Birds during  FONT 
Birding & Nature Tours
on the Japanese island 
of Amami 

1996 thru 2009

(noting months when found)

An Amami, Japan bird list compiled by Armas Hill

PHOTOS AT RIGHT:
The LIDTH'S JAY, endemic to Amami & a nearby small island
(photographed during a FONT tour) 
and the AMAMI WOODCOCK, also nearly endemic to Amami. 
 

139 species of birds have been found during FONT tours in Amami.


Codes:

(JPi): introduced species in Japan

(t): a globally threatened or rare species, designated by Birdlife International.
(t1): critical
(t2): endangered
(t3): vulnerable
(nt): considered a near-threatened species globally

(JPr): rare in Japan
(JPrs): rare in Japan in spring/summer
(JPrw): rare in Japan in winter

(AMr): rare on Amami

(JPe): Japanese endemic
(JPeb): endemic breeder in Japan
(JPneb): near-endemic breeder in Japan

(AMe): Amami endemic (or nearly so for the Lidth's Jay (pictured above), found only on one other small island)

(p): seen pelagically, from the ferry offshore

A booklet is available from Focus On Nature Tours listing all the birds that have been found during over a decade of FONT tours in Japan, with more information than given here, noting, for example, the Japanese islands where, and the months when, sightings have occurred. Please e-mail us if you'd like to receive a copy.    

Our first birding tour to the remote Japanese island of Amami was in 1996. 
Since then, FONT has done more than 15 tours there, 
and that's the most by any bird tour company.
The first two times we visited Amami we made the local newspaper,
as shown above, and remembered here now about 10 years later.

Links:

Upcoming Japan Birding & Nature Tour Itineraries   

Cumulative List of Birds during FONT Japan Tours  (with photos)

Bird-List from previous Japan Tours in the Spring

Mammals during FONT Tours in Japan

Birds:

1. Little Grebe ______ jan,nov,dec
   
   
2. Streaked Shearwater ______ may (p) 
   
   
3. Short-tailed Shearwater ______ may (p)
   
   
4. Flesh-footed Shearwater ______ may (p)
    
   
5. Brown Booby ______ nov
   
   
6. Japanese (or Temminck's) Cormorant ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
   
   
7. Cattle Egret ______ jan,may,dec
   
   
8. Little Egret ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
   
   
9. Yellow-billed (or Intermediate) Egret ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
   
   
10. Great Egret ______ jan,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
11. Grey Heron ______ jan,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
12. Striated Heron ______ jan,nov
    
    
13. Pacific (or Eastern) Reef Heron ______ jan,feb,jul,nov,dec
    
    
14. Yellow (or Chinese Little) Bittern ______ jul,nov
    
    
15. Cinnamon Bittern ______ jul
    
    
16. Eurasian Spoonbill (JPr) ______ jan
    
    
17. Black-faced Spoonbill (t1) (JPr) ______ dec
    
    
18. Common Shelduck ______ jan
    
    
19. Eurasian Wigeon ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
    
    
20. Eurasian Teal ______ jan
    
    
21. Gadwall ______ jan
    
    
22. Mallard ______ jan,nov,dec
    
    
23. Eastern Spot-billed Duck ______ jan,feb,jul,nov,dec
    
    
24. Northern Pintail ______ nov,dec
    
    
25. Northern Shoveler ______ jan,dec
    
    
26. Osprey ______ jan,feb,may,dec
    
    
27. Eurasian Sparrowhawk ______ jan
    
    
28. Japanese Sparrowhawk ______ jan,feb,may,dec
    
    
29. Grey-faced Buzzard ______ jan.feb,nov,dec
    
    
30. Common Kestrel ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
    
    
31. Eurasian Hobby ______ jan 
    
    
32. Peregrine Falcon ______ jan,nov,dec
    
    
33. Ruddy-breasted Crake ______ jul
    
    
34. Baillon’s Crake ______ nov
    
    
35. Swinhoe’s (or Asian Yellow) Rail (t3) (JPr) ______ dec
    
    
36. Watercock ______ jul
    
    
37. White-breasted Waterhen  ______  jan
    
    
38. Common Moorhen ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
39. Eurasian Coot ______ jan,nov
    
    
40. Black-winged Stilt ______ jul
    
    
41. Oriental Pratincole ______ may
    
    
42. Long-billed Plover ______ jan
    
    
43. Little Ringed Plover ______ jan,may,jul,dec
    
    
44. Common Ringed Plover ______ dec
    
    
45. Kentish Plover ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
46. Lesser Sand Plover (or Mongolian Plover)  ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
47. Greater Sand Plover (JPr) (AMr) ______ jan,may
    
