I went to Kasai Rinkai with a friend again; this time I chalked up a new life bird. Actually, I had seen the Cattle Egret (Amasagi • アマサギ) before, but in captivity at a bird clinic in Yacho no Rakuen (Wild Birds’ Paradise). This time they were healthy and in the wild, at Kasai Rinkai, sitting in trees above the lake at the observation center (where the Cormorants are always hanging out).

So chalk up one more life bird. And I owe thanks to a very nice couple who pointed them out to me–I might have missed them otherwise!–the Kawaharas. They spoke English very well, and are great guides for watching–I hope I run into them again. In the meantime, they run a very nice web site in English for Tokyo-area birders. They also gave me their cards, which had a sweet title for them in the upper-left corner: “a birding couple.”

In addition to the Cattle Egrets, we spotted an immature Black-crowned Night Heron, like I did last year:

There was a nice-looking Grey Heron:

A few Little Ringed Plovers:

And a very pretty Black-winged Stilt:

From what others told us, we missed a Yellow Bittern and a nice Kingfisher.