OSLO BIRDER: Beans r back

Cold nights and sunny but still cold days have caused the thaw to stop and also put a halt to new arrivals of migrants. This morning there was no wind and the fjord had a thin layer of ice on it!

The Taiga Bean Geese have arrived though. The tagged bird left Denmark on the 4^th and arrived at the Glomma early on the 5^th having spent the night at Årnestangen. A flock of 50 were seen at Glomma on the afternoon of 5^th and I visited yesterday and saw ca.100 but they were at very long range so I was not able to read any collars. Apart from Whooper Swans there were hardly any other migrants to see and although the fields on the east side of the river were mostly free of snow the ground was frozen. Surprisingly the fields on the west of the river were still largely covered in snow.

Yesterday and today Red-necked Grebes were reported on the fjord but both sightings (same bird?) seem to be Slavonian Grebes. I saw todays’ bird together with a GC Grebe and many Guillemots (all the birds had been concentrated due to the ice) and it smalls size was enough to rule out RnG although distance and lighting made plumage details impossible to see.

In Maridalen a Whooper Swan family with three young has now turned up which must be last years family who have not lost any young over the winter. 27 Skylarks this evening was I am sure a record count and 2 Snow Buntings allowed themselves to be photographed. A male House Sparrow was also entering a nest hole so they male well be breeding alongside Tree Sparrows.

The White-fronted Geese and the flood remain at Bygdøy. The flood waters were frozen this morning and the geese were showing very close to the path and gave what were perhaps my best ever views of adult birds.