Yesterday was time to start chipping away at that list and a
trip to Hedmark was in order to search for Lapland Ringlet (emblas ringvinge)
and Bog Fritillary (ringperlemorvinge). I chose yesterday as it was forecast to
be warm but cloudy with periods of sun. I thought this would be better
than a very sunny day as the butterflies were more likely to rest when the sun
went behind a cloud and allow me to get photos rather than them just flying
around manically.
I had an early start from Oslo and arrived at my chosen bog
by 0930. I then began to doubt my strategy as there was rather a lot of cloud
in the sky and no immediate sign that the sun would shine. It was warm though
and moths were flying around. I thought that I might scare some butterflies up
if I walked around and succeeded in seeing a Northern Grizzled Skipper
(moltesmyger) which was only me second sighting ever. A couple of fritillaries
also flew past quite slowly but frustratingly did not land within sight of me.
I needed sun and eventually I could see that there would soon be a large gap in
the clouds - and that did the trick.
Suddenly there were quite a few fritillaries on the wing.
The first ones that I managed to identify were Pearl-bordered (rødflekket
perlemorvinge) but most just zipped by. I did have my butterfly net with me
although I am normally equally as (un)successful with it as I am at scratching
on tree trunks and managed to net one. And, it was the first of my targets - a
Bog. Things then became easier and I saw a number of them and got photos and it
was probably the commonest butterfly there. I also had some more skippers and
then a giant of a butterfly - a Baltic Grayling (juttas ringvinge).
Again this was only my second ever sighting and in total had probably 4
individuals which frequently landed on tree trunks.
I was still missing my second target species but after 2
hours I saw another dark butterfly but it was smaller than the graylings and it
kindly landed and allowed photos. Embla in the box - the day was working out
entirely to plan 🦋🥳.
I had good time to continue further east and check out some
flower rich road verges where I have stopped a couple of times before including
in July last year for Silvery Argus (kileblåvinge). I was a bit shocked to see
that the verges had been scraped to dig drainage ditched but did find some
untouched areas and here found a couple of Chequered Skippers (gulflekksmyger)
which again and for the third time was only my second ever sighting and they
were mint individuals. A few Violet Coppers (fiolett gullvinge) were past their
best but were probably the rarest butterfly of the day although it is a species
I have been lucky enough to see a few times before.
Yesterday takes me to 84 species of butterfly in Norway and
leaves me just 17 to get.
And birds? Well, there were some but nothing to write home,
or on this blog, about.
the first target to fall - Bog Fritillary (ringperlemorvinge). The line of white circles at end back of the underwing are diagnostic
from above it looks like a Small Pearl-bordered (brunflekket) but note how the black spots bleed into the triangular markings and this appears to be diagnostic
this one got me very excited and I was thinking a Friggs Fritillary but turned out to be an abberation of Bog. Unfortunately I did not get any pictures of the upperwing but we can see some of it and it is mostly dark and on the underwing it is much darker than normal
and target #2 - Lapland Ringlet (emblas ringvinge). I only has this one individual with a bit missing from its wing
and my second ever sighting of Northern Grizzled Skipper (moltesmyger) and much better than my first
and my second ever sighting(s) of Baltic Grayling (juttas ringvinge) - a large butterfly that has a 2 year syklus
waiting for the clouds to move
the forest bog when the sun was shining - this type of habitat must be very common but rarely visited by anyone with an interest/knowledge
of butterflies so many of the species may be far more widespread than the handfull of annual records suggest
and my second ever Chequered Skipper (gulflekksmyger) which was a much more satsifying sighting than my first last year which was so late and faded that it was barely recognisable
and the rare Violet Copper (fiolett gullvinge)
a tiny orchid growing on a roadside verge - Early/Northern Coralroot (korallrot)
Only ten years ago it looked like Blyth’s Reed Warbler was
going to establish itself as a regular, if rare, breeding bird in south east
Norway. It bred in Maridalen in 2015 and in my experience a surprisingly high
number of the singing males that turned up other places around Oslo ended up
finding a mate and breeding.
But then the upward curve peaked and a decline started with
the species becoming less regular. It is a classic nocturnal singer species and
also a late arriver and is often not found until us birders go on our nocturnal
trips when there is nice warm weather in mid June.
This year though the species was looking like it was going
to be desperately scarce with only 10 birds in Norway up until June 8th but
since then there has been a solid arrival with at least a doubling of birds.
One of these was found last night in urban Oslo by who else than Stig Johan (there are not many people who would go birding in the middle of the night where he goes) and
was still singing strong when I visited at 11am in a rain shower. They really
are one of our best singers and this bird put on quite the show at point blank
range. It was along a well vegetated stream under overhead wires by a car park
for busses - perfect habitat!
The weather forecast for the coming week is conducive to
nocturnal trips so maybe there will be more Blyth’s to find and hopefully a
River Warbler or Corncrake.
