Blue Streaks of Light by Shawn Miller

Posted on December 3, 2018 by Admin11

The Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is one of the most beautiful birds of the Ryukyu Islands. They are a common species found near freshwater sources. I have observed these tiny birds four hours at a time. I know a few local nature photographers that have dedicated their lives to documenting the behavior of this beautiful bird.

Scientific name: Alcedo atthis
Common Name: Common Kingfisher
Distribution: Worldwide
Habitat: Forests near rivers and ponds
Diet: Fish and prawn
Average Size: 16cm

The Common Kingfisher spends most of the day patiently waiting on tree branches above the water.

They watch from above and pick out the perfect sized fish.

They dive bomb with very little warning. Below is the sequence of the catch.

After the feast, the Kingfisher preens itself.

Look close and you can see the process of the Kingfisher casting a pellet. They can’t digest the exoskeleton of prawn and fish scales. They regurgitate the waste in a pellet form.

I challenge you to get outdoors for some Nature Therapy.

People often ask me what is the purpose of conservation photography? Having the ability to affect some form of positive change in the environment and make a global difference with the photographs. Hopefully, the images will inspire people to care more about nature and make a positive difference in the environment.

If you would like to use any of my photographs, please contact me directly. Have a great day!

Fly like a gray-faced buzzard eagle by Shawn Miller

Posted on November 14, 2018 by Admin11

The Gray-faced buzzard (Butastur indicus) is one of the most fascinating predatory birds of the Ryukyu Islands. They are a common species that migrate to Okinawa in the first week of October. I have observed these mid-sized predatory birds feeding on small insects, rodents and lizards.

Scientific name: (Butastur indicus)
Common Name: Gray-faced buzzard hawk or eagle
Distribution: Winters in Okinawa
Habitat: Forests, parks, farm fields, and local neighbors
Diet: Lizards, grasshoppers and a variety of insects
Average Size: 50cm

They are mainly found perching high in trees. Notice how well they blend into the surrounding environment.

They are also found perching high on electrical poles, wires, and rooftops.

Look close and you can see the nictitating membrane, its used to protect and moisten the eye.
I recommend using a telephoto lens to photograph these shy birds. They have a tendency to fly away as soon as you point the camera lens at them.

In recent years I have noticed an increase in the population of these beautiful migratory birds.

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

This site is also designed to help people identify the beautiful animals of Okinawa, basically to serve as an online nature reference guide. If you would like to make a contribution to support my mission, please click on the donation link paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.

#MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Searching for the Ryukyu Ghost Crab by Shawn Miller

Posted on September 19, 2018 by Admin11

Ghost crabs are one of the fastest terrestrial crabs on the planet. They live in burrows underneath the sand on the coastline. They are found scavenging for food early in the morning and late in the evening to avoid predators. These sand crabs can change colors to adapt to their environment. In Okinawa, we have two species of Ghost crabs, the Horn-eyed crab (Ocypode ceratophthalmus) and the Smooth-eyed ghost crab (Ocypode cordimanus).

Horn-eyed ghost crab at Maede flats

Ghost crabs have three ways to avoid predators.

Stay close to their burrow and retreat into it quickly.
Escape into the surf zone and burrow underneath the wet sand.
Stay still and slowly dig into the beach sand

Ghost crab burrow

Elusive ghost crab

These crabs have the ability to fold their eyes into grooves for protection.

Ghost crab - Fill flash and back-lighting Stella 200

Ghost crab & Stella 2000

This large ghost crab tried to intimidate me with its large claws and scary shadow.

The sand dwelling hunter

These crabs were photographed on white for the Meet Your Neighbours Biodiversity Project. The project is dedicated to connecting people worldwide with the wildlife in their communities. All images are used for conservation awareness and educational purposes.

MYN Biodiversity Project Japan.

Juvenile – Ocypode sp

The Juveniles can be extremely colorful depending on their surrounding environment. I have been finding more and more trash washed on the shoreline. Could the crabs possibly be adapting to the colors of the sounding marine debris washed ashore?

the Smooth-eyed ghost crab ( Ocypode cordimanus)

All ghost crabs are scavengers, mainly feeding on seaweed, fruit, seeds, other crabs, turtle hatchlings, and insects.

feeding on beetles

Feeding on a hermit crab

Feeding on a shrew

These crabs are beautiful creatures and hopefully, you will get the opportunity to see one in the wild.

