Hernar 07 March 2024 - MIstle Thrush

Calm and mild with light cloud - fantastic conditions.

Having returned home Wednesday evening it was time to pay Hernar the first visit of the year. Typically rather quiet so early in the season but a Mistle Thrush duetrost hung around all morning - it was as usual for this species very flighty.

A decent influx of Blackbirds svarttrost with an absolute minimum of 12 seen, 10 Starling stær and a flyover Skylark sanglerke were the rest of the migrants. Several Wren gjerdesmett and a few Robin rødstrupe may have been overwintering brds.  Otherwise just the usual suspects - a handfull of White-tailed Eagles havørn, a few Black Guillemot teist and small numbers of the usual seaduck. A Magpie skjære also turned up - not a bird that is always present on the island.

Most of the Blackbirds svarttrost were males....

Mistle Thrush duetrost

At least two of the Robins rødstrupe were singing

Edda Fauna on its way out to work in the North Sea

One the way home to an afternoon of meetings and an evening of comparing quasi geoid models I picked up two more Mistle Thrush duetrost at Sæle along with a Woodpigeon ringdue.

One of the Mistle Thrushes duetrost at Sæle

A drive-by at Dåvøy produced a pair of Goldfinches stillits which have been rather thin on the ground this winter.

Goldfinch stillits at Dåvøy

Bits and bobs from the terrace included a Great Northern Diver islom, a couple of White-tailed Eagle havørn and the usual.

Hernar 30 September - All day sesh

 Light SE winds, overcast then sunny.

Ideal conditions and the island was heaving with birds - good on numbers and variety. No real rarities but plenty of interest and enough going on to feel that there was something good just about to pop out of a bush somewhere.

A minimum of 15 Chiff-chaff gransanger were present as well as a few Blackcap munk and a Willow Warbler løvsanger

Mistle Thrush duetrost

Pied Flycatcher svarthvit fluesnapper

Heavily cropped image of Song Thrush måltrost and Ring Ousel ringtrost

Massively cropped Ring Ousel ringtrost

Normally when I'm on Hernar for eight hours I cover the vast majority of it - the island is not that big! Today I did not cover anything like what I would usually do.....there was just too much going on:)

Best bird from my point of view was a cracking White-billed Diver gulnebblom on the sea - they are a lot more uncommon in the autumn than in the spring here. An island first for me:)

At least two Yellow-browed Warbler gulbrynsanger, four Ring Ousel ringtrost, a Common Redstart rødstjert, a Pied Flycatcher svarthvit fluesnapper, Water Rail vannriske, Peregrine vandrefalk, Merlin dvergfalk, a Mistle Thrush duetrost, Lesser Whitethroat møller, a few Grey Plover tundralo, two Tree Sparrow pilfink and more were seen.

Good numbers of Robin rødstrupe, Dunnock jernspurv, Reed Buntings sivspurv, 30+ Song Thrush måltrost, lots of Redwing rødvingetrost and Blackbird svarttrost along with the usual selection of finches including Twite bergirisk and Siskin grønnsisik.

Some more untraditional migrants were also obvious with several Nuthatch spettmeis, Great Tits kjøttmeis and Blue Tits blåmeis now present on the island.

A magic day out and the hours just flew by - it was time to go home before we knew it:) Almost 60 species noted.

Øygarden 14-16 June 2020 - Blyth's Reed Warbler ID blunder!

On 16 June a visit to Hernar proved quite embarassing well after the event as I fell into "expectation trap" - I had hoped for Icterine Warbler and a singing bird went down as exactly that. I saw an Icterine head shape and thought I saw the pale wing panels - this proved to be a trick of the light.

A combination of a comment on a video I uploaded and review of pictures long after the event shows a classic Blyth's Reed Warbler busksanger - the first I have heard singing, the first I have seen away from the autumn migration period and my first for Hernar.

Blyth's Reed Warbler busksanger

Here is where I thought I saw light wing panel....

I should have got the colour here - not yellowy! 

Trying to obtain pictures in the field v observing the bird.....

Singing Blyth's Reed

This recording was bombed by a Chiff-chaff gransanger early on

Chiff-chaff gransanger  - this bird seemed to have rather pale legs in the strong sunlight

View over some of the "fields" on Hernar

Spotted Flycatcher gråfluesnapper with flies

The local Twite bergirisk gave great views as usual.

Many young ones present now:)

Young Wheatear steinskvett

On the way home it was nice to see Arctic Terns rødnebbterne flying around one of their breeding islands.

Arctic Terns rødnebbterne

....along with the usual Grey Seals havert, Shags toppskarv etc

Shags toppskarv, the young birds here were probably hatched locally....