Blyth's Reed Warbler (busksanger) - I took a bit too long before I tried to take any photos as before this it was singing very openly
On Thursday I guided to Great Grey Owls for what will
probably be the last time this season. The chosen bird was Miss Hissig, the unusually
vocal female who has always made her presence known by bill snapping whilst we
are more than 50m away. On Thursday she had also added a rather menacing
growling to her repertoire and this may have been due to the presence of a fairly
large young on the nest. We kept a respectable distance and didn’t place ourselves
between the female who was perched high in a pine about 25m from the nest and
the nest itself. There was also the possibility that there was a young on the
ground and should one approach such a bird too close then the chances are very
high that the female will attack (it is this instinct that ringers use to catch
the adult females with a large net). We clearly chose an acceptable spot to
stand as she soon became quiet although any noise or perhaps movement elsewhere
in the forest could attract her attention and start a series of growls and
snaps.
We hoped to see the male arriving with food but early
afternoon was never going to be the best time although at one stage the youngster
became very animated and started calling excitedly which I felt certain was
going to prelude dad flying in (mum had also looked excited) but nothing
happened. The young which had been out of sight when we arrived became more and
more active during our stay so was I assume getting hungry. It also rained
briefly which I thought would cause mum to fly to the nest to cover the young
but that did not happen either. This female really is a strange beast but it
hasn’t stopped her, or perhaps more importantly her mate who brings the food,
from raising a youngster to very close the jumping out of the nest stage in a
year where voles are clearly in short supply.
The excited calling from the nest at one stage sounded like
it was coming from two birds so the single large bird we saw may also have a smaller,
younger, sibling that was not yet large enough to peer over the edge of the nest
platform.
The video included sequences of mum bill snapping and
growling (good speakers may be necessary to hear this) and the youngster calling
excitedly.
I am very excited to see how this winter and spring of next
year will pan out. If vole numbers crash then we could see Great Grey and other
owls spreading around looking for food and then we may be lucky enough to have
an owl winter around Oslo. Should this happen though then the chances of spring
2027 being good for singing and breeding owls is low. Vole numbers may however
hold up for another season meaning next spring is similar to this, i.e owls
breeding but at low densities and with few young. Only time will tell.
It’s all a bit wet and windy at the moment and the dry spells
when they come need to be used well for as long as they last. Spells that
started dry but turned wet allowed me to hear a rare Oslo Quail found by the
nearly young but already come Jack D at Hengsenga and to get second goes at the
Rb Fly.
slightly better shot of the Rb Fly with the bazooka being deployed on a rare occasion
A Maridalen nocturnal trip last night was far too windy and
birds were very few and far between. Much more cooperative were two separate
Moose which are not a usual sight in the summer months. One showed extremely
well by the road with the Grasshopper Warbler serenading it.
Two very enjoyable and successful days of guiding different
clients (Martin from Edinburgh and Andrew and Merril from New Jersey) have
given some very nice birds. There was a large grey owl in the mix on Sunday and
today was a morning of Oslo’s finest including Hobby, Rosefinch, Marsh &
Icterine Warbler, Wryneck, Hawfinch, and all three species of Flycatcher
😊.
As usual when guiding I took very few photos and just used
the superzoom so my digital output does not do justice to the two days.
something was watching us
is that a Robin?
no, it is Oslo's first reported Red-breasted Flycatcher since 2019. This species seemed to be on the cusp of establishing itself as a regular breeder and then just stopped appearing
Not so much to report from the last few days with perhaps my
first male Red-backed Shrike of the year the highlight. This late migrant seems
to be later than normal this year or perhaps we are just going to get fewer
than normal for some reason. Time will tell but Marsh Warblers that have also
been scarce up until now seem to now be arriving in force.
An Arctic Tern at Maridalsvannet was a close second and a
scarcer bird in a local context. Terns have become a regular feature of
Maridalsvannet in recent years with both Arctic and Common exploiting good
hatches of insects. I have been waiting for them to appear this year after the
insects have started hatching and Black-headed Gulls, and a single brief Little
Gull, have been exploiting them for a week. It was therefore satisfying to see
an Arctic on Friday once a rain storm had eased enough for me to look over the lake.
The invasion of Painted Lady butterflies that has made the
national press in the UK is hitting Norway as well and even though numbers are
currently below those in the UK it is now turning up in all habitats, including
my garden, and has already breached the Arctic Circle.
Otherwise breeding birds are hanging on. In Maridalen there
are at least 3 Lapwing youngsters from 2 broods that are now large enough to
resemble their paretns and the two replacement nests are still being incubated
and should hatch any day soon. At Fornebu the Ringed Plovers seem faithful to
their corner of a building site hemmed in by a road but they have attentive
parents that still brood them when it rains or they perceive danger.
male Red-backed Shrike (tornskate) - here you see how it gets its name
and his mate
female Ringed Plover (sandlo) protecting 2 young during a rain shower. I am viewing from a car and despite being close to them they act naturally and react more to people walking along the road than any cars or lorries that pass close by. The young can also be seen in the video:
2 young Lapwing (vipe) in Maridalen. There was hopefully one or maybe two others from this brood in the long grass
this single surviving youngster from its brood is now looking quite adult like and will hopefully fledge making its parents hard work a success
