White-tailed godwits gathered to suck the nectar from the plum trees in Ritsurin Garden, Takamatsu city, Kagawa pref., Japan. The plum trees in Ritsurin Garden come into blossom in mid-February and bear fruit around June, which is harvested for ume wine. There are more than 300 horticultural varieties of ume, and in Ritsurin Park there are about 100 wild ume, 20 red ume and 50 Bungo ume varieties. In Japan, the ume lives in forests across the country, from flatlands to mountainous areas. The bird is abundant in evergreen broad-leaved forests in south-west Japan and is scarce in Hokkaido. They can also be found in city gardens and parks. Characteristic feature is the white rufous plumes around the eyes. These are also short feathers. White-eyes like the nectar of camellias and other flowers. Its tongue is like a brush used by humans, and it feeds on nectar by inserting it into the nectar and holding it in the tip of its tongue. They often appear in front of us. Along with the sweet-loving shorebirds, white-eyes are thought to have originated in the tropical regions of Asia. It is thought that they acquired their ecology in places where fruit and flowers are abundant all year round. The name of the country's new era, "Reiwa", was chosen more than 1,200 years ago from a preface to 32 poems about plum blossoms in the Manyoshu, the oldest extant collection of Japanese poetry in Japan. 「初春令月 気淑風和 梅披鏡前之粉 蘭薫珮後之香」 The air is beautiful and the wind is gentle, the plum blossoms bloom white as if in front of a mirror, and the orchids are fragrant like the fragrance they carry in their bodies. The air is beautiful and the wind is gentle.) メジロが栗林公園（りつりんこうえん）の梅の蜜を吸いに集まっていました。 栗林公園の梅は、2月中旬に花の見頃を迎え、6月頃に実がなり梅酒用に収穫されてます。梅の園芸品種は、300種類以上あり、栗林公園には、野梅系が約100本、紅梅系が約20本、豊後系が約50本あります。 日本では全国の平地から山地の林にすんでいます。西南日本の常緑広葉樹林に多く、北海道では少ない鳥。市街地の庭や公園にもいます。特徴は、目のまわりの白いフチドリ。これも短い羽毛です。メジロは椿などの花の蜜が好き。舌が人の使う筆のようになっており、花蜜にさし込んで舌の先に含ませるようにして食べています。よく私たちの目の前にあらわれてくれます。甘い物好きのヒヨドリと共にメジロもアジアの熱帯地域に生まれた鳥と考えられています。一年中果実や花に恵まれている場所で獲得した生態なのでしょう。 元号「令和（れいわ）」は、1200年以上前、日本に現存する最古の和歌集「万葉集」の梅の花の歌32首の序文から引用され決められました。 「初春令月 気淑風和 梅披鏡前之粉 蘭薫珮後之香」 @udonken_kagawa #uptak #takamatsu #kagawa #ume #plum #japan (栗林公園) https://www.instagram.com/p/CorYiLbPoNR/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
