pajareo

Silhouette of an Egyptian Vulture soaring overhead against a pale sky. The bird’s narrow wings are spread wide and its wedge-shaped tail is clearly visible.

That tail! The Egyptian Vulture has a distinctive wedge-shaped tail that makes its silhouette easy to spot even from far below.

📍 Bolonia, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A European Bee-eater seen from below against a clear blue sky. Its wings are spread wide, showing warm golden-brown tones, and its greenish body and long pointed bill are visible.

The European Bee-eater is pure color in motion. But the show isn’t just visual, it’s also sound. They fill the air with their soft, trilling calls as they glide and hover 🐝

📍 Caños de Meca Spain
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📷 #Photography

A Spotted Flycatcher perched on a thin branch among a tangle of twigs. The small bird has streaked brownish-grey plumage and a pale underside.

Back to the usual suspects (on this account at least). Just a beautiful Spotted Flycatcher waiting quietly on a branch to snatch insects in mid-air 🌿🐦🪰

📍 Caños de Meca, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

Today's #BirdOfTheDay is #Heron 🖤

A Griffon Vulture gliding over a hazy landscape, its broad brown wings and pale head stand out against the grey cliffs and hazy sky.

There’s something ancient about watching vultures glide. The Griffon Vulture barely moves its wings as it circles the cliffs. 

Effortless, silent, it hardly needs to move. Just keeps floating over the valley carried only by the wind and the heat rising.

📍 Bolonia, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Egyptian Vulture gliding against a soft, hazy mountain background. Its broad wings are outstretched, showing dark flight feathers and pale body markings.

We've got to see the mighty Egyptian Vultures! They’re among the few birds known to use tools. They’ll pick up stones to crack open eggs 🧠

We also spotted a few adults with that striking white-and-yellow plumage, but couldn’t get good shots of them.

📍 Bolonia, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

Several Griffon Vultures perched on a rocky cliff. Their pale heads contrast against rugged mountains in the background.

Isn't this shot beautiful? The way the Griffon Vultures blend into the rocky cliff, standing out against the plain background almost like a papercut ⛰️

📍 Bolonia, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

Agree! We'll post a few more in the following days 😉

Indeed!

A Griffon Vulture gliding over a hazy landscape, its broad brown wings stretched wide and the pale head turned slightly downward.

The Griffon Vulture is an absolute giant of the sky. With a wingspan that can reach almost 2.8 meters, it glides riding thermals with barely a wingbeat.

They also have bad press. Very unfair! They're actually nature’s living recyclers ♻️

📍 Bolonia, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Rock Pigeon perched on a stone with green foliage in the background. Its plumage is dark grey with an iridescent sheen on the neck and patterned wings.

Are there Rock Pigeons in Japan? Of course, as this is probably the most familiar bird in the world. Not bad for all the hate they get 🕊️❤️

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

Probably!

A Little Egret walking through shallow water. Its plumage is pure white, its bill is black, and its long black legs end in bright yellow feet.

This Little Egret decided to show up in its yellow socks this morning 🧦

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Great Cormorant perched on a wooden post above the water. Its plumage is glossy black with a scaled pattern on the wings, and it has a yellow throat patch and hooked bill.

How awesome is the scaled pattern of the plumage of this Great Cormorant. Also, the glossy black with a on the wings combined with the yellow throat patch looks pretty badass 🦇

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

An Osprey perched on a bare tree branch against a pale sky. The bird shows dark brown wings, white underparts, and a white head with a bold dark eye stripe. Its crest feathers are slightly raised.

Ospreys are fairly common in Japan. This one was being bothered by a group of Large-Billed Crows, probably expecting a price in the shape of a bird.

What is unclear is what's the object hanging from the tree branch... ideas? ⛩️

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Little Ringed Plover standing on mudflats. It has sandy-brown wings, a white underside, yellow legs, and a distinctive black-and-white head pattern with a bright yellow eye ring.

Believe it or not, Little Ringed Plovers are masters of camouflage. You can only notice them once they start running.

