The Sunday before last we had the first proper ornithological field trip for youths in years. We went to Hönö by bus and then walked to the cemetery, where, just before dawn, we found at least three Long-eared Owls flying around near a couple of pine trees. Another birder that stayed behind counted 12 when they perched for the day. Impressive. After that we performed a two hour walk to Kråkudden, where probably more than 10 000 Eiders had convened. Even more impressed!

There will be more of these trips in the future. I hope they’ll be as good as this one.

The concept of actually studying while a university student (somewhat new to me) means there’s very little time for birdwatching, and even less for blogging. Hopefully I will learn to study properly and get more spare time.

The serious complaining, however, is about Two-barred Crossbills. I reported one early in the autum and it was life tick 280. Because of that, I didn’t go to look at the two-bars that settled in for a bit in remote parts of the city some time later. Now, the report committee declared my observation to be lacking in documentation and stuff and therefore, I can’t count it. A setback in the quest for 300! On a positive note, I managed to haul my ass south to look at a Turtle Dove, for a new 280

Sunday morning will probably be spent at Hönö with the spanking new Gothenburg Ornithological Society Youth Group. Hasn’t been a proper one in like 15 years…