With warm weather during the beginning of the week, and low water levels on the marshes, things couldn’t be better for looking for waders. However, things were disappointingly quiet with only a scattering of Greenshank and Common Sandpiper. Wildfowl numbers are slowly increasing with Eurasian Wigeon turning up at suitable habitat and Tufted Duck and Common Goldeneye forming small flocks on the lake. With things being so quiet I decided to check breeding sites for Grey Wagtail (above photo). This species has increased in numbers, at one time regarded as a rarity; there are now several breeding pairs. This year however it looks like they have had a poor breeding season because I only found evidence of successful breeding at one locality. Otherwise a trip to Granvinsdelta produced several Blackcap and a single Garden Warbler, both new species for August. The only species that seems to be in any decent numbers is Common Chaffinch with small flocks foraging along roadsides. I leave for Falsterbo in Sweden in a few days time so I will not be up-dating my blog until mid September.
With only a Peregrine, Eurasian Oystercatcher (above photo) and Greenshank at Voss being of any interest, I headed for Jæren, just south of Stavanger. It was a good move. Though the weather was fantastic it did put a damper on sea watching. Other than a steady flow of Northern Gannet, Great Cormorant, Shag and a single SandwichTern there was very little else during the hours I spent watching. As expected wildfowl numbers were good with large flocks of Greylag amongst these I found several Bar-headed Geese and a single Barnacle. Most ducks were going through their moult, so I didn’t spend too much time checking the flocks of Eurasian Wigeon, Common Teal and Mallard though I did pick out one or two Northern Shoveler. Tufted Duck, Greater Scaup and Common Goldeney were seen on the lakes while Common Eider and Red-breasted Merganser were seen on the sea. I had at least 4 Peregrine at three different localities as well as single Eurasian Sparrowhawk and Merlin. I also enjoyed watching two European Marsh Harriers testing their flying skills, maybe an adult with a young bird in tow?The long staying White Stork was still present at Lake Orre. As hoped wader movements was good. All in all over 20 species were recorded. Though nothing of great interest, many like the Red Knot and Bar-tailedGodwits were still in their summer plumage. I didn’t spend much time looking for passerines. There were a few Rock Pipit and plenty of Meadow Pipits as well as Northern Wheatears along the beaches while Linnet and Twite feed in large areas of weed that grew in some areas. The most interesting passerine that was noted was Parrot Crossbill. Now it is back to Voss, I will keep you posted.
As expected, the trip with the group of American birders produced several interesting species despite it being at the end of July when things are quiet. What pleased the Americans most was hard to say. It could have been a family of Black-throated Diver at a breeding locality in the county of Buskerud. It was a magnificent sight thanks to light conditions, or maybe it was the low flying White-tailed Eagle at Herdla near Bergen or a male Hen Harrier floating over the tundra habitat of the Hardangervidda.For me however it was at least 4 White-backed Woodpeckers at Eidfjord. They provided us with some great views and several of the group members got great photos (except me as I never carry photo gear when I am guiding).
Back at Voss things remained quiet though it was nice to see that the local pair of Peregrine had raised 1 young. August can be a good month for waders but the first few days have been disapointing with only the usual Ringed Plover, Common Redshank and Common Sandpiper. However, 4 Green Sandpiper and a Dunlin at two different localities were worth noting. I can only hope that things get better. If not I think I will head for the coast at Jæren, at least I am guaranteed a better selection.
