Skogsøy 03 May 2026 - Seawatching as it should be:)

I spent several hours seawatching having got out of bed at stupid o' clock. In the best company possible I enjoyed things as they should be at this time of year here in the west of Norway.

Highlights were the first Pomarine Skua polarjo and Arctic Skua tyvjo of the year. A respectable number of White-billed Diver gulnebblom headed north and there was a good selection of other species passing despite it not being a record day of any kind, other than perhaps for laughing:) 

We sat from 0620 until 1300, not because we didn't want to leave - we physically couldn't until it was possible to move our legs again.

Red throated Diver smålom  N 102

Great Northern Diver islom N 1 2cy

White Billed Diver gulennblom N 12 (all adult)

Northern Fulmar havhest S 1

Northern Gannet havsule N 34, S 1

Great Cormorant storskarv N 3

Eurasian Shag toppskarv N 10, S 104

Barnacle Goose hvitkinngås N 35

Eider ærfugl N 1, S 1

Long tailed duck havelle N 4, S 1

Common Scoter svartand N 24, S 4

Velvet Scoter sjøorre N 1

Merganser siland N 2, S 1

Oystercatcher tjeld N 41

Ringed Plover sandlo 1

Whimbrel småspove N 9

Eurasian Curlew storspove N 1

Pomarine Skua polarjo N 1

Arctic Skua tyvjo N 1, S 1

Black headed Gull hettemåke N 7

Common Gull fiskemåke  N 9

Black-legged Kittiwake krykkje N 3

Common Guillemot lomvi N 1

Razorbill alke N 10

Atlantic Puffin lunde N 2

Auk N 21

Black-headed Gulls hettemåke

Common Scoter svartand

Gannets havsule

Note the bird in the lower picture has a black iris - something which indicates it is a bird flu survivor:)

2cy Great Northern Diver islom

Guillemot lomvi

Pomarine Skua polarjo

White-billed Diver gulnebblom

Whimbrel småspove

Herdlevær 02 May 2026 - Twite right

An easy day.

Husvatnet held a couple each of Barnacle Goose hvitkinngås and Sand Martin sandsvale and there was a Golden Plover heilo out in the reserve where a Cuckoo gjøk was also heard.

I did my usual Herdlevær round picking up a few patch ticks at this locality including Common Sandpiper strandsnipe and Redshank rødstilk. The only new species for the year was a Common Whitethroat tornsanger which had me going for a while as the first burst of song was not the usual version....

On the way home a flock of Twite bergirisk gave some nice views at Breivik.

Woodcock rugde roding again from the terrace in the evening:)

Skogsøy 01 May 2026 - Playing the joker

Southerly gales are not noted for good migration of the species we target at this time of year, but they can throw up some jokers. And that is exactly what happened today. I took things easy and didn't get out there before 0730.

Pretty much the first things that passed were two Gadwall snadderand together with two Shoveler skjeand - heading south and possibly turning to head inland. Worth the hike for that alone. Later on a flock of three male and one female Shoveler skjeand rested on the sea and another pair of Gadwall snadderand headed north in the company of two Mallard stokkand.

Red throated Diver smålom N 4

Northern Gannet havsule N 25, S 21

Great Cormorant storskarv N 7, S 1

Eurasian Shag toppskarv N 48

Gadwall snadderand N 2,S 2

Shoveler skjeand S 2

Mallard stokkand N 2

Tufted Duck toppand N 1

Eider ærfugl N 2

Long tailed duck havelle N 22

Common Scoter svartand N 2

Merganser siland N 1, S 1

Oystercatcher tjeld N 147

Golden Plover heilo S 1

Whimbrel småspove N 4

Eurasian Curlew storspove S 3

Common Gull fiskemåke N 46

Common Guillemot lomvi S 1

Razorbill alke N 2

Auk N 15

Eider ærfugl

Gadwall snadderand with Mallard stokkand

Great Black-backed Gull svartbak after an unsuccessful attempt to catch a Ballan Wrasse 

Oystercatcher tjeld were one of the few species on the move today

Shags toppskarv

Nothing special seen on the way home, although a couple of Sand Martins sandsvale turned up at Husvatnet where a White-tailed Eagle havørn also gave good views.

Greylag grågås with young

White-tailed Eagle havørn

Guiding 28-30.04.2026 - Some good birds and some frustration

On 28th April I did Herdlevær and Tjeldstø before heading into town to pick up a couple from Hurtigruten.

Tjeldstø produced the goods both on the way into town when I found the first Spotted Redshank sotsnipe of the year and on the way home when birders looking for the Spotted Red had found two nice male Ruff brushane and Greenshank gluttsnipe. I also managed brief views of an early male Whinchat buskskvett which frustratingly vanished before I could get anyone onto it.

