Tag: Oowashi

This is a Steller’s Sea Eagle that we observed during a Drift Ice Cruise from Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula. It is such a handsome looking bird of prey, with white wings, a white tail, and a large yellow beak and yellow legs.

When open, the wingspan measures 220 to 250cm (7.2 – 8.2 feet), and the weight can be heavy from 5 to 9 kg (11-20 lbs), and the females are usually a bit larger than the males.

They breed on the coasts of the Sea of Okhotsk and the coast of Kamchatka Peninsula, and in the winter a small part of that population will come to the southern part of the Kuril Islands and Hokkaido. There are about 3,200 pairs in the world, and about 2,000 individuals are thought to migrate to Hokkaido for the winter.

The name “Steller’s Sea Eagle” came from the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller.

Steller was of German but he joined the Russian expedition of Vitus Bering who set out to explore the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands. In 1741, after Bering died of illness on Bering Island, now part of the Commander Islands, the remaining crew and Steller were able to escape and returned home to tell the world of the newly discovered sea animals, such as the Steller’s sea cow and the seabirds living in the area.

Then, as an unfortunate result of being “discovered,” the Steller’s sea cow was overfished and gone extinct within only 27 years of its discovery. Spectacled cormorants were also extinct by 1852.

The reconstructed skeleton of the Steller’s sea cow on display in a private gallery on Bearing Island, Commander Islands.

Returning to the Steller’s sea eagles, they spend the winter in Hokkaido and move back north in the first week of March. It is thought that these Sea eagles did not originally migrate long distances, but came floating on the drift ice to Hokkaido and the Kuril Islands. Then they would return to their breeding grounds for the courtship season. They will lay 1-3 eggs between April to May.

The Steller’s sea eagles against the backdrop of the town of Rausu. Soon, they will be heading back North.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: February 2018, Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: Steller's sea eagle, Birding tour Japan, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Rausu, Bird tour Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Rausu drift ice cruise, Bird Watching Japan, Birds of Hokkaido, Eagle photography of Japan, Wildlife in Japan, Birds of Japan, Birds Photography of Japan, 知床サライ, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Rausu sunrise drift ice cruise, Shiretoko Serai, Wildlife tour in Japan, Shireoko, Wildlife in Hokkaido, Shiretoko peninsula, 羅臼, Oowashi, White-tailed eagle, Ojirowashi, White-tailed sea eagle, 知床

This is a report from our February 28th Rausu Drift Ice Cruise. We were told to be at the harbor at 4:45 in the morning, so we went straight from the “Washi no Yado”, where we were observing the Blakiston’s Owl up until 4:30am. Without a cloud in the sky, the stars were shining so brightly, in the crisp wintery air of Shiretoko. We headed to the harbor, filled with expectations thinking “Today might be a beautiful day.”

As we departed, I took this shot looking back at the town of Rausu with the backdrop of mountains on the Shiretoko Peninsula.

The Kunashir Island blanketed with red. The captain announced, “Today the drift ice is very close.” Sure enough, we could soon make out the dark shadowy outline of the drift ice.

The drift ice in the foreground, with Kunashiri Island behind. It is beautifully silhouetted in the morning light. The captain let us know “The sun will come out soon.” Everyone was waiting on the deck.

Daybreak.

The Steller’s sea eagles on the drift ice with the morning sun.

The Steller’s sea eagles and White-tailed eagles started to gather around our boat (and the crows too!) Besides that, it was a really beautiful day today!

There are endless shutter clicks on the deck of the ship. Many foreigner bird photographers are on board for the tour and it is not limited to just Japanese people. The early morning daybreak cruise is quite a “hard challenge” because we had just stayed up all night, for observing the Blakiston’s Fish Owls, but this scenery is a wonderful reward for our efforts.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: February 2018, Rausu, Siretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: Steller's sea eagle, Birding tour Japan, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Rausu, Bird tour Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Rausu drift ice cruise, Bird Watching Japan, Birds of Hokkaido, Eagle photography of Japan, Wildlife in Japan, Birds of Japan, Birds Photography of Japan, 知床サライ, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Rausu sunrise drift ice cruise, Shiretoko Serai, Wildlife tour in Japan, Shireoko, Wildlife in Hokkaido, Shiretoko peninsula, 羅臼, Oowashi, White-tailed eagle, Ojirowashi, White-tailed sea eagle, 知床

Winter 2021 Eastern Hokkaido Photography Tour Report

This time, for the Rausu Drift Ice Cruise, there was no drift ice out at sea, so the photography cruise took place in the fishing port.
Due to that situation, however, it proved to be challenging to get photos of the Steller’s sea eagle and White-tailed eagles without any buildings in the background. For the first half of the tour I was trying to get them with the ice and snow as the backdrop, and then for the second half I mainly took shots of them flying in the air. The staff on the ship assisted in this effort by expertly throwing the fish in the air.

A Steller’s sea eagle flying towards our boat.

Battling for food mid-air.

I wondered if it is just less risky to steal another eagle’s fish rather than grabbing the ones that have fallen on the ice surface?

Fierce competition.

Oh no! You dropped your fish!

Perhaps the White-tailed eagles are a little more mature? I had the impression that the fights occurred more amongst the Steller’s sea eagles (maybe it just seemed that way for that particular morning tour).

Although I was taking photos in the fishing port (it’s hard to call it a ‘cruise’ since we didn’t get out to sea!) we were blessed with good weather where we could see the beautiful eagles flying in the skies above.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Feb 2021, Rausu, Hokkaido
Special Thanks: The staff at Gojira-iwa Kanko

*Contact  us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: Steller's sea eagle, Bird tour Japan, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Rausu, Bird Watching Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Rausu drift ice cruise, Wildlife in Japan, Birds of Hokkaido, Eagle photography of Japan, 知床サライ, Birds of Japan, Birds Photography of Japan, Shiretoko Serai, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Rausu sunrise drift ice cruise, Wildlife in Hokkaido, Wildlife tour in Japan, Shireoko, 羅臼, Shiretoko peninsula, オオワシ, Oowashi, White-tailed eagle, Ojirowashi, White-tailed sea eagle, Birding tour Japan