NATIONAL PARK

NATIONAL PARK

Wildlife in Hakone-Birds

Wildlife in Hakone-Birds

Akagera (Great Spotted Woodpecker; Dendrocopos major) [Picidae]


Size 24cm. Four different kinds of woodpeckers inhabit Hakone. The male birds look as if they are wearing a red cap and red trousers. Ooakagera, the White-backed woodpecker, can also be seen. The red cap is even more notable.

Kogera (Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker; Dendrocopos kizuki) [Picidae]


Size 15cm. With the exception of the breeding season, they flock together with the Great tit, Varied tit, and Long-tailed tit. Their characteristic cry sounds “Ghee.’’

Aogera (Japanese Woodpecker; Picus Awokera) [Picidae]


Size 29 cm. Of the woodpeckers that frequent Hakone, it is the largest in size. To make their nests, they bore into the tree-trunk. The hole is a cylindrical-perfect in shape, as if made with a compass.

Hoojiro (Meadow Bunting; Emberiza cioides) [Emberizidae]


Size 16.5 cm. Of an impressive appearance sings with an erect head. Its cry sounds like “Ippitsukeijo tsukamatsuri sourou.’’ (A Japanese term used at the beginning of letters).

Aoji (Black-faced Bunting; Emberiza spodocephala) [Emberizidae]


Size 16 cm. It lives in grassland on the forest edge. The pitched cry comes from ground-level, sounding a short “Ji.’’ In the breeding season, their characteristic song can be heard ascending from the treetop and branches. The nest is made of grasses in bushes close to ground-level. They compete with the soshicho (Leiothrix lutea) , a non-native species, for habitat.

Sendaimushikui (Crowned Warbler; Phylloscopus coronatus) [Phylloscopidae)


Size 12.3 cm. Its cry sounds like “chicho chichobi’’ which sounds like “ a glass of shochu liquor, gui(drinking sound).” While in near-stationary flight, hovering around the tree, it devours chironomus midges.

Yamasemi (Crested Kingfisher; Megaceryle lugubris) [Cerylidae)


Size 38 cm. The beak and the large crown of a mottled black and white pattern, is impressive to the eye, though not as noticeable in the dimmer light of a forest. They dive for fish underwater.

Kawasemi (Kingfisher; Alcedo atthis) [Alcedinidae]


Size 17 cm. A master in the art of catching fish, having a lovely colorful cobalt-blue back. Perches on branches protruding over the surface of the water. It seeks little fish, geothelphusa, and dragonflies.

Hoshihajiro (Common Pochard; Aythya fenna) [Anatidae]


Size; Male(Drake)—48 cm., female(Hen)—43 cm
A pretty duck having a brown head, black-breast with red eyes. Most aquatic. They dive well to get food sources, including animal substances, feeding mainly on vegetable matter.

Kogamo (Eurasial teal) [Anatidae)


Size 38 cm. The teal is the smallest duck in size that migrates to Japan. It customarily flies to Lake Ashinoko, but in recent years, it has also been seen in surrounding rivers and ponds. It cries “piri, piri’’ in a high pitch.

Kinkurohaji (Tufted duck; Aythya fuligula) [Anatidae]


Size 44 cm. This bird has a black face and golden eyes, with a prominent long crest that trails behind. The notable anterior is white. It feeds on small fish and aquatic plants. It dives well.

Enaga (Long-tailed tit; Aegithalos caudatus) [Aegithalidae)


Size 13.5 cm. It has a roundish body with a long tail, similar to a long-handled ladle. While hanging on branches, it looks for small insects. The nest is made in forked branches, by using moss bound by the silken spider web.

Ooruri (Blue- and- white flycatcher; Cyanoptila cyananelana) [Muscicapidae]


Size 16.5 cm. A migratory bird of summer. On arrival in Japan, it sings ‘’pii rii rii jiji’’ in places of sunlight. When the song is heard, look for the birds singing on the tips of branches near open space.

Kibitaki (Narcissus flycatcher; Ficeldula narcissina) [Muscicapidae]


Size 13.5 cm. Its song is often heard between the months of mid-April to July. It sounds like “chotto koi, pikkolo tsukutsuku fi, pi hyororo.’’ Other sounds might also be heard.

Benimashiko (Long-tailed rosefinch; Uragus sibiricus) [Fringillidae]


Size 15 cm. In early winter, it eats the fruits of gamazumi ( Linden arrowroot, Viburnum dilatatum) and murasakishikibu (Japanese beautyberry; Callicarpa japonica). And from late winter to early spring, it eats the fresh young shoots of utsugi (bridal wreath; Deutzia crenata) and Sakura (cherry tree) when they begin to swell.

Ikaru (Japanese finch grosbeak; Euphona personata) [Fringillidae]


Size 23 cm. It eats seeds, by cracking them open with its thick yellow beak. Male and female birds sing in the same tone of “kii ko kii.’’

Higara (Coal tit; Peripera ater linnaeus.) [paridae]


Size 11 cm. It has a small body, with an unkempt feathered head, resembling a mischievous child wearing a bib. It twitters “tsu pi, tsu pi,’’ very quickly.

Yamagara (Varied tit; Sittiparus varius) [Paridae]


Size 14 cm. Its characteristic song, “Tsu u tsu pi tsu u’’ is made in a rather slow deliberate way.
It loves the seeds of Japanese snowbell (Styrax japonica). It comes close to the base of the tree to pick up the seeds which it then takes to a branch to crack open.

Shijukara (Japanese tit; Parus minor) [Paridae]


Size 14.5 cm. In both males and females, the plumage is somewhat like a dress bow-tie, the essential difference only being that male wears a more pronounced tie than the female. The cheerful song goes “tsuppi, tsuppi, tsuppi.’’

Kiji (Green pheasant; Phasianus versicolor) [Phasianus]


Size; Male—80cm, Female—60cm.
The Japanese national bird. The male cries “ken ke-en” whilst flapping and fluttering its wings.
This is termed, “horo uchi.’’

Kakesu (Eurasian jay; Garrulus glandarius,) [Corvidae]


Size 33cm. It has a fierce appearance, but also with a beautifully patterned plumage. “Gyaa gyaa’’ is its typical cry. It eats nuts, but also carnivorous, pecking at the corpse of a dead animal. It even attacks the nests of small birds.

Kikuitadaki (Gold crest; Regulus regulus) [Regulidae]


Size 10cm.
This is the smallest of Japanese wild birds.
It breeds in the coniferous forest to the north of central parts. Some migrate in winter, but it can also be seen in the plains in that season.

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