Easter birding

In Norway, Easter begins the Friday afternoon before Palm Sunday and lasts a whole 10 days! People evacuate the towns and cities traditionally for cabins in the mountains but more and more also go to their cabins by the coast. It is also a time for family which for my part means less birding. We did visit family in Tønsberg on Sunday which gave me the chance to visit Presterødkilen and Ilene but a biting northerly wind meant there was very little to see. On the drive down we had seen six Buzzards of which two were definitely migrating so I had hoped there may have been some raptor action at Ilene (despite the winds being all wrong) but I was mistaken. I did come across this pale Herring Gull at Vallø (where I was hoping to relocate the Iceland Gull I found a few weeks ago). It looks like a 1^st winter but I am not sure whether the paleness is due to it being very faded or leucistic. Looking at variants of Herring Gull is just another sign of how little there is to see!

Leucistic ? Herring Gull

This morning I was woken by a singing Chaffinch which I have to admit was a wonderful start to the day. I have previously been woken by singing Willow Warbler and Pied Flycatcher in the garden but this Chaffinch was just as good.