Fairy Pittas are somewhat common on Jeju Island during summer time, although very difficult to find. Usually they heard rather than seen. But, someimes you get incredibly lucky, like I did while walking through Dongebaekdongsan on the northeast of Jeju. This fella was seen right on the trail, and with some fieldcraft and patience I managed extended looks of this rarely seen jewel of the summer forests.
I like to try to visit a variety of parks when birding on Jeju, mainly because I'm curious to see what surprises are in areas that aren't visited by birders often. Bulgeun Oreum Recreational Forest is a park I visited back in 2021, and then again briefly in March 2025. But I had never visited this forest during spring and summer, so of course I had to check it out. It was fairly rainy and foggy, so visibility was poor, but I managed to see a nice variety of summer birds, such as Barn Swallows and Black Paradise Flycatchers. The real highlight was a Chinese Sparrowhawk, a summer visitor to Korea that is rarely found on Jeju. There's the possibility that this individual was breeding in this forest, which is exciting to think about. Definitely worth a visit again in some better weather.
eBird checklist here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S258773006
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| Barn Swallows resting on hay bales. |
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| A family of very noisy Large-billed Crows. |
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| Black Paradise Flycatcher |
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| Chinese Sparrowhawk |
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| Chinese Sparrowhawk |
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| Some sort of Antlion or Owlfly I think. |
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| Some sort of parasitoid wasp (Ichneumonid?) |
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| Black-spotted Frog, a common species in Korea. |