Calm conditions with a very slight easterly breeze, overcast at first but becoming sunny.
I took the day off work, today and today only was my Easter holiday:)
Over four hours of seawatching gave a decent amount of movement, despite a relatively slow start. Most of the typical early spring movers showed well. Unusually both Oystercatcher tjeld and Common Gull fiskemåke passage was rather slow for the first couple of hours and picked up later on, however, there were flocks of the latter species resting both on land and on the sea around dawn.
The most unusual sighting was a flock of 30 Raven ravn heading south, something I've only seen once before in Øygarden - also at Skogsøy in late March 2007. I have no idea where these birds came from as there are no such numbers in Øygarden itself.
Migrating passerines were limited to a male Chaffinch bokfink and a flock of Starling stær that came in off the sea.
Highlights were the first Black-headed Gulls hettemåke reported in Øygarden thus far this year and a second year Glaucous Gull polarmåke that headed north quite high up.
Numbers were as follows:
Northern Gannet havsule N 3, S 27
Great Cormorant storskarv N 21, S 18
Eurasian Shag toppskarv N 99, S 255
Greylag Goose grågås N 6
Teal krikkand S 2
Mallard stokkand N 2, S 1
Eider ærfugl N 5, S 5
Long tailed duck havelle S 4
Common Scoter svartand S 1
Velvet Scoter sjøorre S 1
Merganser siland N 2, S 10
Oystercatcher tjeld N 178
Eurasian Curlew storspove N 25
Black headed Gull hettemåke N 3
Common Gull fiskemåke N 293, S 22
Lesser black backed Gull sildemåke N 1
Herring Gull gråmåke N 43
Glaucous Gull polarmåke N 1 2cy
Great black backed Gull svartbak N 6
Common Guillemot lomvi S 1
Razorbill alke N 2
