Friday, January 01, 2021

Øygarden 29-30 December 2020 - Still going strong!

 Back in Øygarden again it was business as usual with new birds still being found.

On 29 December the main goal of the day was to go to the shops for the New Year festivities. This was all the birding I did - but a good day despite this. A Grey-headed Woodpecker gråspett almost in the garden as I went out to the car. A short diversion on the way to the shops produced a real Øygarden rarity in the form of a Coot sothøne. This is a scarce visitor in Øygarden so this bird plugged a hole in some birders lists. A Moorehen sivhøne was also present - possibly the same bird I saw there earlier in the autumn.

Coot sothøne on Blomvatnet

Grey-headed Woodpecker gråspett at Nautnes

On 30 December a late start with a walk in some potentially interesting terrain produced little other than a Woodcock rugde and a flock of Common Crossbill grankorsnebb.

This was followed by a walk at Hjelme Vest - this proved rather more successful with two Turnstone steinvender as the highlight. A Peregrine vandrefalk, a Curlew storspove, 70 Long-tailed Duck havelle, 60 Common Crossbill grankorsnebb and several Black Guillemot teist were among the other sightings.

Things improved even further when I picked my daughters up at Tjeldstø - a woodpecker flew over the road and gave good views but unfortunately my camera was still in my rucksack so I only managed some poor shots of the first confirmed White-backed Woodpecker hvitryggspett for this locality.

Female White-backed Woodpecker hvitryggspett at Tjeldstø


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