It has been over a week since I returned to Norway and nearly a month since I last did some local birding, so I was itching to get out. However I am doing a loft conversion with new floors and insulation. So I have been stuck indoors all week working. Come the weekend I just had to get out, if only for a few hours. Saturday started overcast and didn’t look promising at all. I decided to head for the woodlands, firstly to check the area where I have seen Mistle Thrush twice before I went on my travels, no sign of the bird. The woods were however lively with the commoner species, Fieldfares, Redwings and CommonChaffinches were starting to flock. During the morning the sun shone through the cloud base and things seemed to liven up. A family of Great-spotted Woodpecker made a lot of noise while Spotted Flycatchers darted after insects. Somewhere a Blackcap was singing and at least 3 Nutcracker were calling. While driving home from the woods a Common Cuckoo(above photo) conveniently sat on a telephone wire along the road side allowing me to get a photo, if not a good one. Sunday started overcast too, only this time it was throwing it down, not a good day! Nevertheless, I donned my waterproofs and headed for Reppen, as expected with all the rain, water levels were high and there was very little about. Wildfowl was virtually none existent with only a few Mallard and a female Red-breasted Merganser. Wader species were only a tad better with three species, Common Snipe, Common Redshank and Common Sandpiper. In fact the most exciting species was 3 Common Crossbill that flew over as I was getting into my car to leave. Next stop was Granvinsdelta, here too the heavy rain had affected water levels, and believe it or not there were even fewer species than Reppen. A single Great Cormorant was sat on a bank, getting wetter than if it was out on the water. A few Blackcap were ticking away from the trees that line the old railway embankments while a female Whinchat seemed distressed at my presence, no doubt she had young nearby. The last stop was Ulvikpollen, thank god there is a small hide there, at least I could keep dry. Unfortunately however there were no birds ! Character species like Northern Lapwing and Common Redshank seemed to have disappeared from this small saltwater marsh. Eurasian Oystercatchers were still about as well as a pair of Mallard and another Red-breasted Merganser, this time with five small young. Tomorrow it is back to working on the loft, but only for a few days before I leave on a birding trip with a coach full of Americans, now that will be fun.
Photo: Female Pied Flycatcher
The last weeks have been hectic, spending time on the Hardangervidda and the mountains around Geilo. There is still plenty of snow in both areas, making birding difficult but still enjoyable with such characteristic species as Black-throated Diver, Willow Grouse, Common Crane, Eurasian Dotterel, Shore Lark and Lapland Bunting just to name a few. Birds of prey numbers seem low with the only member of the group to be recorded being Common Kestrel. It is strange, last year there were plenty of Rough-legged Buzzards and I didn’t see any rodents, this year I have seen several rodents including Lemming and not a single Rough-legged. Here at Voss there has been little of interest during the past few days. The Mistle Thrush that I found at the end of May is still in the same area, however, I don’t think it is breeding as I haven’t heard any alarm calls. There is also a singing male Common Redstart in the same area, the only one I have found so far this year. However, most of my birding the past few days has been during the night, listening for nocturnal songsters, Quail and Corncrake but no luck so far. The only nocturnal songster in the area is the Thrush Nightingale at Ulvik. Other than that I had some great views of an adult Golden Eagle at Granvin just the other day. In a few days time I leave for Pasvik and Varanger and on my return to Voss, I have only one day before I leave for England. So once again it looks like there will be little time for any blog up-dates until sometime out in July. In the meantime have a great summer one and all.
The week started with a Common Crane at Reppen, one of the local marshes. By Tuesday however it was snowing. Snow in May is not unusual, but never the less it puts a damper on things. I visited the marsh again in the hope that more Cranes had turned up as sometime happens, but no luck, in fact, the single bird from a few days before had moved on. However there was a single Greenshank and 6 Northern Lapwing. This is the biggest flock I have seen in Voss this year. Numbers have plummeted, and what was once a common species seems now to be on the verge of local extinction with only a handful of breeding pairs. Despite checking several localities, things seemed quiet with Common Chaffinch (above photo) seeming to be the most numerous species. Even Willow Warbler numbers seem thin on the ground. A late evening outing on the 13/5 to listen/look for Owls gave good results with the highlight being calling Tengmalm’s Owl. There were also a few Tawny Owl calling as well as a Common Cuckoo. No luck however with PygmyOwl, despite trying several localities. Another species that disappointed was Woodcock. This species is usually a cert when I am out during the late evening trying to record Owls. I know for a fact that the species suffered heavily during the cold winter months with lots of dead birds being found, so I can only hope that I see “rodding” Woodcock during the next week or so. Saturday produced the long awaited Pied Flycatcher with a male singing at Reppen.
