Hernar & Skogsøy 29-30 April 2021 - Suddenly Spring!

 Having been away for a couple of weeks I returned to find spring had really taken off.

On the evening of the 28th I had my first local Dunnock jernspurv at Tjeldstø as I did my shopping and a Swallow låvesvale flew over my house when I got home.

Before I left the house the following morning Chiff-chaff gransanger was singing nearby. 

The rest of the morning was spent on Hernar where many of the local breeders had returned including Swallow låvesvale, Wheatears steinskvett, Twite bergirisk, Linnet tornirisk, Chiff-chaff gransanger, Willow Warbler løvsanger and more.

Newly returned Swallows låvesvale

One of several Wheatear steinskvett on Hernar

A Golden Plover heilo, a few Redshank rødstilk and a couple more Swallow låvesvale were seen at Husvatnet later in the day.

Somewhat predictably I was up bright and early for some seawatching at Skogsøy on 30 April. Light SE winds meant that despite the date it was not a big day for divers with just seven White-billed Diver gulnebblom (all but one adults) and a low count of just 42 Red-throated Diver smålom, a Great Skua storjo was another new for the year and there was a steady passage of other species throughout the 5.5 hours or so I sat out there.

Most of the Cormorant storskarv passing now are non-breeders like this one

Gannet havsule

Red-throated Diver smålom

Shags toppskarv

My first White-billed Diver gulnebblom of the season (05:47)

White-billed Diver gulnebblom

A White-tailed Eagle havørn went a fair way out to sea low over the waves to attack a Gannet havsule sitting on the surface. The Gannet promptly threw up the last fish it had caught, the eagle picked it up and headed back into shore with the minimum of effort and drama.

Øygarden 12-14 April 2021 - Brent +

 Sunny with northerly winds

As almost usual no time to be out and about. A couple of stops beside Husvatnet on the way home from errands, my usual round and Herdlevær on 13 April and 15 minutes at Tjeldstø on 14 April was all I managed.

On 12 April a pale-bellied Brent Goose (hrota) ringgås turned up at Husvatnet where I also had a (the) Pinkfoot kortnebbgås. There is a high chance that this Brent was the same as recently seen one fjord over at Herdla.

An unseasonal Dipper fossekall was at Alvheim.

Brent Goose ringgås at Husvatnet, 12 April 2021

Herdlevær might have produced a very good wader on 13 April when two calidrids headed north very close in. The call was a double note and quite hard - so not sure what these were at all although Sanderling crossed my mind they did not give this impression A Snow Bunting snøspurv, a Lapwing vipe (no longer a breeding bird at this locality) and most of the usual suspects were also seen here.

Snow Bunting snøspurv

Redwing rødvingetrost - one of several present at Herdlevær on 13 April

On April 14 I spent the morning preparing to leave for work but had a Pied Wagtail svartryggerle on the shore in front of my house plus a singing Twite bergirisk and Skylark sangelerke at Tjeldstø

Skogsøy 11 April 2021 - Seawatching again

 Light easterly winds and sunny.

Today I was, as is so often the case, hoping for a good movement of birds after a period of poor migration weather. Although it was far from quiet it was not any kind of record setting day. It was something of a struggle to keep and eye on everything as there was quite a bit of very distant auk movement along with a decent passage of other stuff much closer in. The Common Gulls fiskemåke did a bit of both.....

It was the best day so far this year for Cormorants storskarv and I suspect some flocks may have passed behind the lookout point

A few small flocks of Curlew storspove headed north

Mergansers siland

Oystercatchers tjeld in the early morning light

Rock Pipits skjærpiplerke

Song Thrush måltrost

Totals in the period 0700-1000:

Red throated Diver N 11

Northern Gannet N 15

Northern Gannet S 13

Great Cormorant N 144

Great Cormorant S 2

Eurasian Shag N 9

Eurasian Shag S 5

Greylag Goose N 7

Greylag Goose S 6

Long tailed duck S 4

Merganser N 8

Oystercatcher N 193

Eurasian Curlew N 11

Black headed Gull N 2

Common Gull N 700

Razorbill N 3

Atlantic Puffin N 7

Auk N 25

Øygarden 07-10 April 2021 - The week that wasn't

 Winter returned big style. Strong northerly winds with frequent snow / hail showers meant that it was ever so slightly easier to spend the week glued to a computer.

I barely left the house other than for various errands and chores but despite this there was obviously stuff going on.

On 07 April a short drive by past Kollsnes gave me a Golden Plover heilo that has been seen on and off for a while and a nice male Pied Wagtail svartryggerle.

Golden Plover heilo at Kollsnes

One of a small flock of Lapwing vipe at Kollsnes

Male Pied Wagtail svartryggerle at Breivik

Two Whoopers sangsvane turned up during a snow storm at Tjeldstø the following day - no doubt driven back from wherever they had been going by the wintery conditions. The first I have seen here for a while and I had assumed that was the last I would see of them before next winter.....