Pink ghost crab

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.

#MakeTheSwitch4Nature

House Dwelling Huntsman Spiders of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Admin11

Have you ever been bitten by a spider?

In 2014, I was bitten by a large huntsman spider (Heteropoda ventoria) in my apartment. It was completely my fault, I failed to check my clogs before putting them on. All spiders are venomous and I was fortunate not to have an allergic reaction to the bite.

Natural habitat

The Huntsman spider is the most common spider on Okinawa. It is often found in houses, workplaces, gardens, parks and sometimes inside vehicles. They are fast moving and are capable of jumping at fast speeds.

Spiders have tiny hairs called setules. These hairs allow the spider to cling to slippery surfaces and vehicles traveling at high speeds. You can’t shake this spider!

Spider on the windshield

I have heard stories of them being as big as a basketball, but these were all just exaggerations from people terrified of spiders. The largest specimens get about fist size.

Large huntsman spider

They feed on a variety of insects, frogs, and other spiders.

Heteropoda simplex

The female huntsman handles her egg sack with extreme care.

Huntsman spider

Stayed tuned! I’ll share the best way to safely catch and remove the huntsman spider from your living space.

Spider shadow

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support. Shawn M Miller.

Dinah’s Goby – living in glass homes by Shawn Miller

Posted on August 11, 2018 by Admin11

Brightly colored gobies are popular subjects for underwater macro photographers in the beautiful waters of Okinawa. The Dinah’s goby (Lubricogobius dinah) adapts by using man-made objects as a protective shelter. Discarded glass bottles and cans are prime real-estate for a variety of Marine life in the Ocean.

Scientific name: (Lubricogobius dinah)
Common Name: Dinah’s goby
Distribution: Ryukyu Islands
Habitat: Sandy bottom, living in shells and bottles
Depth: 20-50meters
Diet: Plankton
Average Size: 25mm

You will need a designated macro lens to photograph this beautiful Goby. Approach slowly and avoid any sudden movement.

Goby glass bottle © Shawn Miller

When threatened, the Goby will retreat into the glass bottle.

The Dinah’s goby © Shawn Miller

I was fortunate to have the goby pose for a photograph.

The Dinah’s goby © Shawn Miller

I used the Light&Motion Sola Nightsea to light up the mouth of the bottle to create this beautiful image.

The shy goby in a more natural home.

Know your nature with Shawn Miller. Have a great day!

The Blue Rock Thrush – Birds of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Posted on July 10, 2018 by Admin11

The Blue rock thrush (Monticola solitarius) is one of the most fascinating and abundant birds of The Ryukyu Islands. They are a common species found in urban areas. I have observed these birds eating food from peoples hands.

Scientific name: (Monticola solitarius)
Common Name: Blue Rock Thrush
Distribution: Ryukyu Islands
Habitat: Forests, Parks, and local neighbors
Diet: Butterflies, moths, spiders, caterpillars, and fruit
Average Size: 25cm

The female is all brown with a striped pattern. The male is dark blue with an orange breast and belly.

Female rock thrush © Shawn Miller

Male Rock Thrush © Shawn Miller

Breeding season occurs April through July. When the Hatchling emerge the parents are on high alert and become noisy and aggressive defending their young.

Moma on Duty © Shawn Miller

Daddy on duty © Shawn Miller

This young hatchling left the nest prematurely. It survived four full days roaming the neighborhood wisely on the ground.

Hatchling searching for shelter © Shawn Miller

Somewhere on its journey, it picked up some fishing line.

Hatchling and fishing line © Shawn Miller

These birds are curious and intelligent birds. A wide-angle macro perspective of the male blue rock thrush with its wings spread.

Blue rock-thrush with wings spread © Shawn Miller

Look close and you can see the nicitating membrane, its used to protect and moisten the eye.

Blue rock-thrush drying off © Shawn Miller

We pulled up to a fight scene. A rock thrush and a praying mantis fighting in the middle of the road. The rock-thrush flew away and the praying mantis stood its ground. Photographed using my iPhone.

Fighting pose - Preying mantis, IPhone 6s

Fighting pose © Shawn Miller

Know your Nature with Shawn Miller.

Crown of Thorns Starfish – Hazardous Starfish of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Posted on June 28, 2018 by Admin11

The crown of thorns starfish (Ancanthaster planci) plays an important role in the underwater world. They generally feed on the fastest growing corals, allowing the slower growing coral to establish ground. They are the coral moderators, the gardeners of the sea and help increase the diversity of coral species on the reef.

