OSLO BIRDER: Keeping it local

Bluethroats (blåstrupe) showed in both Maridalen and Fornebu (pictured) today

I had a whole morning for birding today and kept it local with Maridalen and Fornebu on the cards.

In Maridalen the five Black-throated Divers (storlom) and single Whooper Swan (sangsvane) were still on the lake and the wet meadow at Kirkeby held four Common Snipe (enkeltbekkasin) but not the hoped for Great Snipe (dobbeltbekkasin). Checking the area at Brenners and Nes which had been bird rich yesterday I had a Cuckoo (gjøk) fly over and then pounce down into a field where it took a big, fat, juicy green caterpillar. I tried unsuccessfully to get closer for a picture but as I did so flushed a Bluethroat (blåstrupe) which is only the third time I have had one in Maridalen. I also had a calling Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (dvergspett) as well as Great Spotted (flaggspett) and Black (svartspett).

At Fornebu I again had a Water Rail (vannrikse) showing out on the edge of the mud at Strøykilen and it called frequently to draw attention to itself. Also here two Dunlin (myrsnipe).

spot the Water Rail (vannrikse)

In the areas of wasteland which make up the bird rich areas of Nansenpark and which will in a few years disappear under concrete there were three Red-backed Shrikes (tornskate), a showy Bluethroat (blåstrupe) and good numbers of Whinchats (buskskvett) and Whitethroats (tornsanger). I pished at a few locations and at one where I had seen a couple of Willow Warblers (løvsanger) in the undergrowth my pishing brought forward at least 20 birds which I would otherwise have been unaware of. Yesterday Rune did well to find a Barred Warbler (hauksanger) at Fornebu and this has to be the most likely scarce bird to look for in the next couple of weeks (they are probably annual here in the beginning of September based on ringing records) although something rarer would of course be welcome.