Some ducks

Things have been a little quiet on the/my birding front since Thursday night's fantastic close encounter of the owl kind. A trip into Maridalen revealed a few Moose of the non-photogenic kind in the woods by the feeding station and a Pygmy Owl (spurveugle) atop the highest tree it could find.

Temperatures have been up to +6C and are forecast to continue to be so which gives a spring feeling and many bids are singing including the Siskins (grønnsisik) in the garden and a Wood Pigeon (ringdue) is engaging in its display flight over the house.

A trip today to Frognerpark was of the usual non-rare-gull kind but I read off a few Herring Gull (gråmåke) colour rings and although 5 were of the usual kind with many observations in Oslo in the winter period but none elsewhere or in the breeding season I did have one bird that had never been recorded in Oslo before! It was ringed 13 months ago 48km away on a rubbish dump in Askim and has only been reported once since which was a month ago in Lillestrøm. One has to enjoy the small pleasures that life throws in your direction!

Luckily there weren't just gulls in Frognerpark:

one of the 5 female and a single male Teal (krikkand) that are wintering in Frognerpark

there are also varying numbers of Tufted Duck (toppand) on the lake with presumably movement between the lake and the fjord