29th April 2008 All day at sea east of the Kuril Islands

White-billed Diver 1 ex.
Red-necked Grebe 1
Laysan Albatross 100
Fulmar 500
Short-tailed Shearwater 100
Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel 30
Pelagic Cormorant 50
Eurasian Wigeon 5
Teal 1
Stejneger's Scoter 2
Pomarine Skua 10
Arctic Skua 1
Vega Gull 1
Slaty-backed Gull 75
Kittiwake 25
Ancient Murrelet 2
Crested Auklet 2,500
Least Auklet 25
Tufted Puffin 150
Black-backed Wagtail 1 on deck
Dusky Thrush 1 on deck
Asian Rosy Finch 2 briefly landed on deck
Black-faced Bunting 1 on deck

Black-faced Bunting oboard the MS Statendam off the Kuril Islands

Laysan Albatross off the Kuril Islands

Tufted Puffins off the Kuril Islands

28th April 2008 At sea off east Hokkaido and Kuril Islands. NE7

Passed an impressive snow-covered volcano on one of the Kuril Islands.

Laysan Albatross 100
Fulmar 300
Short-tailed Shearwater 2,000
Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel 2 ex.
Pelagic Cormorant 1
Grey Heron 1
Pomarine Skua 2
Black-tailed Gull 5
Kamchatka Gull 1
Slaty-backed Gull 50
Kittiwake 15
Guillemot 2
Rhinoceros Auklet 1
Tufted Puffin 6 ex.
Dusky Thrush 1 on deck

Laysan Albatross off the Kurils

Pacific Fulmar off the Kurils



Dusky Thrush hitching a lift north on the MS Statendam off the Kurils

27th April 2008 Hakodate

Awoke to rainy and misty conditions at dawn finding a few migrant passerines on deck. Sailed into Hakodate and met Stuart Price at 8am who kindly took us to the Onuma Lake area despite the rain!

Red-throated Diver 1
Little Grebe 4
Great Crested Grebe 1
Red-necked Grebe 1
Short-tailed Shearwater c.10,000
Japanese Cormorant 70
Pelagic Cormorant 5
Grey Heron 2
Eurasian Wigeon 300
Teal 15
Mallard 6
Spot-billed Duck 10
Shoveler 2
Tufted Duck 5
Scaup 50
Red-breasted Merganser 25
Goosander 6
Osprey 1
Black-eared Kite 10
Buzzard 1
Peregrine 1
Common Sandpiper 2
Pomarine Skua 1
Black-headed Gull 100
Black-tailed Gull 100
Kamchatka Gull 75
Vega Gull 5
Slaty-backed Gull 15
Glaucous-winged Gull 1
Glaucous Gull 5
Kittiwake 4
Rhinoceros Auklet 2
Feral Pigeon 6
Oriental Turtle Dove 6
Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker 1
Asian House Martin 20
Grey Wagtail 1
Black-backed Wagtail 2
Japanese Wagtail 1
Brown-eared Bulbul 10
Japanese Grey Thrush 1 male
Dusky Thrush 12
Asian Stubtail 1 ex. on deck!
Japanese Bush Warbler h
Narcissus Flycatcher 1 female dead on deck
Marsh Tit 8
Varied Tit 1
Great Tit 4
Nuthatch 2
Bull-headed Shrike 1
Carrion Crow 5
Large-billed Crow 2
White-cheeked Starling 6
Tree Sparrow 10
Russet Sparrow 2
Oriental Greenfinch 6
Black-faced Bunting 8

Siberian Nuthatch at Onuma Lake

Marsh Tit at Onuma Lake

 Eastern Great Tit at Onuma Lake

Kamchatka Gull at Hakodate

Kamchatka and Black-tailed Gulls at Hakodate

Black-tailed Gulls at Hakodate



 Short-tailed Shearwaters off Hakodate

26th April 2008 At sea between Tokyo and north Honshu

Superb seabirding from 5am to 6pm.

Black-footed Albatross 36 ex.
Laysan Albatross 82 ex.
Short-tailed Albatross 6 ex. including 2 adults
Fulmar 2
Streaked Shearwater c.5,000
Flesh-footed Shearwater 3
Sooty Shearwater 2
Short-tailed Shearwater c.15,000
Swinhoe's Storm-Petrel 93 ex.
Wilson's Storm-Petrel 1 ex.
Grey Phalarope 3,300 ex.
Pomarine Skua 5
Arctic Skua 1
Long-tailed Skua 1
South Polar Skua 1
Black-tailed Gull 95
Vega Gull 18
Slaty-backed Gull 2
Glaucous-winged Gull 2
Glaucous Gull 1
Kittiwake 5
Guillemot 5
Brunnich's Guillemot 5
Ancient Murrelet 2
Japanese Murrelet 6
Ancient / Japanese Murrelet c.25

Short-tailed Shearwaters off Honshu

Short-tailed Shearwaters and Laysan Albatross off Honshu

Short-tailed Shearwaters off Honshu

Grey Phalaropes off Honshu

 Black-tailed Gull off Honshu

Pacific Kittwake off Honshu

Laysan Albatross off Honshu

Black-footed and Laysan Albatrosses off Honshu

Swinhoe's Storm-Petrel off Honshu