Herdlevær 26 November 2011

Strong SW winds, showers. Dull.

Just a quick stroll which produced barely even the usual suspects - just White-tailed Eagles havørn, a Common Snipe enkeltbekkasin and a small flock of Common Crossbills grankorsnebb.

A roadside Goshawk hønsehauk feeding on a freshly killed goose gave superb roadside views. Don't get to see them like this every day!

Øygarden 25 November 2011

South westerly gale, heavy seas

White-tailed Eagle havørn at Solberg

Little at Solberg other than the usual White-tailed Eagles havørn and a flock of 15 or so Purple Sandpipers fjæreplytt - forced onto one of the nearest islands by high water levels and very heavy seas.

Tjeldstø was slightly better with the Pochard taffeland pair still present on Rotevatnet. A Wigeon brunnakke, a couple of Razorbill alke and two Velvet Scoter sjøorre were other species seen here.

A drive-by at Breivik produced 26 Greylags grågås and eight White-fronts tundragås.

Øygarden 24 November 2011 - the one that got away

Calm and mild.

Started the day at Svellingen where there was very little movement. A Little Auk alkekonge, a Snipe enkeltbekkasin and at least two White-tailed Eagle havørn were among the few birds seen.

Then a report of an unidenfied pale raptor further south meant we sped off in an attempt to head the bird off somewhere. Unfortunately we failed but picked up a few compensatory birds along the way...

At Kollnes næringspark a very unseasonal Great Skua storjo headed north up Hjeltefjord and a White-billed Diver gulnebblom flew south. Little Auk alkekonge, Kittiwake krykkje and at least three White-tailed Eagle havørn were the pick of the bunch.

Record shot of two Pochard taffeland on Rotevatnet, Tjeldstø. Bird on the left is a Goldeneye kvinand.

Tjeldstø was far from dead with two Pochard taffeland and a Scaup bergand on Rotevatnet together with a Whooper sangsvane. A Teal krikkand was with the Mallard stokkand on Husvatnet.

Otherwise Sparrowhawks spurvehauk and Common Crossbills grankorsnebb "everywhere", a couple of Fieldfare gråtrost flocks.

All in all not a bad morning out.

Herdlevær 23 November 2011

Southerly gale and very dull. Rain from around 10:30 onwards.

 Wish I could say this arty speed effect was deliberate - three Little Auks alkekonge passing.

 More conventional image of Little Auks alkekonge

 Herring Gull gråmåke

 Cormorant storskarv

Three Bean Geese sædgås

Very much the usual suspects - the strong winds slowed down any passage considerably. About 20 Little Auk alkekonge heading south, several Rock Pipits skjærpiplerke and five late Lapwings vipe were the pick of the sightings.

The goose flock was still present at Breivik - today there were still eight Whitefronts tundragås, three Bean Geese sædgås and 26 Greylags grågås. At least four Woodpigeon ringdue fed in the fields with the geese.

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

Breivik 21 November 2011

Rather better conditions today but still very overcast.

Greylags grågås

A short stroll at Breivik showed that the Bean Goose sædgås was still present with 13 Pinkfeet kortnebbgås whilst the Greylag grågås flock grazed at Kollsnes. No sign of the White-fronts tundragås today.

Barely even the usual stuff seen elsewhere - Solberg very quiet and not much at Tjeldstø either other than a few White-tailed Eagles havørn.

Hjelme Vest 20 November 2011

Southerly and overcast.

A quick look at the sea produced nothing unexpected - a nice Great Northern Diver islom, flocks of Common Scoter svartand, Long-tailed Duck havelle, a few Purple Sandpiper fjæreplytt and a flock of eight Red-throated Diver smålom heading south. Small numbers of Kittiwake krykkje, a Otter and a couple of Porpoises also seen.

A Woodcock rugde was the only bird of note in the woods.

 Common Crossbill grankorsnebb

Female Blackcap munk at Sæle

 

An even briefer stop at Sæle on the way home produced a couple of Blackcap munk and two Woodpigeon ringdue. Sadly a large number of the elderberry trees which are so attractive to migrants have been cut down.

Breivik 19 November 2011 - Wild Goose Chase 2

Slightly less wind with very little rain but foggy. WAY better conditions than yesterday.

Altogether more successful today. A fabalis (Taiga) Bean Goose sædgås together with 13 Pinkfeet kortnebbgås were virtually the first birds of the day. At least 25 Greylags grågås joined them and in the next field seven albifrons White-fronts tundragås were a welcome bonus. Seems like my suspicions from yesterday were correct on both counts.

 First view of Taiga Bean Goose sædgås with Pinkfeet kortnebbgås in the fog

Above and below Bean Goose sædgås with Pinkfeet kortnebbgås

A late Woodpigeon ringdue shared the same fields along with Starling stær, Snipe enkeltbekkasin and Fieldfares gråtrost.

Other stuff included a Goshawk hønsehauk at Herdlevær and a Pochard taffeland and a late Meadow Pipit heipiplerke at Tjeldstø.

Small numbers of Whooper Swans sangsvane seen at both Kollsnes and Tjeldstø.

Breivik 18 November 2011 - Wild Goose Chase

Very strong southerly winds and constant driving rain. Truly foul conditions.

Plenty of gesse but playing hard to get in the, to put it mildly, difficult conditions. At least 30 Greylags grågås was a respectable flock for the time of year. A single Bean Goose sædgås thankfully called as it passed quite close overhead, Pinkfeet kortnebbgås also heard and a flock of 10-15 birds were probably this species. A flock of seven smaller geese could well have been White-fronts tundragås.

