A visit to Jongdal bay area on the east coast in early January proved to be quite good. This area is one of the best spots on Jeju during wintertime because it's a sure way to find a wide variety of overwintering ducks, gulls, and surprise shorebirds. The wind was quite fierece this day, but luckily no rain, which made viewing birds surprisingly easy. The winds locked them down, keeping them within viewing distance, with no pesky rain to make difficult weather circumstances more challenging.
Of the gulls, there was a Mongolian Gull mixed in, but didn't get a photo. Otherwise, it seemed like all the regular Jeju winter species represented here, including Common Gull, which isn't too common on Jeju. Saunders and Black-headed show up occasionaly but generally in single numbers throughout the year. Glaucous and Glaucous-winged also show up but seem to be even more uncommon (the latter being the rarest down this south).
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| Slaty-backed Gull |
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| Vega Gull |
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| Taimyr Gull |
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| Common Gull |
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| Black-tailed Gull |
In terms of waterfowl, the usual suspects were present, in particular large numbers of Gadwalls, Falcated Ducks, and Eurasian Wigeons. Expected species for this place and time. Mixed in with the Wigeons was one individual that I assume is a hybrid American x Eurasian, with the prominant green on the head. Also present were a large number of Baikal Teal (16 individuals), a species usually quite rare on Jeju but somewhat common this year. A pair of Mute Swans were still around, first spotted in this area a month ago in early December.
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| Baikal Teal |
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| Baikal Teal |
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| One of two Mute Swans |
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| American x Eurasian Wigeon hybrid (?) |
