September 08, 2005
Afternoons and Coffee Spoons
Monday morning this week was overcast and breezy -- I figured it was high time to check in on that raptor migration again. And ... I was thwarted once again. Despite the much better conditions than last week, all I could find were a few small raptors -- a handful of Kestrels (Tuulihaukka), Sparrowhawks (Varpushaukka), and two Eurasian Hobbies (Nuolihaukka).
Today, I joined two friends for a full day of birding in nearby Rautalampi -- a great area of wetlands and farmfields, where some interesting birds have been reported lately. It was a windy but relatively nice day -- the temperature slipping over 20C at midday. Unfortunately, it was also a slow day for birds.
If the Finns take their birding seriously, they take their coffee breaks even moreso. Back home in Newfoundland, a "break" means chugging some warm coffee and devouring a sub from the PCS corner store while driving between birding spots. But NOT here. No siree ...
Here, a coffee break is something sacred. The first mid-morning break involves finding a civilized place to sit down, drink coffee from a mug instead of directly from the thermos spout, and a healthy lunch of fruit and homemade sandwiches. A little later, closer to noon, a coffee break can be something much more complex. Today, it involved packing our things into a picnic shelter next to the birding tower (Yes -- coffee breaks are so important here that the birding society has even built a shelter just for that purpose). This time we pulled out all the stops ... started a fire, kicked back, enjoyed coffee, homemade juice, salad and more sandwiches. Most important was the makkara (Finnish sausage) -- roasting sausage over the fire is a staple of any Finnish summer outing. Boy am I going to miss makkara when I have to go home ...
As for birds, it was indeed a bit slow. The tail end of shorebird migration consisted of a handful of Ruffs (Suokukko), 2 Dunlins (Suosirri), a Common Ringed Plover (Tylli), and a Greenshank (Valkoviklo). The mediocre highlight was my first Black-bellied Plover (Tundrakurmitsa) for Finland. We did manage to note a few songbirds moving about -- notably Crested (Töyhtötiainen) and Willow Tits (Kuusitiainen) flocking together, increasing numbers of Eurasian Jays (Närhi), and a Brambling (Järripeippo).
A few raptors were on the move -- the most noteworthy of which were a Rough-legged Hawk (Piekana) migrating southward and a Northern Goshawk (Kanahaukka) seeming to enjoy the wind.
I also had my first experience with a "Moose Fly" (Haematobosca alcis) -- which has been expanding westward into Finland the last few years and is now a regular part of late-summer birding. They are ugly little buggers and, while they generally don't bite humans, they do like to get in your hair. Almost makes me want to shave my head and stop peeing in the woods ...
A typical makkara roast. Mmmmmmmmmmmm ... (Click to enlarge)
A Moose Fly ... Cute, eh? (Click to enlarge)