    
48. Pacific Golden Plover ______ jan,dec
    
    
49. Grey (or Black-bellied) Plover ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
50. Northern Lapwing ______ jan
    
    
51. Red Knot ______ may
    
    
52. Red-necked Stint ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
53. Little Stint (JPr) (AMr)  ______ may
    
    
54. Sharp-tailed Sandpiper ______ may
    
    
55. Curlew Sandpiper ______ may
    
    
56. Dunlin ______ jan,nov,dec
    
    
57. Sanderling ______ jan,may,nov
    
    
58. Ruddy Turnstone ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
59. Bar-tailed Godwit ______ may
    
    
60. "Eurasian" Whimbrel ______ may
    
    
61. Eurasian Curlew ______ jan
    
    
62. Common Redshank  ______ may
    
    
63. Common Greenshank ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
64. Green Sandpiper ______ jan,dec
    
    
65. Common Sandpiper ______ jan,feb,may,nov,dec
    
    
66. Marsh Sandpiper ______ may
    
    
67. Wood Sandpiper ______ jul
    
    
68. Terek Sandpiper ______ may
    
    
69. Grey-tailed (or Polynesian) Tattler ______ jan,may,nov,dec
    
    
70. Common Snipe ______ jan,may
    
    
71. Eurasian Woodcock ______ dec
    
    
72. Amami Woodcock (t3) (JPe) ______ jan,feb,jul,nov,dec
    
    
73. Saunder’s Gull (t2) ______ jan,nov
    
    
74. Common Black-headed Gull ______ nov
    
    
75. Black-tailed Gull (JPneb) ______ jan,feb
    
    
76. Vega (Herring) Gull ______ jan
    
    
77. Whiskered Tern (JPr) ______ may (p)
    
    
78. Roseate Tern (nt) ______ may,jul
    
    
79. Little Tern ______ may
    
    
80. Feral Pigeon (JPi) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
81. Oriental Turtle Dove ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
82. Whistling Green-Pigeon (nt) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
83. Japanese (or Black) Wood-Pigeon (nt) (J:neb) ______ jan,feb,may,jul
    
    
84. Oriental Scops-Owl ______ may,dec
    
    
85. Ryukyu (or Elegant) Scops-Owl (J:neb) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec (formerly part of Oriental & Celebes Scops-Owls)
    
    
86. Brown Hawk-Owl ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
87. Long-eared Owl ______ jan,feb,may
    
    
88. House Swift ______ may,dec
    
    
89. Ruddy Kingfisher ______ may,jul
    
    
90. Common Kingfisher ______ jan,feb,may,nov,dec
    
    
91. Amami (or Owston's) Woodpecker (t2) (JPe) (AMe) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec (has been considered as part of White-backed Wodpecker)
    
    
92. Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker ______ jan,feb,may,nov,dec
    
    
93. Barn Swallow ______ jan,feb,dec
    
    
94. Pacific Swallow ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
    
    
95. Red-rumped Swallow ______ may
    
    
96. Asian House Martin ______ jan
    
    
97. Olive-backed Pipit ______ dec
    
    
98. Red-throated Pipit ______ jan
    
    
99. "Siberian" Buff-bellied Pipit ______ jan,feb  (formerly part of Water Pipit)
    
    
100. Grey Wagtail ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
101. White Wagtail ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
102. Brown-eared Bulbul (JPneb) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
103. Ryukyu Minivet (JPe) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,dec
     
     
104. Japanese Waxwing ______ jan
     
     
105. Bohemian Waxwing (AMr) ______ jan
     
     
106. Northern (or Winter) Wren (AMr) ______ jan
     
     
107. Ryukyu Robin (nt) (JAe) ______ jan,feb,may,nov,dec
     
     
108. Siberian Rubythroat ______ jan
     
     
109. Bluethroat (JAr) ______ jan
     
     
110. Daurian Redstart ______ jan,nov,dec
     
     
111. Red-flanked Bluetail  ______ jan,dec  (has also been called Orange-flanked Bush-Robin) 
     
     
112. Blue Rock Thrush (red-bellied form) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
113. White's (Ground) Thrush ______ jan,dec 
     
     
114. Amami Thrush (t1) (JAe) (AMe) ______ jan,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
115. Brown-headed Thrush (JPneb) ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
116. Pale Thrush ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
117. Dusky Thrush ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
118. Naumann's Thrush ______ feb  (was considered conspecific with Dusky Thrush)
     
     
119. Japanese (Grey) Thrush ______ dec
     
     
120. Japanese Bush-Warbler ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
121. Zitting Cisticola ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec (was called Fan-tailed Warbler)
     
     
122. Ijima’s Leaf Warbler (t3) (J:eb) ______ jan,feb,dec
     
     
123. Arctic Warbler ______ nov,dec
     
     
124. Yellow-browed Warbler (r/JA) ______ jan,nov
     
     
125. Ryukyu Flycatcher (t2) (JAe) ______ jan,may,nov  (resident in Nansei Shoto, has been part of Narcissus Flycatcher) 
     
     
126. Japanese Paradise-Flycatcher (nt) ______ may
     
     
127. Varied Tit ______ jan,feb,may,nov,dec
     
     
128. Great Tit ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
129. Japanese White-eye ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
130. Bull-headed Shrike ______ feb,dec
     
     
131. Lidth’s Jay (t3) (JPe) (AMe) ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
132. Rook ______ dec
     
     
133. Large-billed Crow ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
134. White-cheeked (or Grey) Starling ______ dec
     
     
135. Eurasian Tree Sparrow ______ jan,feb,may,jul,nov,dec
     
     
136. Eurasian Siskin ______ jan,dec
     
     
137. Grey Bunting ______ dec
     
     
138. Black-faced Bunting ______ jan,feb,nov,dec
     
     
139. Yellow-throated Bunting ______ feb,dec
     
     
     To Top of Page.