Mature Crown of thorns starfish © Shawn Miller

Animals that feed on coral are known as corallivores.

Natural coral bleaching © Shawn Miller

In Okinawa, we have a variety of Corallivorous marine snails ( Drupella sp). These small snails have also caused serious damage to coral reefs.

Corallivorous snails © Shawn Miller

The venomous sea star has sharply pointed spines that deliver a painful sting. The spines inject venom which causes extreme pain, discomfort and nausea. Most injuries occur because recreation Scuba divers cut up the starfish with a dive knife and the spine penetrates the hand. The starfish serves a purpose in the ecosystem so leave it alone. They are a native marine animal of the Ryukyu Islands.

COTS of Okinawa © Shawn Miller

COTS venomous spines © Shawn Miller

In Okinawa, we have had massive COTS outbreaks in the past. These outbreaks have devastated some of the most beautiful shallow water coral reefs.

Juvenile COTS feeding © Shawn Miller

Possible Outbreak Causes

A natural cycle of nature
The decrease in natural predators that feed on COTS
Increase in food source caused by agricultural runoff, causing a blooming effect.

Coral crabs are one of the natural protectors of the coral reef. The coral provides shelter and food for the coral crabs. The crabs are on call to defend against the coral-eating starfish and other marine predators.

Coral crabs (Calcinus minutus) © Shawn Miller

Coral crabs (Cymo melanodactylus) © Shawn Miller

Protective Coral crab (Trapezia sepata) © Shawn Miller

Coral hermit crab (Pagurita vittata) © Shawn Miller

Gall coral crabs © Shawn Miller

COTS have many natural predators. Over the last twenty-five years, I have observed marine snails, harlequin shrimp, sea anemones and fish feeding on healthy and injured COTS in the wild. I was not able to get photographs of all of this behavior taking place, many natural observations occurred before I purchased an underwater camera.

Marine snails feeding on COTS © Shawn Miller

The trident trumpet (Charonia tritonis) is sought after by fisherman and shell collectors worldwide. The meat is a popular food source and the beautiful shell is valuable.

These large snails are capable of eating mature COTS. Overtaking has reduced populations of this of this predatory snail. More effort needs to be directed to the protection of this species. I have personally observed populations drastically decline over the years.

Trident trumpet © Shawn Miller

Trident trumpet feeding © Shawn Miller

The Harlequin shrimp feed on juvenile COTS in the wild and captivity. Harlequin shrimp populations are decreasing as well due to the over-collecting for the pet trade market.

Harlequin shrimp feeding © Shawn Miller

Sea anemones are vicious predators and known to feed on the crown of thorns as well.

Sea anemone © Shawn Miller

Red soil runoff contributes to coral reef bleaching and fertilizers entering the water. Could fertilizers, sewage or pollution really be the cause for a massive bloom in plankton causing an outbreak of healthy numbers of baby COTS?

Okinawa agricultural runoff © Shawn Miller

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.

#MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Make The Switch For Nature By Shawn Miller

Featured

Posted on June 22, 2018 by Admin11

“Crabs with beach trash homes” was featured in one of the most influential issues of National Geographic Magazine of all time. June 2018 National Geographic launched Planet or Plastic. This powerful issue focuses on bringing awareness to the worldwide plastic pollution problem and efforts to reduce the single-use plastic waste.

Planet or Plastic June 2018 featured © Shawn Miller

June 2018, National Geographic replaced the plastic cover with a paper cover ( PEFC-Certified Paper ) that can be recycled. This is a huge step in reducing the big problem of single-use plastic pollution in our oceans one small step at a time. The Editors did an outstanding job on this powerful ocean impact issue of National Geographic.

Below left is the new paper cover and on the right is the previous plastic cover

National Geographic Paper wrap © Shawn Miller

What a powerful National Geographic cover by Artist Jorge Gambo. The cover is a plastic bag resembling and Iceberg. This is one of the best covers of all time in my opinion. I was fortunate to get my hands on a Japanese issue as well.

