Fall migration can be very interesting on Jeju. It's not as dynamic as spring migration, but it can bring unique opportunities to see some species fairly well (Pechora Pipit in this case), and also simply enjoying the cooler weather after a hot summer.
I received an email from Marshall Iliff, one of the main members of the eBird team, letting me know that he had a Jeju trip planned to visit Mara. I met Marshall several years ago while he was staying in Korea, and thanks to him and the support of Dr. Nial Moores, I was made eBird reviewer for Jeju and hotspot reviewer for the whole of ROK. Being very grateful for that, I was more than happy to meet up with him and show him around Mara Island.
We met at Unjin Harbour, and shortly after got on the boat. The boat ride itself wasn't particularly birdy, aside from an Osprey (or two). Mara was not exactly booming with birds, but we found one of his targets right away: Pacific Reef Heron. This was a Korean first for him, so rather exciting to get one so early on.
I led him on the grand tour, showing my usual route. There was only one other birder there that day, who we met briefly and did the usual exchange of birding info. A Spotted Dove was seen by that birder the day before, but none of us could relocate it. Not exactly a rare bird in the global context, as it's incredibly common in China just across the sea, but it being a Jeju first I was particularly interested.
We found a variety of species, including several Little Buntings, Eastern Yellow Wagtails, a Black Paradise Flycatcher, and some Leaf Warblers (being as challengig as they always are). We did find a Great Spotted Woodpecker, which was found by the other birder originally. I only got brief views, but thankfully Marshall got sound recording which helps confirm the sighting.
Bird of the day really had to have been Pechora Pipit, with several flying over, but one landing in a tree right at our lunch spot on the south end picnic tables. This was a visual lifer for Marshall, and personally I'm always excited to see this species as they're not easy to get a good view of.
The return ferry had a few Streaked Shearwaters, but nothing really remarkable. We spent the rest of the daylight birding the airfield, where we found many Richards Pipits, White Wagtails, Eastern Yellow Wagtails, and an immature Citrine Wagtail. The Citrine was spotted by Marshall, and after examining the features carefully and comparing it with references photos on our phones, we were fairly satisfied with the ID.
All in all a great trip with one of the heads of eBird, and a pleasure to get to show him around a bit on Mara Island.
eBird checklist here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S396046404
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| Pechora Pipit |
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| Little Bunting |
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| Little Bunting |
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| Common Kingfisher |
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| Black Paradise Flycatcher |
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| Red-necked Stint |
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| Bull-headed Shrike |