Memories

I’ve long been itching for a seagaze. It didn’t need to be a particularly good one just as long as there were a steady passage of birds. Over 10 years ago I had for a few years the habit of driving the hour to Brentetangen, just south of Moss in Østfold and seawatching from there before visiting nearby Kurefjorden. I cut some of my Norwegian birding teeth doing this and had some good birds and company doing so. Brentetangen used to attract quite a gang on good days but these days seems to get little attention. Serious birders are become a scarce species not just in Oslo but it would seem all over Norway.

I’d been looking at Windy.com for a few days and had highish hopes that yesterday would deliver some north bound passage over the sea. After a long period of northerly winds they were finally going to swing south on Thursday afternoon so by Friday there should be loads of birds. The winds did not end up being quite so southerly as initially forecast and it was quite cold but I still think that I should have seen more than I did which in terms of migration was pretty much nothing. Gannet and Kittiwake were good birds for me and are both species that usually need a real southern storm to end up Akershus waters but just 20km further south are fairly regular no matter the weather.

the view from Brentetangen looking 10km across the fjord to Vestfold

 

Kurefjorden was also disappointing with 18 Dunlin being the only calidris waders although I was sure I heard a BbS.

and Kurefjorden. I was expecting waders to be dropping out of the skies

 

Question now is how many years will it be before I try the Østfold combo again?

 

Thursday was another of those religious public holidays that Norway loves «celebrating» but for which 90% of the population have no idea why - it was of course Ascension Day and if you also don’t know what that represents then I recommend Google…

The winds may have been from the north in the morning but finally it was raining and the clouds heavy and low. Surely this would draw all the remaining serious Oslo birders out of their warm beds? Fat chance but as there seemed to be little to find maybe they were just birding smart.

I decided to keep it local. Maridalen early doors was just wet but Østensjøvannet had ca.300 Swallows and martins. I promise I looked at every single one but a red rump was not to be seen. Such a large congregation was a joy to see as the last couple of years have not seen scenes like this and means the lake again must have good numbers of insects.

just a small fraction of the Swallows (låvesvale) and a single Sand Martin (sandsvale)

Back in the Dale around 11am there was a very brief period when the rain stopped and waders flew over: a flock of Wood Sands, a couple of Greenshank, 3 Whimbrel then 160 Golden Plovers. And then it was over.

most of the Golden Plover flock (heilo)

I allowed Jr Jr to have some driving practice and drive me to Svellet but despite water levels not having risen and rain having fallen there were hardly any waders. This is strange given the passage I had over Maridalen and also a fall of arctic bound waders reported at Øra but I have noted this before that when other places experience fall like numbers of waders that Svellet can be nearly empty of birds.

 

Maridalen has had some exceptional days in late April and May always when there is rain and heavy, low cloud but they are not happening with the regularity I remember although I am sure that they didn’t happen quite as much as rose tinted memory tells me. Looking at the numbers it is actually seven years since the last big day which was 10th May 2019 but that will perhaps be a day never to be repeated.

 

This morning’s pre breakfast Maridalen visit was no less uninspiring that the last few days except for one bird that was totally not on my radar - a Taiga Bean Goose. This was my first record in the Dale although there is a previous record (but I remember seeing that bird and choosing not to put it on my list as such).

I finally found nesting Black Woodpeckers although they were still excavating which is very late. Three Great Spots were also drumming which again is late - both these species should be on eggs by now. Two Wryneck singing in the same area were to be more expected at this time of the year but no less exciting for that.

I nearly didn't pay these geese any attention but with the nakes eye thought that the bird second left looked a bit like a young White-fronted Goose (tundragås) one of which was found yesterday at Østensjøvannet. Through the bins it proved to be a Greylag but I continued looking at the other geese and the one of the top was a Taiga Bean!!

here the head and bill shape leave me in no doubt

just based on this picture though I am sure you could rgue for both Tundra and Taiga although I think the bill shape can only match Taiga and the extensive orange is also a very pro Taiga feature

It was also a large bird with a swan like stature

I would not say this bird is a classic Taiga but believe that most features are pro Taiga. I also must say that I do hate single Bean Geese and it would be much more convenient if the two species were lumped again

in the river it was also upending which I also view as pro Taiga

I had been hearing Black Woodpeckers (svartspett) and was sure they were nesting so went looking for a suitable tree and hole. These huge splinters on the road! gave away where they were.

