Asian Dowitcher

Asian Dowitcher (Limnodromus semipalmatus) is a large, long-billed shorebird with brick-red breeding underparts and black-and-white barred tail. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It breeds in central Asian wetlands and migrates to coastal mudflats, probing deeply for worms and molluscs. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).