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13-Day Japan - Cranes and Eagles Birding Tour
offered by supplier M17130 (view this supplier profile)
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 13
day(s)
Group Size: 4
- 12
people
Destination(s):
Japan
Specialty Categories:
Birdwatching
National Parks
Season: March
Airfare Included: No
Tour Customizable: No
Minimum Per Person Price: 5250 US Dollar (USD)
Maximum Per Person Price: 5775 US Dollar (USD)
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Highlights:
- Wonderful wildlife spectacles in a scenic land! The majestic Steller’s Sea-Eagles on the rocky peninsulas of Hokkaido, the famous crane reserves on Kyushu, and the dancing Japanese Cranes in a pristine snow-covered landscape.
- Endemics in surprisingly well-forested and mountainous preserves
- Exceptional and highly sought-after species, such as Blakiston’s Fish Owl
Featured Birds and Other Wildlife:
- Japanese (Red-crowned) Crane
- Hooded Crane
- White-naped Crane
- Siberian White Crane
- Steller’s Sea-Eagle
- Blakiston’s Fish Owl
- Japanese Waxwing
- Copper Pheasant
- Baikal Teal
- Japanese Grosbeak
- Japanese Green Woodpecker
Trip Summary
- Four internal flights included
- Train rides included
- Japanese-style guest houses, which are quite comfortable but also quite basic
- 4-8 participants with one leader, 9-12 with two leaders
- All meals included
- Variable climate; from temperate on Kyushu to cold on Hokkaido . Mainly sunny, but rain in the south and snow in the north is possible.
- Generally easy to moderate walking
We will concentrate on three marvelous birding spectacles – the huge gathering of Hooded and White-napped Cranes at Arasaki on Kyushu, the astonishing assembly of Steller’s Sea Eagles, one of the world’s most impressive raptors, and the wonderful dancing of Red-crowned Cranes in the snows of Hokkaido. We also bird the forests of Honshu for Japanese endemics and a host of other interesting species. Add in Blakiston’s Fish Owl at Rausu, and we have a truly memorable tour!
Japan is a surprisingly extensive archipelago stretching along the north-western Pacific Ocean, and is equally surprisingly little known beyond material goods. The islands are mountainous, well-forested and very scenic. We start our tour on Honshu where we leave the congested and sprawling city of Tokyo and head into the island’s interior, to forested mountains where we will encounter a wide selection of Japanese birds, perhaps including the endemic Copper Pheasant as well as Japanese Waxwing, Japanese Grosbeak, Long-tailed Rosefinch, Daurian Redstart and Japanese Green Woodpecker.
We have a chance for the delightful Baikal Teal here. From Honshu we travel to Kyushu where we visit the famous Arasaki Crane Reserve for several species of cranes - mainly Hooded and White- naped Cranes but also maybe Siberian White, Sandhill, Common and Demoiselle.
Coastal bays and estuaries are wintering areas for Black-faced and Eurasian Spoonbills and the scarce and localized Saunders’ Gull. We also make a trip to Mi-ike and its impressive crater lake in the Miyazaki prefecture, looking for White-backed and Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers and many other interesting species. We then head for Hokkaido, the largest island and still in the grips of winter.
We visit the eastern end of Hokkaido, to observe several marvelous wildlife spectacles – the gatherings of the majestic Steller’s Sea-Eagle, dancing Red-crowned Cranes in pristine snow, Blakiston’s Fish Owls at a known feeding site, and seabirds close inshore off rocky headlands.
Your Itinerary:
Day 1: Arrival in Tokyo; possible transfer to Karuizawa. Arrive in Tokyo (Narita Airport) by mid-afternoon. Depending upon times of arrival, we take a train into central Tokyo, to catch the bullet train to the Japanese Alps and Karuizawa situated in the centre of Honshu. Alternatively, we spend the first night in Tokyo. Night in Tokyo or in Karuizawa.
Days 2 - 3: Karuizawa. We have two days of exploration of this area of rugged mountains and snow and ice-covered forests. We should find many interesting species during our searches here. Target birds include the striking Copper Pheasant, the very attractive Japanese Grosbeaks, the endemic Japanese Green Woodpecker and Japanese Wagtail, the near-endemic Japanese Accenter and Japanese Waxwing, and a host of other highly sought-after species such as Long-tailed Rosefinch, Baikal Teal, Long-billed Plover, Azure-winged Magpie, Daurian Redstart and Varied Tit. Nights in Karuizawa.
Day 4: Transfer to Kyushu. This morning we take the high speed train to Haneda Airport where we board our plane to Kyushu. Upon arrival at Kagoshima airport, we drive through lowland woods and cultivation to our next lodgings at Arasaki and Izumi. On the way we may find Green Pheasant, Brown Dipper and Crested Kingfisher. Night at guesthouse near Izumi.
Day 5: Arasaki Crane Reserve. We visit the splendid crane reserve at Arasaki. There should be thousands of Hooded and White- naped Cranes bugling and feeding. We will search the flocks for Siberian White Cranes, also Common, Sandhill and possibly Demoiselle Cranes. In this same area, we will look for Greater Painted-Snipe, Daurian Jackdaw amongst flocks of Rooks, Chinese Penduline Tits amongst reeds, and several species of buntings – Chestnut-eared, Black-faced, Rustic, Meadow and maybe Gray. Night at guest house near Izumi.
Day 6: Coastal and Estuarine Birding. Today we head north to coastal estuaries which support large concentrations of waterbirds. We look especially for the little-known Saunders’ Gull amongst the numerous Black-tailed, Slaty-backed, Heuglin’s, Vega and other gulls.
Shorebirds are plentiful, and we have a good chance of finding Black-faced and Eurasian Spoonbills and possibly the splendid Falcated Duck. Cultivated fields hold wintering flocks of pipits including Olive-backed, and coastal areas have both Pelagic and Temminck’s Cormorants. Night at guest house near Izumi.
Day 7: Transfer to Mi-Ike. Our destination today is the impressive and scenic Crater Lake at Mi-ike in the Miyazaki prefecture. Our targets today are forest birds and wintering waterfowl. White-backed and Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers are here as well as Red-flanked Bluetails, Scaly Thrush, Varied Tit and Ryukyu Minivet. Special ducks may include Mandarin Ducks and sometimes Baikal Teal.
Night at Mi-Ike.
Day 8: Transfer to Hokkaido. Our morning will be planned around finding species we may not have seen up to now. We then spend the rest of the day traveling to our next destination, Lake Furen on the island of Hokkaido. We travel from Mi-ike to Kagoshima, fly to Haneda airport in Tokyo, then fly from Haneda to Kushiro airport on Hokkaido, and drive to Lake Furen for a three night stay.
Night at Lake Furen.
Days 9 - 11: Hokkaido. A winter wonderland setting on snow-covered forested landscapes. The winter gathering of Steller’s Sea Eagles is one of wildlife’s greatest spectacles. These huge magnificent raptors gather on the frozen lakes of Furen and Chobushi, where they rest on the ice in their hundreds. Often they come very close, a photographer’s dream. With them will be White-tailed Eagles, a huge bird in its own right but dwarfed by the Steller’s.
Offshore will be many waterfowl including scoters and Harlequin Duck, cormorants including Red-faced, and alcids including Spectacled Guillemots, Crested and Least Auklets and maybe Ancient Murrelets.
On Day 10, we travel northeast today to the Shiretoku Peninsula and the town of Rausu. We will enjoy more sightings of eagles, and we look for Asian Rosy Finch among the few passerines present, and Smew among waterbirds in the harbors. Our main quarry is the magnificent Blakiston’s Fish Owl, a very rare and highly sought-after species. We should have superb views of these huge birds close to where we stay. Two nights at Lake Furen, one night at Rausu.
Day 12: Dancing cranes and back to Tokyo. We visit the famous crane feeding areas at Tancho no Sato, where Red-crowned (Japanese) Cranes concentrate, and where there is much courtship dancing and bugling in the snow, presenting a wonderful spectacle and a photographer’s delight. After watching these splendid birds, we head off to Kushiro airport for our flight back to Tokyo, and an overnight stay near Narita. Night in Tokyo.
Day 13: Departure. Flight back home.
What to expect:
Be prepared for temperate climate on the southern islands and cold temperatures on Hokkaido. It should be mainly sunny, but there is a possibility of rain on Kyushu and snow on Hokkaido. It is best to dress in layers, and to have warm and waterproof footwear throughout, although running shoes should be fine on Honshu and Kyushu if the weather is dry. We usually have early breakfasts and some before-breakfast birding since it is best to begin birding at daybreak. Some lunches will be picnic style to maximize our time in the field.
We will be staying at guest houses, which require a little adapting on our parts. We will be sleeping on futons, eating Japanese foods, and sharing bathrooms. A spirit of adventure and willingness to fit into a very different culture will make the tour very much more enjoyable.
Walking conditions will be generally easy to moderate. Trails should be firm underfoot, but anywhere may be muddy depending on how recently it has rained. Insects should not be a problem at this time of year. In the evenings we usually eat at the hotel or lodge where we are staying and review the list of birds and other wildlife that we have encountered, as well as discuss the following day’s activities.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
$5250 with single supplement $375
$5775 with single supplement $420
Also see tour packages in:
Asia
Japan
Birdwatching
National Parks
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