Tried following the elusive gesse from field to field but only really managed to pin down the Greylags grågås. In the end I admitted degeat and went home....

Other stuff included an unseasonal flock of 11 Lapwing vipe and a flock of Starling stær.

Whilst I was away....

Just my luck for the weather to change the moment I left Øygarden.....

Good birds came thick and fast with Gadwall snadderand, Bean Goose sædgås, Rough-legged Buzzard fjellvåk (surprisngly rare out at the coast!), Shorelark fjelllerke (ditto that for RLB) as the best of the bunch.

Other stuff included Pochard taffeland, White-fronts tundragås and more.

Interestingly I had both Bean Goose and White-front on the same day - whilst well offshore in the German Sector. Plenty more good stuff onboard inlcuding Bittern rørdrum, Water Rail vannrikse and an assortment of owls.....more on this at  a later date.

Herdlevær 31 October 2011 - Shrike

Fresh southerly, overcast but very little precipitation.

Just about the first bird today was an interesting shrike. The orange tail started the adrenalin pumping but after some observation I think this bird is "just" a Red-backed Shrike tornskate with a redder than normal tail. A few birders came out and twitched it - a year tick for some and county ticks for others....

Other birds included a decent flock of Common Crossbill grankorsnebb, a late Wheatear steinskvett (looking rather Greenland-like as have many of the recent birds), several Kittiwake krykkje and a Little Auk alkekonge.

Kittiwake krykkje

Common Crossbill grankorsnebb

Øygarden 30 October 2011

Fresh southerly and heavy showers at times.

A Jay nøtteskrike and a Brambling bjørkefink at Hjelmo.

At Sæle a minimum of 10 Blackcap munk fed in the elderberry bushes and plenty of Common Crossbill grankorsnebb again.

Hjelme West was largely quiet with best sightings a flock of 80 Purple Sandpiper fjæreplytt and an Otter.

Record shot of a male Two-barred Crossbill båndkorsnebb (right hand bird) together with a Common Crossbill grankorsnebb.

Bird of the day was seen on the way home - a Two-barred Crossbill båndkorsnebb together with a Common Crossbill grankorsnebb between Hatten and Nautnes.

Herdlevær 29 October 2011

 Very strong southerly, showers.

 Goshawk hønsehauk being chased by Hooded Crow kråke

Rock Pipit skjærpiplerke

 

Difficult conditions yet again. Not much seen with best bird being a massive Goshawk hønsehauk.

Seven Greylags grågås at Breivik.

Øygarden 28 October 2011

Fresh WSW, sunny with some showers.

A late start today. Popped in at a few localities which produced some typical late autumn species.

 Mistle Thrush duetrost at Tjeldstø

 White-tailed Eagle havørn at Solberg - it seems the vast majority are ringed

 Above and below: Wheatear steinskvett at Alvheim

At Solberg there was an obvious but frustratingly difficult movement of seabirds inlcuding Little Auks alkekonge and Kittiwakes krykkje. Seeing distant flocks disappear in wave troughs most of the time was too much to cope with and lacking the time to make it to Skogsøy I gave up.

At Alvheim a late Wheatear steinskvett gave good roadside views - a continuation of the excellent late autumn run this year. A Chiff-chaff gransanger was another late migrant here.

At Tjeldstø a Mistle Thrush duetrost was the bird of the day, other species included a Woodcock rugde, three Skylark sanglerke, several Little Auk alkekonge, the first Velvet Scoter sjøorre for some time, a very late Oystercatcher tjeld, a couple of Purple Sandpiper fjæreplytt and at least 60 Common Crossbill grankorsnebb.

Herdelvær 27 October 2011

Strong SSE winds and torrential rain most of the time.

Difficult to say the least. Highlight was at least one Wheatear steinksvett. Other migrants inlcuded Common Crossbills grankorsnebb - a species that has been very obvious recently.

Other stuff inlcuded a few Purple Sandpipers fjæreplytt and most of the usual suspects.

A flock of eight Lapwing vipe were at Breivik / Kollsnes.

Hernar 26 October 2011 - Black Redstart

Strong Easterly and sunny.

A decent enough half day on the island - though quiet compared to Monday.

Highlight was a Black Redstart svartrødstjert that gave brief views just before the boat back to the mainland. A couple of Tree Sparrow pilfink were the first I've had on Hernar this year.

Other stuff included a Jack Snipe kvartbekkasin and a late Wheatear steinskvett.

 Lots of Blackbird svarttrost on the move recently

One of two Tree Sparrow pilfink on the island today

 Common Redpoll gråsisik

 Mink

Song Thrush måltrost

A brief stop at Sæle on the way home produced 10 Blackcap munk and a Chiff-chaff gransanger. 

Herdlevær 25 October 2011

Fresh easterly wind, warm and sunny again.

Another good morning out, although nothing quite like yesterday. Highlights were a flock of four Wheatear steinskvett, a Great Northern Diver islom, Peregrine vandrefalk and a Lapland Bunting lappspurv.

 White-tailed Eagle havørn

 First year Great Northern Diver islom

 Sparrowhawk spurvehauk

 Gannet havsule

 Red-breasted Merganser siland

Herring Gull gråmåke

Other sightings included a decent passage of Sparrowhawk spurvehauk (at least 10), a Goshawk hønsehauk, several Little Auk alkekonge and good numbers of Fieldfare gråtrost, Starling stær and Woodpigeon ringdue on the move.

At Tjeldstø a Swallow låvesvale flew south and at least one, probably two Pintail stjertand were seen briefly on Husvatnet.

A harrier sp kjerrhauk and a Two-barred Crossbill båndkorsnebb were among other birds reported today.