Blakiston's Fish Owl

Blakiston's Fish Owl (Ketupa blakistoni) is an exceptionally large owl with broad ear tufts, a massive body and heavily streaked buff-brown plumage. 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 depends on riparian forest with large old nesting trees beside rivers, lakes, springs and winter ice-free shoals, where it captures fish and other aquatic animals from banks or shallow water. 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).