Hardangervidda 16. June 2024 - Hardangervidda Light II

Heading home to Øygarden I made a few roadside stops on the vidda. Most of them made me want to just keep walking further and spending a LOT more time up on the vidda.

Plenty of Shorelark fjellerke in suitable habitat, but no Lapland Buntings lappspurv. Otherwise many of the usual suspects showed up - Ptarmigan fjellrype, Rough-legged Buzzard fjellvåk and more.

Female Ptarmigan fjellrype at Dyranut

Ringed Plovers sandlo at Dyranut

Shorelark fjellerke on the vidda

At Dyranut there were a few pairs of Ringed Plover sandlo getting started with the breeding season - down at the coast I saw the first young weeks ago!

Also picked up a pair of Hawk Owl haukugle in suitable habitat:)

Hawk Owl haukugle pair

The drive over the vidda and back to Bergen was a timely reminder of how incredibly spectacular this country is. The vidda, måbødalen, Eidfjord, Voss and the road from Voss to Bergen are amazing! Just wonderful and I wish I had had the time to stop and take some photos. Just fantastic to be lucky enough to call this place home:)

Back home at Nautnes a nice Red-throated Diver smålom was waiting for me on the sea outside my terrace.

Second year Red-throated Diver smålom at Nautnes

Hardangervidda 09-10 June 2023 - A brief stop in the hills

Heading east I had to stop for a meeting and what better place than Halne on the Hardangervidda:)

After work I had a couple of short walks in the area, still some snow around and the lake was mostly covered in ice. Best bird in a Hardangervidda context was a Black-throated Diver storlom which fed briefly on an ice free area. Otherwise it was more or less situation normal, or perhaps the "new normal" as I did not see any Lapland Bunting lappsourv.

Singing Bluethroat blåstrupe and Shorelark fjelllerke, displaying Rock Ptarmigan fjellrype and a selection of the usual waders were among the sightings here.

Bluethroat blåstrupe, Halne

One of many Fieldfare gråtrost nests in the area

Fieldfare gråtrost

Dunlin myrsnipe at Dyranut

Ringed Plover sandlo at Dyranut

Rock Ptarmigan fjellrype, Hardangervidda

Shorelark fjelllerke

Hardangarvidda 07 August 2019 - Late season vidda

Constantly changing conditions from overcast with rain to sunny - as can so often be the case in the mountains

Although this was not intended as a birding trip as such, a few stops were made in the usual kinds of places and at least some of the target species were found to still be present including five Temminck's Stints temminksnipe and small numbers of Shorelark fjellerke. Bluethroats blåstrupe were still widespread and a reasonable selection of other waders were seen including a Green Sandpiper skogsnipe. Lapland Bunting lappspurv was heard only at one location.

The commonest species were Meadow Pipit heipiplerke, Fieldfare gråtrost, Yellow Wagtail gulerle, White Wagtail linerle, Wheatear steinskvett, Willow Warbler løvsanger, Common Gull fiskemåke and Golden Plover heilo. Other species were Kestrel tårnfalk, Reed Bunting sivspurv, Raven ravn, Common Sandpiper strandsnipe, Ringed Plover sandlo, Cormorant storskarv, Herring Gull gråmåke, Redwing rødvingetrost, Redshank rødstilk and Tufted Duck toppand.

Some young Bluethroats blåstrupe were particularly cooperative!

 Young Bluethroats blåstrupe

A more typical view of Bluethroat blåstrupe

An adult female

One of this year's Dunlin myrsnipe

Various views of the Hardanger glacier

Young Ringed Plover sandlo

Young Shorelark fjellerke

Yellow wagtail gulerle

Eastern Norway 21-23 July - Run to the hills

One of many young Bluethroat blåstrupe at Fokstumyra

A few days of guiding in eastern Norway gave some birding. We started the ball rolling at the well-known Fokstumyra nature reserve. There were virtually no waders or wildfowl but a number of good birds put in an appearance including Hen Harrier myrhauk and Crane trane. There were good numbers of young Bluethroat blåstrupe about with some of these attended by adults. Best bird here, however, was a completely unexpected species in the form of a singing Quail vaktel.

Female Red-backed Shrike tornskate

The next day we headed on to Valdresflye. The journey there gave cracking views of Siberian Jay lavskrike, a pair of Red-backed Shrikes tornskate at a much higher altitude than I ever expected to see them at, Rough-legged Buzzards fjellvåk, Ring Ousels ringtrost and plenty more besides. Perhaps the best sighting was an adult Bar-tailed Godwit lappspove at Ovre Sjodalsvatnet.

Dotterel boltit

Shorelark fjellerke

Young Snow Bunting snøspurv

Stunning scenery....

Valdresflye itself was a bit on the quiet side but good numbers of Dotterel boltit inculding plenty of young birds were very nice to see having heard little other than doom and gloom about the breeding season up north this year. Other species here included Shorelark fjellerke, Snow Buntings snøspurv and more Rough-legged Buzzard fjellvåk.

Østensjøvatnet, Oslo

We finished the trip with a visit to Østensjøvatnet in Oslo where we picked up Green Sandpiper skogsnipe, had point blank views of Reed Warblers rørsanger and added plenty of new species to the trip list.