I won’t have much time for birding during the coming weeks as I am fixing up one of my downstairs bathrooms. However, I did manage sometime in the great outdoors. A steady trickle of summer migrants are arriving at Voss with Common Sandpiper, Tree Pipit and Northern Wheatear being added to my arrival dates list while White Wagtail (above photo) seemed to have increased in numbers . On Saturday I took time off from the chores at home and headed for the coast and the island of Sotra. I had hoped for good numbers of diver, but all I saw was single birds of each species that passes along the coast of Norway, with the highlight being a stonking summer plumaged White-billed Diver. Otherwise there were good movements of Long-tailed Duck and Whimbrel, as well as the usual species. Two pairs of White-tailed Eagle also made for some fascinating watching. On the way home from Sotra a friend phoned and told me about 2 pairs of Gadwall and a Garganey at Ulvikpollen, but it was too late in the day to consider driving to see them. Sunday started with an early morning woodland walk. Black Grouse were leking, and I scared up a female Capercaillie. Only two species of woodpecker were recorded with a drumming Lesser-spotted and a feeding Great-spotted. Nutcracker too seemed to be very active feeding. Sunday afternoon the wife asked if we could take a drive so Ulvikpollen seemed the logical place to visit. Unfortunately, the Garganey was not to be seen but one of the Gadwall pair were still present. Both Greenshank and Eurasian Jackdaw were feeding on the exposed mud while 9 European Golden Plover kept to the fields. So despite not having much time for birding this week, I think I did quite well.
I had hoped that on my return to Norway I would be welcomed by the spring, but my first outing to Herdla near Bergen was an ice cold affair. Though it didn’t rain (or snow) a biting cold wind blew in from the fjord. This made birding difficult, and what few species that were about, kept their heads down. On the fjord wildfowl numbers were low with at least 4 pair of Common Shelduck, a few Mallardand Common Teal. The commonest species was Velvet scoter these far out- numbered the pair of Common Eider and the small numbers of Red-breasted Mergansers. In the fields 12 Greylag Geese, 9 Canada Geese and a single BrentGoose could be seen feeding. As usual at this time of the year, Eurasian Oystercatchers were noisy and busy starting their breeding season. There were at least five displaying male Northern Lapwings with a few more birds on the ground while a flock of European Golden Plover were feeding in the fields. The only passerine of any real interest was 3 male and 1 female Northern Wheatear, my first for the year. Voss on the Friday produced an unexpected Osprey and Jack Snipe at Reppen. Both species are uncommon spring visitors. In the fields below the museum 2 male and 1 female Ring Ouzel were also another year tick. I decided to check out the same area on the Saturday. As expected the Osprey was long gone and I didn’t find the Jack Snipe but was well rewarded with a single Brent Goose, a new species for the area. Some other birders who decided to look for the Brent also found a single Barnacle Goose. This species too is rare with the last record at Reppen in 1983. Sunday produced better weather, and though there was a cool breeze in the air Blackcap, Common Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler were all singing. It was also nice to see small numbers of Barn Swallow and a few SandMartin. (Above photo)
The past week was varied, both weather and bird wise. In my last blog I wondered how long it would take before wildfowl returned? I didn’t have to wait long. By Monday 2 adult and 1 juv Whooper Swan (above photo) arrived at a small stretch of open water only to be joined by two new adult birds a few days later. Mallard numbers also increased with 62 birds being counted on the river that runs through Voss. At Lake Seim a male Goosander joined the single Mallard andCommon Goldeneye that were present on my last visit. Despite the obvious thaw, there were still cold days with some snow fall, so I decided to visit the coast and headed for the island of Sotra near Bergen. Weather wise, it was a wash-out with heavy rain most of the time and hardly any visibility out to sea. Despite this there were signs of spring. Small flocks of Greylag Goose, Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Curlew, Common Starling and Common Chaffinch ensured me that winter was on the retreat, despite that most lakes on the island were still frozen. Back at Voss a male Peregrine made an appearance over my house on Friday. The woodlands around Voss were lively during the weekend. Green Woodpeckers were calling, and Nutcrackers were active. Asingle Bohemian Waxwing was recorded. I have been told about a new Pygmy Owl locality near Granvin and a calling Tengmalm’s Owl at Voss. I can only hope that I have the time to check out these sightings before I leave for the Netherlands in a few days time.
