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.

Skogsøy 22 November 2011

Strong SSW and overcast.

A good morning out. A short seawatch produced plenty of birds heading south - in 1.5 hours the following passed (all south):

Little Auk alkekonge 84
Common Scoter svartand 98
Velvet Scoter sjøorre 2
Red-throated Diver smålom 7
Goldeneye kvinand 2
Kittiwake krykkje 13
Common Gull fiskemåke 30
Herring Gull gråmåke 100
Razorbill alke 2

Common Scoter svartand

Little Auk alkekonge

Velvet Scoter sjøorre

On the way home the roadside fields held what may be the most interesting flocks of geese ever seen in Øygarden:
Albifrons White-fronts tundragås 8 (2 ad, 6 first years)
Fabalis (TAIGA) Bean Goose sædgås 4
Pinkfoot kortnebbgås 13+
Greylag grågås 23

 Bean Goose sædgås in the foreground together with Pinkfeet kortnebbgås, two more behind. 

 Four fabalis Bean Geese sædgås in the above picture, two Pinkfeet kortnebbgås (left hand birds), a 1K Whitefront tundragås bottom right and a Greylag grågås in the background.

 Fabalis Bean Goose sædgås

Albifrons Whitefronts tundragås with a Taiga Bean Goose sædgås in the background

Øygarden 08 February 2009

Greenland Whitefront tundragås (left) at Breivik

First winter Glaucous Gull polarmåke

Finally managed to get some birding in - a superb day to be out with sunshine and little wind.

Highlights included the long-staying Greenland Whitefront tundragås still hanging in there at Breivik together with a couple of Greylags grågås.

The second year Glaucous Gull polarmåke was still showing well at Tjeldstø where Teal, krikkand, Snipe enkeltbekkasin and Woodcock rugde were also observed.

At Hjelme Vest the highlight were AT LEAST 14 White-tailed Eagle havørn! Other stuff here included a minimum of two Great Northern Diver islom, 280+ Long-tailed Duck havelle and a flock of around 50 Purple Sandpiper fjæreplytt.

Elswhere in Øygarden the Eagle Owls hubro have started singing....