Curlew storspove at Dåvøy - possibly a female judging by the length of it's bill

Some views of the sunset from my terrace taken with a telephoto lens

A Pinkfoot kortnebbgås fed with Greylags grågås at Tjeldstø on 09 April in fading light on the way home from a last minute trip to the shops.

On 09 April I managed a short walk at Breivik where a selection of thrushes and a White Wagtail linerle were among birds that were new in. A male Sparrowhawk spurvehauk hunted in one of the gardens there. 

Best bird of the day was a Rook kornkråke at Skogsøy - I was doing well sneaking up on it for a photograph when it suddenly flew and I knew it hadn't seen me - the culprit was a 3cy White-tailed Eagle havørn which passed low overhead.

Rook kornkråke at Skogsøy, this is a good time of year to see this scarce migrant

Third year White-tailed Eagle havørn - the main reason behind not obtaining better pictures of the Rook:)

Meadow Pipit heipiplerke at Kollsnes - had to photograph something when on the phone to work:)

One of a few Song Thrush måltrost at Breivik. Fieldfares gråtrost and Redwing rødvingetrost were also present.

Breivik and Nautnes 05-06 April 2021 - Geese

 Strong northerly gales with snow and hail storms

On 05 April I only left the house for a couple of hours to get yet another COVID test, all clear again:)

A few White-tailed Eagles havørn, Gannets havsule, around 30 Long-tailed Duck havelle, displaying Curlew storspove and migrating Meadow Pipits heipiplerke were among the species seen from my terrace/ kitchen window.

On 06 April things were little better, a trip to the shops to pick up post and restock my fridge after having been in quarantine was the outing. Thankfully I live where I do and this meant that I ran into a party of of six Greenland Whitefronts tundragås (flavirostris). I don't think of Whitefronts as being particularly rare but there have actually been no records of Whitefronts in Øygarden since 2018! Albifrons is the normal race to see here with only a few records of flavirostris over the years. Today I added two more records of this sub species - the ones I found today and another I identified to sub-species level from photos taken back in 2004:)

On my way home I picked up another returning neck-ringed Greylag grågås at Tjeldstø in the form of UK3 - first ringed in 2019 in a moulting area south of Øygarden and subsequently seen in Øygarden in 2020 and now. In the autumns of 2019 and 2020 this bird was seen in Germany.

Greylags grågås at Tjeldstø - spring and winter within minutes of each other:)

flavirostris Whitefronts tundragås. This sub species breeds in Greenland and must have felt right at home here today.

Herdlevær 04 April 2021 - Keep the camera OUT of the rucksack

 Light winds, light drizzle at times in the morning. Full on northerly gale with snow showers in the late afternoon.

Thinking I would save some time I had my camera in a dry bag in my rucksack on my way to Herdlevær. In other words perfect conditions to be presented with photo opportunities. Black-headed Gull hettemåke and Linnets tornirisk both gave decent chances but I drove on. Just before I parked the car a roadside Carrion Crow svartkråke should absolutely been photographed but of course flew before I could wrestle the camera out of my rucksack. A local scarcity that I still haven't managed to get excited about despite having been in Norway over half my life.

On the way home, with the camera ready on the passenger seat, I had my eyes peeled again. No sign of the crow  but a Mistle Thrush duetrost turned up in the same place. Typically flighty it moved on before I brought the camera to bear. Equally typically I chose to confirm ID with my binoculars before reaching for the camera.

A stop at Tjeldstø on the way home produced my first Redshank rødstilk of the year.

Herdlevær itself was less interesting though there was an obvious increase in Meadow Pipit heipiplerke numbers with at least eight singing and a flock of feeding birds as well. It would have been a good day for gull photography with birds passing close and the light just right, not too sunny and not too dull. However, ISO values were more suited to sunny and I didn't check. A single flock of 34 Cormorant storskarv heading north was almost as many as I saw in three hours of seawatching yesterday:) Nice to see (and mostly hear) Curlew storspove displaying again too.

Cormorant storskarv

A brute of a GBBG svartbak

Herring Gulls gråmåke

Skogsøy 03 April 2021 - Expectations

 Light northerly winds, overcast to start with, turning sunny.

With many flocks of resting birds here and there during yesterday's strong winds I was hoping for a big push today with better migration conditions. Not as much passed as I had hoped / anticipated but it was still an enjoyable few hours of seawatching.

Highlight were the first Pinkfeet kortnebbgås of the year - actually heading soutb. Absolutely nothing compared to the numbers reported in the east of Norway recently where thousands have been seen along their normal migration route. The commonest bird was as usual at this time of year Common Gull fiskemåke, but Cormorant storskarv and some other stuff was on the move. A Lessser Black-backed Gull sildemåke and a feeding Ringed Plover sandlo were among the other sightings.

