Hokkaido – Roumazeilles.net

Japanese cranes

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 21 Jun 2020 20:10:00 +0000

The crane is one of these symbols coming through the centuries to feed Japanese culture. It’s everywhere. Usually called tanchōzuru, it is said to live 1000 years. It will be found on coins, bills, company logos (e.g. Japan Airlines), but also on many ukiyo-e, traditional paper prints from woodblock engravings.

Inevitably, crane flocks are met with small crowds of photographers (Japan is photo paradise) or of mere fans, like at Ottawa Bridge where you will need to arrive early (understand “well before sunrise”) to reserve a location to spot cranes when they take off after a night spent in the middle of the river.

Red-crowned crane, also called Manchurian crane or Japanese crane; Grue du Japon, grue de Mandchourie ou encore grue à couronne rouge (Grus japonensis)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Kitsune, or red fox

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 20 Jun 2020 19:50:00 +0000

The northern hemisphere predator with the most extensive range: The ubiquitous red fox. As in Europe, the red fox (locally known under the lovely name of kitsune) is relatively difficult to find but, once found, it is not very easily afraid of human presence.

Red fox, Renard roux (Vulpes vulpes)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Whooper swan

Yves Roumazeilles — Fri, 19 Jun 2020 19:36:00 +0000

Strong and dignified, the whooper swan is marvelous subject, in snow as much as in sun.

Whooper swan, Cygne siffleur (Cygnus cygnus)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Rausu, temple of fishing sea eagles

Yves Roumazeilles — Thu, 18 Jun 2020 19:21:00 +0000

White-tailed sea eagle

Yves Roumazeilles — Wed, 17 Jun 2020 18:21:00 +0000

More common than the Steller’s sea eagle, the white-tailed sea eagle is a very powerful bird of prey.

White-tailed sea eagle, Pygargue à queue blanche (Haliaeetus albicilla)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Eagles conflicts

Yves Roumazeilles — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 18:16:00 +0000

Eagles fighting

Steller’s sea eagle

Yves Roumazeilles — Mon, 15 Jun 2020 18:01:00 +0000

This sea eagle is one of the largest bird of prey. Magestic in flight, armed with powerful talons and a mighty yellow beak, it may remind of the American bald eagle (or the African fish eagle), but it is a quite different species.

You may want to see it actually fishing at sea.

Steller’s sea eagle, Pygargue de Steller (Haliaeetus pelagicus)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Short-eared owl

Yves Roumazeilles — Sun, 14 Jun 2020 17:47:00 +0000

Short-eared owl, Hibou des marais (Asio flammeus)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Black kite

Yves Roumazeilles — Sat, 13 Jun 2020 17:56:00 +0000

Black kite, Milan noir (Milvus migrans)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Blakiston’s fish owl

Yves Roumazeilles — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 17:31:00 +0000

Let’s immediately start with the public admission that this beautiful night hunter was shot from a commercial and perfectly setup lookout (perfect from the photographic point of view, more rustic from the comfort point of view; But what do you expect when you come and visit to spend two full nights patiently waiting for this local fishing bird.

Blakiston’s fish owl, Grand Duc de Blakiston (Bubo blakistoni)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Ural owl (Ezo owl)

Yves Roumazeilles — Thu, 11 Jun 2020 17:19:00 +0000

Ezo, the ancient name of the Hokkaido Island, has been kept locally to describe the Ural owl that is somewhat common in the North of the eurasian continent.

Ural owl (Ezo owl), Chouette de l’Oural ou chouette d’Ezo (Strix uralensis)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Snow monkeys in the mountain

Yves Roumazeilles — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 17:03:00 +0000

Those Japanese macaques should have suffered long ago from the violent assaults of the harsh winters from Hokkaido; They should have disappeared from these regions hostile to the small cercopithécidae (or “old world monkeys“). And still, they adapted. Specifically, they learned to warm themselves in the spa waters of always-warm springs created by the intense local geothermal activity.

Japanese macaque, Macaque japonais (Macaca fuscata)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Sika deer

Yves Roumazeilles — Tue, 09 Jun 2020 16:54:00 +0000

Its latin name could not make it more nippon than that: Cervus nippon.

Sika deer

Sika deer, Cerf sika (Cervus nippon)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.

Mallard duck

Yves Roumazeilles — Mon, 08 Jun 2020 16:49:00 +0000

Mallard, Canard colvert (Anas platyrhynchos)
Hokkaido, Japan North island, January/February 2019.