Finally

Since my last post on Wednesday I had two days with very uneventful dog walks in Maridalen, a slightly disappointing boat trip with Halvard and finally a good day in the Dale.

The only bird of note on Thursday and Friday was a Peregrine.

Yesterday morning I was lucky enough to join Halvard on his boat for a trip around the inner Oslo Fjord. I had very high hopes and was especially looking forward to seeing the King Eider which had been seen again earlier in the week. Unfortunately though Elvis didn’t show (although was seen today..) and there was generally VERY little to see with hardly any sign of migration which was exactly as it had been in Maridalen on Thursday and Friday. Nighttime frosts and mostly northerly winds are probably the blocking factor at the moment.

The only newly arrived migrants we saw from the boat were a single Lapwing and a couple of Curlews resting on rocky islets although Greylag Geese, Oystercatchers and many gulls were already back on their nesting islands.

The day was saved though with a close encounter with a young White-tailed Eagle. Pink-footed Geese also moved through in even larger numbers than on Tuesday but the flocks went through so high that we couldn’t even hear them.

Today was good though. It started with a rare guiding of a Norwegian with someone deciding that in these Corona times it was important to support their (not so) local bird guide - thank you Egil☺️. The goal was to spend a couple of hours searching for Three-toed Woodpecker and Hazel Grouse. The peckers were no problem with pairs found at three sites which is more than I have ever found before. Hazel Grouse would not play ball though. Or at least not when guiding because in the afternoon whilst walking Mrs OB and The Beast we heard a bird singing at one of the sites Egil and I had tried...

Whilst walking in the forest we heard first Greylags and then flocks of Pink-footed Geese which were trying to migrate north but were hitting low cloud and then flying around in confusion. Eventually all the flocks seemed to head south towards the lake and when we passed on the way home there were loads of geese! Probably 500 Pink-feet with 25 (wild) Barnacle Geese amongst them, 60 odd (non local) Greylags and amongst them a dark-bellid Brent Goose. This is only the second record on the lake so a local twitch ensued later in the day. The first Black-throated Diver of the year was also on the lake along with the Red-throat which had been around for a week or so now.

White-tailed Eagle (havørn). This bird which is I believe a 4cy has been seen a few times around Oslo this week

unringed which at least means it is not from the closest breeding pair

being chased by Hooded Crows

these 3 Long-tailed Ducks (havelle) have been around the Oslo islands all winter but this is my first sighting of them

my first Curlews (storspove) of the year

a Lapwing (vipe) on a rocky offshore island was unexpected

in the absence of its royal cousin I took some pictures of a Common Eider (ærfugl) which is also pretty smart

only the second ever Brent Goose (ringgås) on Maridalsvannet. This of the Dark-bellied subspecies

a Brimstone (sitronsommerfugl) my first proper butterfly of 2020 

a new female Three-toed Woodpecker (with 3 toes)

and her mate who found good acoustics on this telegraph pole