Dunnock

Glorious sun and completely blue skies today. Perfect conditions for discovering where all those Russian Dunnocks are hiding! At Fornebu I heard one calling but couldn’t find it so reluctantly let that one go as a Hedge Accentor. Then I had another one calling from an area that looked small enough for me to have a good enough chance of seeing it. I played the call of Russian Dunnock and it immediately answered from the top of a bush. It had the sun right behind it so couldn’t make out jack sh*t with regards plumage but moved closer, firing off photos and adjusting the exposure compensation to the roof. I really didn’t have a clue what it was but as I got closer and it remained in place I begun to see enough to understand that there was nothing funny about it. Surely a funny Dunnock is more likely at the moment?

Fornebu had surprisingly little else to offer with a real dearth of passerines. I put up 9 Common Snipe and a single Jack Snipe. I have really lost my knack of finding Jacks on the deck and just can’t see the anymore until they feebly rise up from under my foot.

In Maridalen there are still no sea ducks on the lake although two Wigeon were new in. The Pink-footed Goose that has been around for a month finally showed in sunlight and I finally managed a nice photo of it. I have not seen any sign of the Whooper Swan family on my latest visits so it looks like they have moved on towards their winter quarters.

I illed up the feeders a couple of days ago and four Willow Tits today were a good start for the season.

The pulse really rose with this calling dunnock in silhouette (jernspurv)

but it wasn't Russian

Pink-footed Goose (kortnebbgås) hanging on in Maridalen

my standard picture of Jack Snipe (kvartbekkasin) at the moment

Common Snipe (enkeltbakkasin) left with the Jack. The larger size and longer bill of the Common are easy to see

Coal Tit (svartmeis) in Maridalen

and Willow Tit (granmeis)