Planet Or Plastic Cover

Excited and honored to have one of my photographs from Okinawa featured in the National Geographic Planet or Plastic Exhibition at the Church of Santa Maria della Vita in Bologna, Italy. Exhibition Date: 04/15/2019 – 09/22/2019

Photograph by Paolo Righi

Planet or Plastic Iconic Photographs

Learn more about reducing waste and making a difference. TEDx OIST Talk – Adapting to Our Changing Environment by Shawn Miller

If you would like to see more of my work in National Geographic Magazine, below are four powerful issues that featured the Endangered Species of Okinawa. (WILDLIFE AS CANON SEES IT)

Anderson’s crocodile newt by Shawn Miller. 11/2020 National Geographic

Amami Oshima frog by Shawn Miller. 08/2019 National Geographic

Kuroiwa’s Ground Gecko by Shawn Miller. 10/2017 National Geographic

Okinawa woodpecker by Shawn Miller. 05/2015 National Geographic

Let’s Make The Switch 4 Nature before it’s too late

My Mission: To Protect and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands for Future Generations. – If you would like to join my journey, check out my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Get Fa-Millerized with the Nature of the Ryukyu Islands – – – – SUBSCRIBE BELOW

White Jawed Frog – Amphibians of the Ryukyu Islands by Shawn Miller

Posted on June 21, 2018 by Admin11

The White Jawed Frog (Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax) is an invasive species found throughout the Ryukyu Islands. I have photographed this introduced tree frog on Okinawa, Ie, Izena, Kume island.

Scientific name: Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax
Common name: White Jawed Frog
Distribution: Okinawa, Kume, and Iheya and Ie Island.
Habitat: Forest, farm fields, drainage ditches, and ponds
Diet: Insects
Average size: 45mm-70mm
Color: Brown with a white line on the upper lip

I often find these frogs hanging out on fences, concrete walls, farming buckets and other manmade structures. They usually stay up high to avoid the threat of snakes.

Sometimes habu snakes climb these fences in search of a meal. Majority of the time the snakes are unsuccessful.

Tree frogs have the ability to inflate into a defensive posture, making themselves appear too large to eat.

It is extremely rare to see snakes eating in the wild. If you catch this moment in nature consider yourself lucky.

The breeding season in Okinawa stretches from May through August.

They construct a foam nest above a still water source. The foam liquefies when the eggs are ready to hatch.

Cluster of mating frogs ,Iphone 8 and Light and Motion sola 1200

Photographed on white for the Meet Your Neighbours Global Biodiversity Project. All images are used for awareness and educational purposes.

White Jawed Frog (Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax)

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

Your donations will help worldwide conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support. Shawn M Miller.

Gall Crabs – Coral-Inhabiting Micro Crabs of Okinawa

Posted on June 16, 2018 by Admin11

Gall crabs are coral-dwelling crabs that spend their entire life living inside a hole of the hard coral. These micro crabs are only 7mm-10mm in size. They are hard to find and photograph due to their small size.

These tiny crabs are considered to be safe keepers or guardians of the hard coral. The gall crabs defend against coral eating predators such as starfish and snails. The coral provides shelter and food, making it an ideal habitat for the micro coral-dwelling gall crab. I have found these crabs in a variety of coral species in Okinawa. They are usually found in shallow water corals, but recently I found a healthy colony of crabs at sixty-five feet.

If you’re lucky you might see a gall crab searching for food during the night.

The only reason I found this beauty was because she was leaving the gall to release her eggs.

Some of the gall crabs fluoresce using the specialized Light & Motion Nightsea underwater blue light.

After the crabs die, the galls become a new shelter opportunity for snails, fish, and reef crabs.

Bicolor blenny in coral - fish of okinawa

I found this hard coral washed up on Iheya Island. Look close and you can see that hole made by the gall crab.

Stony coral and gall

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.

#MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Okinawa Nature Photography

沖縄自然写真 By Shawn Miller

Tag Archives: Know your Nature with Shawn Miller

Blue Streaks of Light by Shawn Miller

Fly like a gray-faced buzzard eagle by Shawn Miller

Searching for the Ryukyu Ghost Crab by Shawn Miller

House Dwelling Huntsman Spiders of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Dinah’s Goby – living in glass homes by Shawn Miller

The Blue Rock Thrush – Birds of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Crown of Thorns Starfish – Hazardous Starfish of Okinawa by Shawn Miller

Make The Switch For Nature By Shawn Miller

Featured

White Jawed Frog – Amphibians of the Ryukyu Islands by Shawn Miller

Gall Crabs – Coral-Inhabiting Micro Crabs of Okinawa