Spotted Redshank sotsnipe at Husvatnet

Spring records are a lot less common than in the autumn when they are to be expected but this species is just about annual in spring.

Herdlevær produced Collared Dove tyrkerdue and an early Arctic Tern rødnebbterne new for the year. Goldfinch stillits, Twite bergirisk and the usual suspects were also present. Half an hour with the scope gave 31 Red-throated Diver smålom, 85 Oystercatcher tjeld, several Common Scoter svartand and more in addition to the tern.

A Jay nøtteskrike at Hatten was another local first - not something I've even tried to see so far and I was actually hoping for something else entirely:)

Greylag grågås with young.

This species seems to get their young earlier and earlier. The first goslings were observed over a week ago!

A flock of 18 Barnacle Geese hvitkinngås flew north over Kollsnes - today would have been a good day to sit at Skogsøy!

In the evening a roding Woodcock rugde seen from my terrace was a fitting end to a quite productive day.

On 29th April Common Sandpiper strandsnipe was another local first for 2026 and seen from my terrace as we prepared to leave for a day out and about.

Hjelme failed to produce what I had hoped for which was very frustrating but a Cuckoo gjøk was a new for the year here. A good variety of woodland species turned up including a few Common Crossbill grankorsnebb - the first I've seen for a while.

The obligatory stop at Husvatnet produced a remarkable record in the form of a Jack Snipe kvartbekkasin - I think this is the first time I have seen this species on spring migration even though it is a regular autumn migrant and an occasional winter visitor.

Jack Snipe kvartbekkasin - a species that was absolutely not on the radar today!

Other good birds at Tjeldstø were two Barnacle Geese hvittkingås, a Goshawk hønsehauk and several White-tailed Eagles havørn. At least two pairs of Tufted Duck toppand hint at some possibilities but usually these birds move on despite appearing settled for a while.

We then headed inland where there was a mixture of disappointment and success. A nice Green Woodpecker grønspett was the best sighting on the avian side of things but was eclipsed by nice views of a Pine Martin mår! Pied Flycatcher svarthvit fluesnapper and a variety of other species were also noted - but not the one we went inland for:(

In the evening at least four roding Woodcock rugde were seen from the terrace just befoe bedtime:)

Another visit to Hjelme on 30th April was again unsuccessful for the target species.

However, Stonechats svartstrupe were more cooperative with two nice males seen at two localities as we left Øygarden in search of some other species.

Herdla was the first stop where we had hoped to see the Yellow Wagtails gulerle that have been reported there the last few days. This was not to be but a good selection of decent birds were seen with two Lapland Buntings lappspurv, four Bar-tailed Godwits lappspove, a male Ruff brushane and a Red-necked Grebe gråstrupedykker. Good numbers of waders included 360 Golden Plover heilo in stunning summer plumage, Greenshank gluttsnipe and the usual breeding wader species at this site. A male Pied Wagtail svartryggerle was probably the same bird as on my previous visit there. A House Martin taksvale was the first I've seen on this side of the country too - as well as being a bonus species on the "wish list".

Female Lapland Bunting lappspurv

Red-necked Grebe gråstrupedykker

With time running out and with heavy traffic time was limited by the time we reached Gullfjell. After some initial disappointing scans of the area the target species showed very well indeed as we left the area - a lovely Dipper fossekall.

Hernar 27 April 2026 - Twite and the usual suspects

 Better late than never! The first trip to Hernar, again because I could, rather than the conditions.

Visiting after two days of northerlies was not the best decision but there was plenty to see even though there was nothing special to be seen. Over 40 species seen inlcuding my first local Twite bergirisk of the year. It was very much the usual suspects with several White-tailed Eagle havørn, at least five Chiff-chaff gransanger, a couple of Skylark sanglerke and a decent movement of Common Gulls fiskemåke up the fjord.

Chiff-chaff gransanger

Mergansers siland

Robin rødstrupe

Skogsøy 25-26 April 2026 - Let the games begin!

 A northerly gale on 25th wasn't the best forecast but I spent a few "late" hours at Skogsøy just because I could. The winds were just too strong and not surprisingly there was not a lot passing. 

Perhaps surprisingly several Hooded Crows kråke headed north west out to sea - why on earth they would choose to set out over the sea under such conditions is anybody's guess. Similarly it was surprising to see a White-tailed Eagle havørn heading north a long way out and low down over the waves.

Red throated Diver smålom N 19

Northern Gannet havsule N 14, S 3

Great Cormorant storskarv N 1

Eurasian Shag toppskarv N 8, S 5

Long tailed duck havelle N 5

Common Scoter svartand N 3

Merganser siland N 2

Common Gull fiskemåke N 5

Black-legged Kittiwake krykkje N 1

Common Guillemot lomvi N 5

Razorbill alke N 2

Gannets havsule battling into the gale force winds

Red-throated Divers smålom migrating in strong winds

I was back the following day under better conditions and there was somewhat more to see.