Lots of sea to watch

Yesterday I awoke at 4am and was a headed to Brentetangen in Østfold for some seawatching. I wasn't the only one who thought that would be a good idea but unfortunately the birds did not have the same idea. In the course of an hour and a half 99 Common Scoter and only 5 Red-throated Divers were the highlight although singing Wood Warbler, Redstart and Lesser Whitethroat serenaded us. A number of crossbill sp were also flying over and calling at height signally post breeding dispersal is already happening.

After this Kurefjorden was disappointing for waders but 4 female Ruff were a reminder of what I would have been looking for at Svellet now if the water levels were not so high. A singing Wryneck was my first of the year of a species which has hardly arrived in any numbers yet.

After this I took the long route home via Hellesjøvannet where a booming Bittern had been discovered the previous day. The middle of the day is not optimal for hearing this species so I was quite happy with a single "boom" or "tut" as they say in Norwegian. The breeding pair of Marsh Harriers were on show most of the time. The very characteristic dark female was in the air nearly all the time and often flying slowly around with her feet dangling. She was clearly waiting for the male to come with food and was probably ready to mate but the two times the male showed us he had nothing to give her and her disappointment was palpable.

A couple of Water Rails were calling and one showed well and this time I managed to press the record button on the camera and capture some action 😃

Water Rail (vannriske)

Wryneck (vendehals)

female Marsh Harrier (sivhauk) and Black-headed Gull (hettemåke)

male Marsh Harrier

the male in more detail

the dark female in more detail. Note the pale mark on the belly which I have noted on other pictures of dark Marsh Harriers that I have found on the net. This bird which lack the normal pale head and forewing marking of female and young Marsh Harrier could definitely be an ID pitfall for the unwary 

in the evening three Cranes were making a lot of noise in Maridalen but three was definitely a crowd and the odd bird out was chased off by the pair

The unexpected....

With fresh southerly winds and some precipitation in the air my first May Østfold trip of the year was going to be a big success. Four species of skua, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Dotterel and something even rarer (probably a raptor) were almost guaranteed. And you can’t blame my total lack of success on lack of effort. I sea gazed at Brentetangen from 05:24-07:34 and then from 09:55-12:05 and birded Kurefjorden in between. I guess it is the unexpected that makes birding so much fun but when there is so much unexpectedly little to see then you start questioning your sanity.

A singing Thrush Nightingale on the drive down was a good start to the day and a migrating flock of Red-throated Divers on my first sweep with the bins had me thinking there would be a lot of movement but it wasn’t to be. My totals were 78 R-t Diver, 2 B-t Diver, 118 Common Scoter, 19 Velvet Scoter, 16 Tufted Duck, 2 Gannets, 2 L-t Duck, a Guillemot and rarest of all 4 Black Guillemots.

Kurefjorden had some waders but nothing unusual and the only raptor I had all day was a Kestrel.

no pictures of birds today just a picture of the sea....

Less than expected

Tomorrow (17 May) is a day when Norwegians indulge themselves in an orgy of nationalism which would be illegal in almost any other country and it is also such that any activity that does not involve the waving of the Norwegian flag is illegal. Therefore it is necessary to get any birding in today as the practising of such an activity tomorrow would lead to instant ostracism from society.

Per Christian and I were not entirely sure where to go this morning but ended up choosing Brentetangen/Kurefjorden.  On the way we had 3 Peregrines (vandrefalk) flying over the motorway which I have never before experienced. When we arrived at 0630 the two best seating positions had already been taken although the early birds had not seen anything to make us regret our late arrival. Over the next 2 and a half hours there was just enough to keep us interested but just as in my two previous visits this spring it never really kicked off. The undoubted highlight was two Arctic Skuas (tyvjo) a light and a dark phase bird that flew very strongly and quite high to the north. Their manner of flight had me thinking (hoping) they were Pomarine Skuas (polarjo) but that was not to be.

After this we headed towards Kurefjorden and stopped at a recently sown field along the way to look for Dotterel (boltit). What felt like a thorough scan revealed a single Golden Plover (heilo) but just as we were about to leave I thought that a dark stone looked suspect – and indeed it was a Dotterel. Whilst admiring this we suddenly realised there were two!

Kurefjorden had a few waders including 10 Dunlin (myrsnipe). One wader caused us a lot of head scratching when we first saw it in flight and it appeared much large than it actually was. Eventually though we saw it on the deck where it revealed itself as a Knot (polarsnipe) in winter plumage (presumably a 2cy bird).

