The sustainability of ecosystem services depends on a firm understanding of both how organisms provide these services to humans and how these organisms will be affected by environmental changes. In this study, we selected Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica, Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus, Oriental Reed Warbler Acrocephalus orientalis, and Chestnut-cheeked Starling Agropsar philippensis, as four species for which sufficient banding data (1961–1971, 1982–2011) and sufficient observational data (Japan Meteorological Agency stations; 1953–2008) exist, making them representative of summer visitors to Japan. We analyzed: long-term changes in their periods of appearance at the national scale; the relationship between those periods and the previous winter or current spring temperature, and between those periods and the first appearance dates of plants or insects in spring. The arrival dates of adult and appearance dates of nestling Barn Swallow, Oriental Reed Warbler, and Chestnut-cheeked Starling have advanced, while the arrival date for adult Common Cuckoo has been delayed. Arrivals of Barn Swallow, Oriental Reed Warbler, and Chestnut-cheeked Starling were earlier in warmer years, but later for Common Cuckoo. The extent of long-term changes in most of our results did not deviate from those previously described from Europe and North America. The time lag between the arrival dates of these birds and the first appearance dates of spring plants and insects have not remained constant. However, the factors causing advanced or delayed arrivals and producing the phenological mismatch are not yet known. Regional differences must be considered when studying the phenological mismatch using long-term monitoring data.