2007 104 photos View Gallery Photos From JAPAN

We begin our tour in the marshes near to Narita where we will find the uncommon Japanese Marsh Warbler (Pete Morris)

In Honshus foreste we will look for Japanese (or Grey) Thrush. It is a summer visitor and although shy, usually shows well (Pete Morris)

Less shy is the stunning Narcissus Flycatcher (Pete Morris)

To the south of Tokyo, the Izu Islands are home to a number of specialities including the handsome Izu Islands Thrush (Pete Morris)

... and the small island specialist, Styan's Grasshopper Warbler (Pete Morris)

Moving into the Ryukyus, we'll look for a number of good species including the Amami (Ryukyu) Robin (Pete Morris)

On Ishigaki-jima, we'll see the endemic Ryukyu Serpent Eagle (Pete Morris)

The wonderful Malayan Night Heron is very easy to see on the southern island of Ishigaki (Pete Morris)

The endemic Okinawa Woodpecker is critically endangered due to deforestation (Pete Morris)

If you join the extension to Hokkaido, a whole new set of goodies await. The gorgeous Siberian Rubythroat is always a delight to see and is pleasingly common on Hokkaido at this time of year (Pete Morris)

The stunning Japanese Robin gives even the rubythroat a run for its money! (Pete Morris)

And the wonderful Blakiston's Fish Owls are readily seen in the summer too...(Pete Morris)

With luck on Hokkaido, we may even bump into a Brown Bear as we did with this female and her two cubs in 2007 (Pete Morris)

And if you fancy a trip out to the Bonin Islands, there's great seabirding and the endemic Bonin Islands Honeyeater (which is now known to be a white-eye) (Pete Morris)

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ATOL protection covers those booking a tour with us that includes a flight from London or elsewhere in the United Kingdom, regardless of where in the world you live.

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