 

A boat, dirt on the lens and a prick that may be one of the Arctic Skuas we saw

The two Dotterel

I took this picture to document the single bird we saw but inspecting it afterwards showed I captured both although we hadn't yet noticed the bird to the left

 

Seawatching still disappointing

Skuas (joer) started moving up the Norwegian coast yesterday with a good southerly tail wind and those southerly winds continued today so it would surely be a good day to be at Brentetangen? I awoke an hour before my alarm at 03:30 and after a bit of tossing and turning decided to get up and make some food and coffee and head off. I arrived at 0500 to find that some mist meant that views were not great but the wind was fresh so I sat down and shock horror discovered I had left my coffee at home – crisis! Luckily I soon had some coffee carrying company and could steal some coffee. And I needed it because excitement on the bird front was not going to keep me awake. In just under 4 hours we had 1180 Common Scoter (svartand) which were moving in a northerly direction but kept landing on the water and were perhaps just resting birds that had been disturbed by boats. This is a good total but was not matched with good numbers of anything else. Just 10 Red-throated Divers (smålom), 30 Velvet Scoters (sjøorre), 2 Pintail (stjertand) and 1 Black-throated Diver (storlom) moved north and 7 Gannets (havsule) heading south.

Kurefjorden surprised with good numbers of waders but the vast majority of these flew off north whilst I was there. This shows how one has to be a bit lucky at this time of the year and also confirms how criminal the raising of water levels in Nordre Øyeren is as there is clearly a lot of migrating waders at the moment. I had 47 Redshank (rødstilk), 3 Greenshank (grønnstilk), 16 Ringed Plover (sandlo), 6 Dunlin (myrsnipe) and 8 Bar-tailed Godwits (lappspove).

Dotterels were not to be found today although there were a few Golden Plovers (heilo).

With low cloud I did not expect to see raptors today but we twice had a male Kestrel (tårnfalk) heading low over the sea at Brentetangen and this was probably a local breeding bird, we also had Marsh Harrier (sivhauk) slowly heading north, plus I had another Kestrel, a Buzzard (musvåk) and best of all my first Honey Buzzard (vepsevåk) of the year migrating north.

a very photogenic female Lapwing (vipe) that was probably and unfortunately a failed breeder

the migrating Marsh Harrier (sivhauk)

all the birds at Kurefjorden reacted as though there was a raptor at one stage and here I have captured Whimbrel , Bar-tailed Godwits and Pink-footed Geese

Whimbrel

the view from Brentetangen over to the Vestfold side of the fjord (4km) with2 Gannets Passing by

 

Østfold disappoints whilst the hood delivers

Østfold was supposed to deliver on 3 fronts: interesting passage from Brentetangen, a great array of waders at Kurefjorden and Dotterels and harriers on the fields behind Kurefjorden. Well Østfold delivered on half a front, namely Dotterels. An hour at Brentetangen from 0530-0630 was amazingly quiet with no real sign of passage. There were 60 odd Common Terns (makrellterne) and a couple of Arctic Terns (rødnebbterne) feeding offshore but they were not moving. 100+ Common Scoter (svartand), 5 Velvet Scoter (sjøorre) and 3 Long-tailed Ducks (havelle) were likewise just flying around and landing on the sea. 2 Gannets (havsule) had me thinking something was happening but they were a red herring. Behind me in the wood though there was some action with singing Redstart (rødstjert) and Wood Warbler (bøksanger) and loads of Willow Warblers (løvsanger).

Kurefjorden was completely and utterly dead. 2 Greenshank (gluttsnipe), 5 Redshank (rødstilk) and 2 Ringed Plovers (sandlo) is not what you expect in May!

A trip of 5 Dotterel (boltit) in the company of 40 Golden Plovers (heilo) was nice but views in the rain were not exactly good.

By 0900 I had given up on Østfold and headed for Svellet. Here the water level has risen a lot probably a result of two days of rain and I fear the wader season may now be over in a matter of days. Whilst it lasts though it must be enjoyed. 11 Knot (polarsnipe) are a very good spring bird and Greenshank have risen to 320 although other waders were little changed from two days ago. There were only 3 Common Terns today but with them was a single Arctic. Dabbling ducks however have now vanished and 30 Tufted Ducks (toppand) were the most numerous duck with only 20 Teal (krikkand) down from 590 two days ago! Raptors were represent by a Peregrine (vandrefalk) hunting Wood Sandpipers (grønnstilk) and a female Kestrel (tårnfalk) that sought shelter from the rain on a balcony on some flats.

