Now with a proper job again it is hard to find the right balance such that I can get the hours in at work and still find time to get out and about. Luckily for me I can to a large extent decide when I work. This week felt like I was not really out that much...
On Monday 18 January I found a dead Woodcock rugde as roadkill at Nautnes - the cold weather no doubt in part to blame for this. I had a quick look at Blomvåg, Breivik and Solberg without seeing much of note. Breivik held the usual three species of thrush and a Velvet scoter sjøorre at Solberg were the only sightings of remote interest.
The following day I had to head to the airport and on the way stopped at Alvøen which is in the "new" Øygarden. Here there were several Mute Swans knoppsvane, Eiders ærfugl, Tufted duck toppand and a bunch of other stuff. Curlew storspove from the house before I left and 20 Greylags grågås at Breivik on the way out of the real Øygarden.
Having spent 20 January at the office in Oslo I was out again on 21 January, this time to Hjelme Vest where things were rather quiet with a number of the usual species failing to show. However, all was not lost with a Great Northern Diver islom, a Red-throated Diver smålom, 65+ Long-tailed Duck havelle and a couple of Velvet Scoter sjøorre seen along with the usual White-tailed Eagles havørn etc.
My usual round at Herdlevær on 22 January in exceptionally good conditions - mild and calm - produced a Little Auk alkekonge, a Black Guillemot teist, a few White-tailed Eagles havørn and quite a lot of passerine activity including a few Redwing rødvingetrost and around 10 Chaffinch bokfink. 10 Fieldfare gråtrost and the flock of 20 Greylag grågås (probably of Icelandic origin) were at Breivik.
Even though it has been mild for several days the ground is still frozen not far below the surface and despite all the water at the surface ice remains on most open fresh water and under the water in the fields. There are definitely more places available for Snipe and Woodcock to feed but things must still hang somewhat in the balance for such species.
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