My return from England to Voss seems to have welcomed the arrival of spring. Though the weather can change at the drop of a hat, and we can still have periods of cold weather and heavy snow falls, the temperature has been above zero on average and the snow and ice is melting. With this in mind, I decided to check areas of open water around Voss, and down on the fjord at Granvin. The main object was to check for Whooper Swans but no luck. No doubt they pulled out when it was really cold. In general wildfowl numbers were at an all time low with only a few Mallards and Goldeneyes. It will be interesting to see if, when, and how many wildfowl return. During the weekend I also took an “owl” trip listening for owls. The only species I recorded was Tawny Owl, this was more than I expected and I was surprised to record any at all after such a long and cold winter. One or two Fieldfares (above photo) are still holding out and there are one or two Eurasian Jackdaws flying in with the Hooded Crows to their night roost near my house. One surprise observation was a single Common Starling. I saw the bird sitting on the roof of a large open barn. It could be an overwintering bird as I am sure that there is enough food in the barn and it will certainly be warm enough. Another surprise was the size of the Hawfinch flock. I counted 31 birds while a house owner who feeds them said he counted 33. No matter what, I should think that this is the largest flock ever seen in the county and no doubt a record.
I had big plans last week and had hoped to visit a few localities around Voss. However, that was before inflamed ankle muscles put a stop to all birding and I spent the week hobbling around on crutches. One good thing came out of it though, as all of my birding was focused on my bird table, I took part in the Great Garden Birdwatch, or more correctly the Norwegian equivalent. Nothing special but here is my contribution. 1 European Robin, (above photo) 3 Blackbird, 1 Marsh Tit, 1 WillowTit, 1 Coal Tit, 6 Blue Tit, 11 Great Tit, 1 Eurasian Nuthatch, 6 Magpie, 1 Hooded Crow, 2 Common Chaffinch, 15 Greenfinch, 29 Siskin, 11 Common Redpoll, 1 CommonBullfinch and 3 Yellowhammer. Thankfully my ankle is now on the mend as I leave on a birding trip next week so my blog will not be updated for the next few weeks.
They say that history repeats itself. I don't know if there is any truth in this, but about the same time last year I had to collect a Great Grey Shrike (above photo) that had flown into a window. On Wednesday I had to collect a Hawfinch (below) that had also flown into a window. It is always a shame when this happens, but two uncommon species in two years is an average that I don't wish to continue with. Since my last blog the weather has improved and it is not as cold. Hopefully I will find time this week to check out a few areas.
Not only did the cold weather continue, it got worse, with temperatures down to minus 33 centigrade in some areas of Voss on the 7/1. Monday the 4/1 started with a flock of Siskin/Redpoll sp. in my garden. Unfortunateley they didn't hang around so I didn't get time to go through the flock or count the numbers, but there was well over a hundred birds. The Hawfinch flock just outside Voss had reached 14 birds and they seem to be doing OK at the well stocked bird table. I can't say the same for wildfowl. Lakes that are usually free of ice are frozen solid. This is forcing what few Swans Geese and Ducks that are still around to congregate at open areas of rivers or other small openings in the ice. Somhow I don't think the amount of food to be found at these openings is not great. The Whooper Swan in the picture (above) remained in that position for most of the day. The same can be said for the male Blackbird (below) that visits my bird table. He just sits all day eating and barely flys away when I go out with food.
On the 8/1 there were 8 Bohemian Waxings (below) and 2 Fieldfares feeding on berry trees in the centre of Voss while the Hawfinch flock had gone down to 9 birds on the the 9/1.
It is not the birds that are feeling the pinch, I too have had enough of the arctic conditions. Usually at this time of the year I head home to England or visit my daughter in the Netherlands, but it seems just as cold and snowy in those countries as well. Maybe I should head for warmer chimes, a week or two in Spain could be interesting. So if this blog is not updated next week then it is Viva La Spania.