This little cutie was foot-stamping the ground. It is believed that they do it to mimic raindrops, encouraging subterranean prey to surface 🤯

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
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📷 #Photography

A Grey Heron standing in shallow water. It has grey wings, a pale neck streaked with dark lines, and a sharp yellow bill.

This one’s a younger Grey Heron, with streaks along its neck and a slightly scruffier look than the smooth, clean plumage of adults. Still, it already carries itself with that unmistakable heron poise, always ready to strike 🐟⚡

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
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📷 #Photography

A Great Egret wading in shallow water, with its long white body, slender neck, and bright yellow bill standing out against the rippling surface.

This Great Egret is waiting patiently before striking with lightning speed to catch fish 🐟⚡

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

👋

A Chinese spot-billed duck swimming calmly on green water. The duck has dark brown patterned plumage, a pale face with a bold black eye stripe, and a yellow-tipped bill.

Say hi to this Chinese spot-billed duck, an Anatinae (dabbling duck) that breeds in East and Southeast Asia. 

Unlike many ducks, it doesn’t migrate long distances. Look how calm it looks. Pretty sure it's going to stay local all year round.

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
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📷 #Photography

A Eurasian Tree Sparrow standing on green grass. It has a chestnut-brown cap, white cheeks with a black spot, and streaked brown wings.

The most common sparrow in Japan is not the House Sparrow, as it happens in Europe, but the Tree Sparrow.

This one was literally doing what Theodore Roosevelt once counseled: “Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground.”

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Japanese Tit perched upside down on a tree branch, showing its black head, white cheeks, and pale belly against a background of blurred green leaves.

The Japanese Tit is closely related to the European Great Tit. It's hard to tell them apart tbh.

This one never seemed to stop moving, hanging from branches in all sorts of acrobatic poses while searching for insects 🐦🌿🪲

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

they're badasses

A Large-billed Crow standing on tree roots covered with moss, holding a piece of food in its beak. Its glossy black plumage shows bluish and purple reflections in the sunlight.

The Large-billed Crow is a common sight in Japan, and it definitely makes its presence known with that powerful beak!

It is said that crows are capable of recognizing human faces, and this one was staring right at us... 👹

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Common Kingfisher perched on a short branch above the water. In the first photo it’s seen from the side, showing its long dark bill, orange underparts, and turquoise-green wings. In the second, it’s seen from behind, highlighting the bright blue streak down its back and tail.

Have you ever seen a Japanese Kingfisher? Now you have. The colors look a bit different (maybe slightly duller?) compared to their European relatives. 

We found this one at the fantastic Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park (www.wildbirdpark.jp) 🌿🎍

🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

A Eurasian Collared Dove perched on a wooden post of a fence, with sunlight highlighting its soft beige feathers and the black collar on its neck.

Isn't this collared dove a gentle-looking bird?

Fact: This species actually spread across Europe only in the 20th century. An impressive range expansion for such a calm, quiet bird.

📍 Seville, Spain
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📷 #Photography

A Spotted Flycatcher perched on a branch among green leaves. It is slim, with streaked brown plumage and a pale underside.

Spotted flycatcher is a personal favorite.

These little birds are masters of HAWKING: a feeding strategy consisting of sallying out from a perch to snatch an insect mid-air and then returning to the same or a different perch 🐦🎯🪰

📍 Seville, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography

Thank you ❤️

A European Greenfinch perched on a dark surface with a plain green background. Its plumage is mostly olive-brown with flashes of bright yellow on the wings and tail.

This young Greenfinch is showing up from time to time in our terrace. The new feeder with seeds is definitely working but still there's like some judgement in their eyes 🧐

📍 Seville, Spain
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📷 #Photography

A male European Stonechat perched on a thin dry branch. It has a black head, white neck patch, orange chest, and pale belly.

This European Stonechat is a tiny bird with a lot of attitude. Males show off striking plumage, like they’re always dressed for the occasion.

Fun fact: their name comes from their sharp call, which sounds like two stones clicking together 🪨💥🪨

📍 Luque, Spain
🪶 #Birds
📷 #Photography