The morning started well in a frustrating way - the first birds I saw were a 2cy White-billed Diver gulnebblom side by side with a 2cy Great Northern Diver islom in decent photo range - nothing short of a dream photo. However, my up to this point trusty point and pray refused to start. After over half and hour of fiddling with it I finally managed to get it going but there is obviously something very wrong with it....

In an Øygarden context the best bird was a Short-eared Owl jordugle seen coming in off the sea from at least a couple of km out.

Red throated Diver smålom N 82

Great Northern Diver islom N 1 (2cy)

White Billed Diver gulnebblom N 2 (1ad, 1 2cy)

Northern Gannet havsule N 25,  S 2

Great Cormorant storskarv N 17, S 1

Eurasian Shag toppskarv N 62, S 36

Barnacle Goose hvitkinngås N 41

Eider aærfugl N 2

Long tailed duck havelle N 7

Common Scoter svartand N 3

Merganser siland N 8

Oystercatcher tjeld N 36, S 4

Whimbrel småspove N 4

Black headed Gull hettemåke N 1

Common Gull fiskemåke N 80

Razorbill alke N 12

Black Guillemot teist N 2

Atlantic Puffin lunde N 1

Auk N 16

Gannet havsule

Not a bad result from the point and pray:)

Oystercatcher tjeld

Red-throated Diver smålom

Shag toppskarv

In the evening a roding Woodcock rugde from my terrace was nice to see.

Øygarden 21-24.04.2026 - Counting down!!

The week was spent counting down the days until the start of what will be the longest period of time off since I stopped working offshore full time. May should be a month to remember for a long time to come!

Although I was glued to my computer all week I did manage short trips out before and after work most days and there was plenty to see including a good dose of new arrivals.

An early morning round on 21st produced the first Willow Warbler løvsanger, Sand Martin sandsvale and Golden Plover heilo of the year along with the first local Swallows låvesvale, Brambling bjørkefink and Wheatear steinskvett.

Picking up a package at the local shop after work (repaired binoculars returning home) produced four Canada Geese kanadagås on Husvatnet - a species that is considerably rarer here in northern Øygarden than Grey-headed Woodpecker gråspett.

Crazy but in an Øygarden context these invasive Canada Geese kanadagås were a much rarer sighting than the woodpecker below:)

Female Grey-headed Woodpecker gråspett in the early morning sun

In this very short video I managed to capture the call of GHW

A bonus sighting was a pod of around 20 Porpoise nise, a common species in Øygarden but normally seen in much smaller groups.

On 22nd April I checked Tjeldstø before work. Some Curlews storspove holding territory but only a couple of pairs at most, luckily they are still widespread in Øygarden and will hopefully remain so. I'm hoping it is still a little early and that more will arrive at what was once a stronghold for this struggling species. Lapwings vipe are liking the area where the sikta spruce have been removed. Fingers crossed that they increase in numbers following this improvement. Snipe enkeltbekassin are back too and displaying "everywhere". Redshank rødstlk numbers seem low, again I hope more will arrive and take up territories.

Norway in a nutshell - an FPSO out in the fjord and Hurtigruten heading south...

The next day I spent slightly longer out of the house as I had to get my wheels changed over to summer tyres. A short walk at Tjeldstø whilst I was waiting for this to be finished resulted in a nice Peregrine vandrefalk flying over. A Green Sandpiper skogsnipe was a bonus on the way to the garage - a regular enough species here during the autumn migration but much fewer turn up in the spring.

Male Grey-headed Woodpecker gråspett sticking its tongue out at me:)

Green Sandpiper skogsnipe

"My" Herring Gulls gråmåke spend a large part of their day waiting for me to give them some food.

Wheatear steinskvett at Tjeldstø

White-tailed Eagle havørn over my terrace. Pity the photo is not in focus:(

Otters are still pretty much a daily sight. Soon they'll become more nocturnal and harder to see. Filmed from my terrace in between meetings.

On 24th I did a quick trip out after work to buy some beers to celebrate the start of my holiday. This resulted in a male Wigeon brunnakke at Tjeldstø and a Carrion Crow svartkråke at Breivik where there was also a nice flock of 30 Linnet tornirisk - biggest flock so far this spring:)

Carrion Crow svartkråke

Fieldfare gråtrost - some are holding territories while there are still some flocks moving through to other places.

Redwing rødvingetrost

Much the same status as Fieldfare - many are singing but there also flocks obviously just passing through

Bring on the next several weeks😊 Work won't be the problem from here on in!!