The weather the last two weeks has been very reminiscent of spring in Newfoundland ... unpredictable. One day its sunny and warm, the next chilly and wet. Yesterday alone, it was pouring in the morning, clear and beautiful at lunchtime, raining again at 3:00pm, sunny at 4:00, a thunderstorm at 6:00, and a bright, sunny evening by 7:30pm. Gotta love it ...
Even though I haven't been out doing much birding this week, I did manage to scrape up a few new species -- new birds are arriving daily. A quick drive just north of the city produced a Sky Lark (Kiuru) sitting in a meadow, and a walk on university campus found my first Spotted Flycatcher (Harmaasieppo). A call from my friend Hannu caused me to drive out to Suonenjoki, where I was fortunate to see a lone Pink-footed Goose (Lyhytnokkahanhi) which had wandered off course. The number of passerines seems to have picked up over the past few days, and the chorus of subtly unfamiliar songs (though I am learning a few) is increasing on my daily strolls.
My plans to travel to Virolahti in SE Finland have been put aside due to other commitments this weekend, so it looks like I will miss that part of arctic migration. I'll have to make due with local adventures, and maybe focus on migrating shorebirds and newly arriving songbirds.
Posted by jaredclarke at May 20, 2005 09:21 AM