Birding at Hiji Falls

The entire family was heading north today, although slightly different destinations. Ryan and his friend, Ian, were headed to the new spot at Ada, hoping to have a repeat of last weekend's grouper encounter. I was on the prowl for different game with a different weapon: new bird species (any), captured with my Nikon. The plan was that I would meet up with Ryan and Ian after my birding adventure at Hiji Falls for a bit of snorkeling. I figured I would need an opportunity to cool off after walking around in Okinawa summer heat and humidity.

I arrived at the parking area for Hiji Falls earlier than the park opened. Although the falls is only barricaded by a low-hanging rope that I could easily hope over, I prefer to play by the rules established by the country in which I am a guest. This would be a fantastic place to try some owl playbacks, and I may try this someday when we can take advantage of the campsites the park maintains. I passed the time by birding along the river fed by the falls, as well as the wildlife center nearby. Several maps are at the parking areas of both the falls and the wildlife center, so I took some photos to better plan my next birding/hiking excursions. It is always good to have some terrestrial options for those days when the sea conditions are East Danger/West Danger.

The park opened, and I took my time getting to the falls. Spring in April and May are usually the prettiest months on Okinawa, but there were still several blooms, insects, and birds out and about.

On my way to the falls, I noticed a cavity that looked like it might be a good place for an owl. My binoculars showed that the cavity, nearly 10 m above the ground, was well used by several slugs. Not what I intended, and I was a little repulsed by the mass of slugs and slime on the ledge of the cavity and just outside. Strangely, I could not turn away nor leave the area without preserving the scene.

I made it to the falls and they were as pretty as when I first visited them with Kentaro. A family and a couple were enjoying the view of the falls, taking pictures, and seeking ways to get closer to the pool, so I didn't stick around very long. On my way back to the trailhead, I heard some Ruddy Kingfishers calling. I am a softie for kingfishers, and this was a species that I had not seen yet. The Ruddy Kingfishers are all over Okinawa. It is nearly impossible to be outside in the northern half of Okinawa without hearing their sweet descending trill of a song, but they are shy and difficult to see. Usually, I get close without knowing exactly where they are, only to see a flash of red as they retreat well beyond my eyes and binoculars. On this day, I got lucky in an ornithological sense.

I saw three individuals fly across the river and land in trees above the trail ~30 m ahead of me. I found a place where I could see one clearly and snapped a few pictures. I attempted to get closer by moving forward very slowly, using every bit of cover available to me. I managed to get a bit nearer for several photos of the nearest Ruddy Kingfisher, but still a little far for a quality photo. I did get excellent looks for a long time through binoculars. Such beautiful birds!  I was thrilled. I decided to leave on a high note and join Ryan and Ian for some snorkeling.

In the campground, I noticed some activity on a tree trunk. Upon further investigation, I watched as two lizards battled it out for....something. They were oblivious to me, so I managed several photos of these (presumably) males.

When I joined Ryan and Ian, they had been in the water for several hours already and were thinking about calling it a day. The swim out to join them was enough of a cool-down. They'd decided to have lunch at a popular and "oishii" hamburger spot in Nago before heading south, and it was the perfect end to our day.