Grey Seal havert

Starlings stær have started to flock and up to 100 were feeding in fields at Breivik, some even raided an ants nest and were "bathing" in it.

Starlings stær ant bathing

The Ravens ravn at Sture have at least two fledged young - wonder how many wader eggs / chicks they consumed this year.......

Two young Raven ravn

On 15 June my usual round at Herdlevær produced just the usual - an immature WT Eagle havørn, Wheatear steinskvett with young, Common Sandpipers strandsnipe etc.

Spotted Orchids are flowering all over the place now

Male Wheatear steinskvett

Hernar 18 October 2018 - Better late than never

Hardly the best conditions for migrants with a strong westerly wind blowing. However, a trip to Hernar was on the cards as I have yet to make it out there this autumn so there really was no choice.

Female Blackcap munk

Chiff-chaff gransanger

Tree Sparrow pilfink - one of the new species for the year on Hernar today

One of only a few Twite bergirisk left on the island

Wren gjerdesmett

There were plenty of birds about without anything very special. In a Hernar context a couple of Tree Sparrow pilfink may have been the best birds and were the first to be recorded there this year. A fly over Great Northern Diver islom, several each of Chiff-chaff gransanger and Blackcap munk, a couple of Water Rail vannrikse and a few Twite bergirisk took the tally to around 40 species on the island today.

Good numbers of the usual four species of thrush, a few Brambling bjørkefink, plenty of both Robin rødstrupe and Wren gjerdesmett along with an obvious movement of tits - a flock of around 60 Blue tits blåmeis dropped in briefly and there were also both Great Tit kjøttmeis and Coal tit svartmeis on the island - in other words these birds were migrants.

House Sparrows gråspurv feeding on the harbour wall at Hellesøy

One of several White-tailed Eagles havørn seen today

Heading back from the boat to my car a White-tailed Eagle havørn gave good flight views, also had four more earlier in the day.

Øygarden 23-25 August 2018 - A brief update

On 23 August I did had a cheeky couple of hours of seawatching before work. This produced the usual late August fare including a single pale phase Arctic Skua tyvjo and a Turnstone steinvender heading south. Otherwise it was just the usual Common Gull fiskemåke, Oystercatcher tjeld and Gannet havsule combo. Small numbers of other waders including Dunlin myrsnipe and Curlew storspove also headed south.

Golden Plover heilo fleeing the mad horses of Tjeldstø

Snipe enkeltbekkasin also getting out of the way

Whinchat buskskvett feeding beside Husvatnet

A stop at Tjeldstø later in the day produced a Whinchat buskskvett and some waders scared up out of the reserve by the mad horses that live there charging around. Flocks of finches continue to increase in size with over 40 Linnet tornirisk and several each of Brambling bjørkefink and Chaffinch bokfink

One of several Brambling bjørkefink on Hernar

Peregrine vandrefalk

Young Sedge Warbler sivsanger on Hernar

A trip to Hernar on 24 August produced no rarities but still plenty of birds about with over 30 Twite bergirisk, a Peregrine vandrefalk, a selection of the usual waders, some newly fledged Sedge Warbler sivsanger and so on.

A drive-by at Tjeldstø on 25 August saw the first Wigeon brunnakke of the autumn together with 16 Teal krikkand. Passerines included Wheatear steinskvett and Whinchat buskskvett.

Hernar 22 March 2018 - Three firsts....

Calm and mild. Overcast at first but sunny later.

The day started very well with the first first being a Mistle Thrush duetrost more or less in my garden - a first for the garden list taking the total to 132.

A total of 18 Common Scoter svartand were seen - best number so far in Øygarden this year. A tragically low number which seems to be being reflected other places too.

Eiders ærfugl photographed from the boat - several flocks of Long-tailed Duck havelle were among the other species seen on the way out to Hernar

Peregrine vandrefalk

Reed Buntings sivspurv

Song Thrush måltrost

After this promising start it was time for the for the second first of the year - the first visit to Hernar. A total of 30 species were seen during the course of the morning with highlight being the third first - the first two Reed Bunting sivspurv to be recorded in Hordaland this year. Other sightings included a Song Thrush måltrost, Peregrine vandrefalk, Black Guillemot teist, Sparrowhawk spurvehauk, a couple of Woodcock rugde, singing Rock Pipits skjærpiplerke and most of the usual Hernar suspects.

Although I did not spend much time looking there was some continued Oystercatcher tjeld migration up the fjords...

The way home produced a few Bullfinch dompap at Sæle, a flock of eight Lapwing vipe at Tjeldstø and some more newly arrived Starling stær flocks.