Snekkervika had a few birds including a singing Wryneck (vendehals) and Whitethroat (tornsanger) and displaying Common Snipe (enkeltbekkasin) but no Great Snipe as I had hoped.

Arriving in Maridalen early afternoon it was bucketing down but just after the rain stopped it was dripping with birds. At Kirkeby there were 40 odd Wheatears (steinskvett), 15 Whinchat (buskskvett), 3 male Redstarts and amongst a few White Wagtails (linerle) was a good candidate for a female Pied Wagtail (svartryggerle) but probably actually a male bird and therefore some sort of integrade/hybrid. I also had a singing Wryneck.

On the lake there was a large flock of non-breeding Goldeneye (kvinand) and whilst I was there other ducks just appeared on the lake: 21 Tufted and 9 Red-breasted Merganser (island) which is probably an unprecedented number here. The female Common Scoter was still present and preferred the company of the Goldeneye rather than a group of another three of her own species that were sleeping in the middle of the lake. The only divers I had were a pair of Black-throated (storlom) and a single Whooper Swan (sangsvane) that flew in calling was an interesting record with regards possible breeding in the neighbourhood.

all five of the Dotterel together with a Golden Plover

Wryneck in Maridalen

singing male Twite (bergirisk) Maridalen

male Redstart in Maridalen

and another

6 Wheatears in Maridalen part of a large fall

male White Wagtail (linerle) left and a bird with a lot (if not 100%) genes from a Pied Wagtail (svartryggerle)

montage of the Piedish wagtail

Whooper Swan

female Common Scoter with immature Goldeneyes

Pride restored

Continued cold north easterly winds are putting a real stop to migration and my third Brentetangen seawatch of the spring was as equally poor as the two other attempts. All I can hope is that when there are some southerly winds that there will be a huge rush of birds. Only problem for me is that this is forecast to occur on Friday and Saturday when I won’t be able to get out. Despite there being little obvious migration Swifts and finally Pied Flycatchers made their presence properly felt today so some things are creeping through.

Today was saved though by me finding my own Dotterel (boltit) and my pride was restored! I had to travel to Østfold to find them but who cares and I found them at two locations although only three birds in total. One was with a flock of Golden Plovers on a field with sprouting crops and the other two were alone on a newly sown field. They are always a great bird to see in the mountains or on migration – there is something special about their reversal of parenting roles and the fact they are a wader that doesn’t wade.

Brentetangen did have a slight bit of migration with a couple hundred scoters going north and four Guillemots had attached themselves to these flocks – I wonder whether they’ll continue migration inland with the ducks? I also had a single Razorbill going south which gave me two species of real seabirds.

Kurefjorden was also very quiet although it was in the surrounding farmland that I found the Dotterel.

With so little happening other than the Dotterel I was able to head home and eat my lunch at Svellet. Here the water level apparently dropped another cm over the last 24 hours and conditions continue to look good although it is possible that most of the available food has already been consumed. There were certainly fewer waders today although still over 400 birds in total: 200 Wood Sandpipers, 150 Greenshank, 20 Redshank, 19 Ruff including now 8 females who migrate later than the males, 12 Oystercatchers, 2 Dunlin, 2 Temminck’s Stints, 1 Ringed Plover, 1 Common Sandpiper and 1 Curlew.

A whistle stop tour of Maridalen revealed that a brood of Lapwings has just hatched. The nest was in a ploughed field and the farmer had obviously been aware of the nest and left a tiny island in the middle of the field. Four tiny youngsters were testing their legs and could only have hatched hours before I saw them. Given how far these birds have come I have doubts that the pair at Kirkeby will actually nest as the female isn’t sitting on any eggs yet.

I nearly forgot that I did actually have a lifer today. Not a bird lifer but a mammal and I saw two individuals. As I was driving along looking for Dotterel I saw two medium large mammals in a field. I thought possibly otter but then realised they were Pine Martens. They both ran separate ways, one into woodland and the other into the garden of a cottage where I was able to take this v.poor photo. I also saw stoat (røyskatt) and fox today so quite a good mammal day. The Pine Marten (mår) was a much larger animal than I had expected and had the lurching run that I have seen wolverine has (on TV). Also the habitat was completely unexpected – there is woodland in the area but these animals were initially in the middle of a field.

Dotteel - can you spot the second bird? They can easily go missing in ploughed fields

I think these are both females (the brighter sex) but am not completely sure

with a Wheatear

one of the Pine Martens after it ran into a garden. Notice the odd gait as it runs