Happy New Year One and all. The last week of the year started with really cold weather with minus 24 centigrade being the lowest here in my home town of Voss. New Years day was warmer with “only” minus 15 centigrade. As you can imagine birdlife is not at its best in such conditions but the bird table was lively with good numbers of Blue and Great Tit as well as the three Long-tailed Tit that have been hanging around since the cold period started. I couldn’t hide indoors all day so I decided it was time to brave the cold and head out. I started at the rubbish dump. As expected there were large numbers of Magpie, Hooded Crows and Common Ravens but no other members of the Corvidae family. A flock of 4 Crossbill flew in and landed in the top of some coniferous trees, Their “chip” call seemed deep so I put the scope on them and was delighted to see Parrot Crossbill. I then headed for some built up areas, checking many of the feeding stations that are in peoples gardens. Here there was a good selection of the commoner species with small numbers of Fieldfare and a single HawfinchMallard, a male Tufted Duck and two female Common Goldeneye were swiming around while 4 White-throated Dippers could be seen standing on the edge of the ice. There wasn’t much time for birding on the 2/1 as I had to drive family members to the airport in Bergen. This is usually an uneventful trip but as I was leaving Voss I saw 3 Bohemian Waxwings in the top of a Rowan tree and while nearing the airport at Flesland an overwintering Common Kestrel flew over the car, no doubt having hard times due to the thick layer of snow on the ground. On the 3/1 I decided to drive to check some areas along the Hardangerford. The Common Goldeneye flock at Ålvik contained 518 birds (some of the flock - above photo) while the flock at Ljonesvågen contained 174. It will be interesting to see if these flocks increase during the winter months. Other than the Common Goldeneyes, Great Cormorants, small flocks of Mallard, Tufted Duck and Red-breasted Mergansers as well as good numbers of Herring Gull and a few Great Black-backed Gulls there was little else on the fjord. The day was rounded off with a nice sunset over the fjord (below photo) as I made my way home after an enjoyable day out.
My return from England to Voss seems to have welcomed the arrival of spring. Though the weather can change at the drop of a hat, and we can still have periods of cold weather and heavy snow falls, the temperature has been above zero on average and the snow and ice is melting. With this in mind, I decided to check areas of open water around Voss, and down on the fjord at Granvin. The main object was to check for Whooper Swans but no luck. No doubt they pulled out when it was really cold. In general wildfowl numbers were at an all time low with only a few Mallards and Goldeneyes. It will be interesting to see if, when, and how many wildfowl return. During the weekend I also took an “owl” trip listening for owls. The only species I recorded was Tawny Owl, this was more than I expected and I was surprised to record any at all after such a long and cold winter. One or two Fieldfares (above photo) are still holding out and there are one or two Eurasian Jackdaws flying in with the Hooded Crows to their night roost near my house. One surprise observation was a single Common Starling. I saw the bird sitting on the roof of a large open barn. It could be an overwintering bird as I am sure that there is enough food in the barn and it will certainly be warm enough. Another surprise was the size of the Hawfinch flock. I counted 31 birds while a house owner who feeds them said he counted 33. No matter what, I should think that this is the largest flock ever seen in the county and no doubt a record.
They say that history repeats itself. I don't know if there is any truth in this, but about the s
Not only did the cold weather continue, it got worse, with temperatures down to minus 33 centigrade in some areas of Voss on the 7/1. Monday the 4/1 started with a flock of Siskin/Redpoll sp. in my garden. Unfortunateley they didn't hang around so I didn't get time to go through the flock or count the numbers, but there was well over a hundred birds. The Hawfinch flock just outside Voss had reached 14 birds and they seem to be doing OK at the well stocked bird table. I can't say the same for wildfowl. Lakes that are usually free of ice are frozen solid. This is forcing what few Swans Geese and Ducks that are still around to congregate at open areas of rivers or other small openings in the ice. Somhow I don't think the amount of food to be found at these openings is not great. The Whooper Swan in the picture (above) remained in that position for most of the day. The same can be said for the male Blackbird (below) that visits my bird table. He just sits all day eating and barely flys away when I go out with food. 