I spent the rest of the morning / afternoon catching up on things that needed doing in the garden. The first Twite bergirisk of the year was among the birds seen at home.

Cormorant storskarv / Shag toppskarv comparison shot

Mergansers siland

Rock Pipit skjærpiplerke were singing again today

Shag toppskarv flock heading the wrong way

The totals from 06:54-10:00 were

Red throated Diver N 4

Northern Gannet N 1

Northern Gannet S 2

Great Cormorant N 35

Great Cormorant S 1

Eurasian Shag N 25

Eurasian Shag S 59

Pink-footed Goose S 3

Eider S 2

Long tailed duck N 1

Common Scoter S 5

Merganser N 12

Oystercatcher N 15

Eurasian Curlew N 3

Common Gull N 490

Lesser black backed Gull N 1

Great black backed Gull N 5

Common Guillemot N 4

Razorbill N 4

Atlantic Puffin N 1

Auk N 21

Auk S 4

At Breivik on the way home I was surprised to see one of three hunters take two shots at a flock of Greylag grågås that were flying over quite high. No birds fell so either they missed completely or some of the birds flew on with shot in them. As per my understanding there are some farms in Øygarden which are allowed to shoot a limited number of birds in the spring. To be honest I think this alright but shooting with the birds out of range is not. Greylag are one of the few species on the increase in Øygarden and that the farmers have this small allowance is only fair.

Tjeldstø and Nautnes 01-02 April 2021 - Home office birding

 Sunny with northerly winds.

Birding took a back seat again with just brief visits to Tjeldstø and Solberg along with keeping half an eye on activity outside the house.

From the terrace on 01 April Curlew storspove were displaying, the usual White-tailed Eagles havørn were ever present, a Sparrowhawk spurvehauk put it a brief appearance in the garden, a Rock Pipit skjærpiplerke fed on the shore, there was a light passage of Common Gulls fiskemåke and a flock of 12 Meadow Pipit heipiplerke headed north.

Solberg was quiet with a couple of Red-throated Diver smålom heading north, a small flock of Eider ærfugl on the sea, singing Rock Pipit skjærpiplerke and of course a couple more eagles.

Tjeldstø produced what was in a local context, the most interesting sighting in the form of a Canada Goose kanadagås in a large flock of Greylags greylags. Another interesting observation was VJ3 was seen for the first time this year - he has returned every spring since 2018. A few Teal krikkand fed here and at least one pair of Curlew storspove were displaying. A White Wagtail linerle flew over here - it wasn't possible to check if it was a Pied.

Canada Goose kanadagås at Tjeldstø

(almost 10 years since I last saw this species in Øygarden!)

Curlews storspove

Meadow Pipits heipiplerke numbers are increasing rapidly and the birds are wasting now time - going straight into singing mode and establishing territorities

Male Teal krikkand at Tjeldstø

VJ3 is back! Good news and the fourth spring this bird has been observed

On 02 April a visit to Tjeldstø showed that the northbound migration was rather slower in the strong headwinds. Flocks of Common Gulls fiskemåke, a couple of Lapwing vipe , a Lesser Black-backed Gull sildemåke and other species waited things out on the lee side of islands in the fjord.

Skogsøy 31 March 2021 - A decent movement

 Fresh northerly winds, clear and sunny for the most part.

I opted for a couple of hours pre-work seawatching and was not disappointed with this choice:)

Despite the wind Song Thrush måltrost, Redwing rødvingetrost and more were singing on my way out. 

It was a challenge to keep up with everything today - the gulls and waders were passing close in - some even overhead whilst Shags toppskarv were heading south a long way out making the most of the tailwinds by flying higher than usual in many cases. It felt like I was probably missing quite a lot - later confirmed with comparisons from Herdlevær where two observers were sitting, one with a scope and one keeping an eye on the gull passage.

The mainstay of the morning migration were Common Gulls fiskemåke, but also a few flocks of Oystercatcher tjeld, a Black-headed Gull hettemåke, a Kittiwake krykkje, a Red-throated Diver smålom and 27 Curlew storspove.

Other birds at Skogsøy included a couple of Chaffinch bokfink and a Skylark sangelerke right out at the lookout point, a few White-tailed Eagles havørn and a flyover Linnet tornirisk.

A White (or Pied) Wagtail linerle flew over my garden on my return but it was not possible to ID it to sub-species level.

Black-headed Gull hettemåke - the first for Skogsøy this year

Common Gull fiskemåke

Common Gulls fiskemåke

One of two Curlew storspove flocks that passed

Many of the Gannets havsule stopped to fish today

This GBBG svartbak seemed to be influenced by the Common Gulls and looked like it wanted to migrate - each time a flock of its smaller relative passed it joined them briefly but always came back again

Part of an Oystercatcher tjeld flock

Adult White-tailed Eagle havørn - one of three that flew over together

The totals for the period 07:15-09:35 were: