Russell Jenkins Stoop Files

Thank you to Billy for introducing me to Hitoshi. And thank you to Hitoshi for meeting me at the port at Sado.

At first, I was disappointed it was a rainy day, but the rain was soft and the island was covered in mist and puddles. Hitoshi drove me around the island in his car and showed me a few of its special sites and it was like his car was a paint brush flowing through a beautiful Japanese sumi-e, (Japanese ink wash) painting.  It was a very inspirational experience.

The island has mountains like book-ends. Mountains to the north and mountains to the south, and in between is a vast mosaic of rice-fields. I could see rain drops creating little circles in the water of the fields where we searched for Sado’s famously treasured “Toki-bird”, Nipponia nippon, the Crested Ibis. This Ibis has been successfully rescued from extinction since I have been in Japan. It was truly wonderful to find them living freely on this beautiful island.

I first wrote about Toki on this blog back in 2009, when a single bird was roosting at a regular spot in Uchino in Niigata City. It was one of the original birds from a breeding program released on Sado back in 2008. The last known wild Japanese Crested Ibis was captured and brought into a breeding program more than 20 years ago and died in captivity in 2003. Hitoshi confirmed that it passed away in captivity in 2003. Actually, I still remember reading the news when I was in Australia. I had always believed that it had successfully bred with others brought here from China. I have now learned from Hitoshi that my belief was not true. All the birds on Sado are Chinese. Hitoshi told me there are now 550 of these beautiful and unique looking Ibis living on the island. You can read about my first encounter here on my website.

(Please click on the blue links.)

I also have posts here and Toki is included in a post about my friend Mr Honma.

It took an hour to find our first Ibis, and it was thrilling to see it grazing naturally in the rings of water created by rain drops. We saw about 5 through the day. Each individually. Like rare gem stones scattered over the fields. We also encountered a Racoon Dog, (Tanuki) and egrets and herons about the place. A Japanese Green Pheasant was seen peering at us through the long grass roadside. Lots of smaller birds graced us with their songs when we wound down the car windows. I was very happy to see lots of sea birds on the far side of the island. (The sea-gulls seem to have mostly disappeared from Niigata City recently).

Below: Hitoshi also took me to a traditional Japanese Inn and we had a huge sashimi lunch. Fresh as the day.

I really enjoyed the ferry ride from Niigata City to the island and back. On the way back to Niigata City I enjoyed seeing dolphins skimming about the place, (maybe Pacific White-sided Dolphins – Lagenorhynchus obliquidens) and various species of seabirds far off through my binoculars. Maybe some kind of “Loons”? I think I’ll do the ferry ride again someday, even just to see the wildlife at sea.

This was only my second visit to Sado. Here is a post about my first visit. I hope to go back in the near future to meet Hitoshi and be thrilled again at Sado-jima’s precious treasures.

Thank you so much to Hitoshi and Billy for your kindness, and this special day.