2026-05-24: Late Spring up on Hallasan

A lovely hike up Hallasan in lovely late May weather. Warm, sunny, a little breezy, not hot, with some cloud coming in but no rain. The mission was birds, plants, as well as butterflies, and we came out pretty good. Lots of breeding birds and a few migrants way up there. So many beautiful flowers of all types. Some unique butterflies that aren't found in many other parts of the country.

Cephalanthera longibracteata

Rhododendron weyrichii

Coal Tit

Primula jesoana pubescens

Malus toringo

Berberis amurensis quelpaertensis

Asian Tit

Oriental Honey Buzzard

Oriental Honey Buzzard

Coenonympha hero

Bull-headed Shrike

Pacific Swift

Japanese Bush Warbler

Oeneis mongolica hallasanensis

2026-03-21: Early Spring on Hallasan

 A hike up Hallasan in early spring via Eorimok and Yeongsil trails. Plenty of activity with the smaller tit species, some Japanese Waxwings feasting on berries, an orange stealing crow, and a Cinereous Vulture soaring overhead.

Varied Tit

White Wagtail

Japanese Waxwing

Japanese Waxwing

Coal Tit

Large-billed Crow with a treat

Large-billed Crow

Eastern Roe Deer

Brambling

Cinereous Vulture

White-backed Woodpecker

2026-01-09: Green Pigeon in the White Snow

 I went up to 1100 Altitude Wetland up on Hallasan in the morning to see a White-bellied Green Pigeon that has made the odd decision to overwinter in a snowy area at 1100 meters. It was quite confiding, just casually eating small berries. I heard a few weeks later that later it had a collision with a car and flew off into the forest, not to be seen again by birders.

White-bellied Green Pigeon

White-bellied Green Pigeon

Perched in a tree

Varied Tit

Brown-eared Bulbul