Waders

 After mostly northerly winds the second half of august, the winds are from the south east now and after a bit of rain I decided to go to Herdla. A good choice. Loads of waders and good circumstances when I was there. I met Terje Hansen and Stein Rune Risa. 

No pictures, but we saw five Curlew Sandpipers, five Little Stints, many Common Ringed Plovers and Dunlins, a Sanderling, three Greenshanks, a Wood Sandpipers, more than 100 Golden Plovers, six Ruddy Turnstones and a migrating Merlin among others...

another day for the insects

 Took another day out to search for insects with more or less the same route as two weeks ago. And it was another good day. Best spot today also at Lysekloster with comma butterfly, a few peacocks, a small copper and lots of brimstone butterflies. A bit further to the south I saw my first small tortoiseshell since a very long time. Further some more peacocks here and there and a very worn dark-green fritillary at nordviksvatnet. There some black and common darters as well...

at lysekloster and nordviksvatnet I saw and heard some northern nutcrackers as well as a flyby Grey Wagtail and a Raven.

Hoverflies are keeping me busy, but they are difficult to identify, but I had one stripe-faced drone fly at least...

comma butterfly (note the white c)

common darter

dark-green fritillary

common darter. This one looks quite red and seems to have all dark legs, reminiscent of ruddy darter. But the characters seem to fit better on common of the Atlantic form nigrescens

Nice insect day

Saturday 0208 would be 24 degrees and sunshine. So no hesitations to go out and look after butterflies, dragonflies etc,

Beginning at Os, I worked my way north and checked Lysekloster and Nordviksvatnet. It was above expectations. Especially Lysekloster delivered with many Brimstones, Peacocks and Green-veined Whites. Here also a Golden-ringed Dragonfly, a Northern Viper drinking and two Nutcrackers. At Nordviksvatnet two species of darter were present, Black and Common, the latter probably of the Atlantic form nigrescens...

Admiral

Dark-green Fritillary

Peacock

Arran brown

Hoggorm

Common Bluets

Meadow Brown

Common Darter (probably nigriscens)

Black Darter

Brimstone

Golden-ringed Dragonfly/Common Goldenring

Roseate tern

 I twitched the Roseate Tern on Karmøy today. It was already present for three weeks, but I was in the Netherlands when it was discovered. 

Roseate Tern is a nice species and not easy seen on trips abroad if not planned. I saw it in the Netherlands before in 1987 and one on Key Marathon in Florida in 2013...On arrival I saw it only fly distantly, but after half an hour of waiting it settled on the holm where it was discovered. I digiscoped it💪, because it was too far for my lens.

Also 4 beautiful Black-throated Loons present, even calling!

July 25 the Netherlands: birds and butterflies

 I had the usual family-trip to the Netherlands in July, that means a few weeks on the island og Schiermonnikoog with some birding on the mainland with my brother and some friends as well.  I tried for the Spectacled Eider on Texel, but that one was not present, at least we didn't find it. Lots of birds there though with thousands of Eiders, many Sandwich Terns, Little terns and waders...

Otherwise the usual suspects with loads of waders and egrets. Worth mentioning is a Zitting Cisticola that was found near Groningen. Distant bird, but nice anyhow.

Further I rediscovered butterflying. I went with a friend to the Weerribben and other nice spots in the north. We saw and photographed quite a lot of species. See below...

But it was sadness that predominated feelings. Our dog Hickman became ill. He was suffering too much. We have set him free on the eternal playing grounds as we came home. I'll miss you, my good friend💔

Hickman on the beach at Schiermonnikoog

Brant

Egyptian Goose

Common Chiffchaff

Willow Warbler

Barn Swallow

newly fledged Spotted Flycatchers

White Storks

Ring-necked Pheasant

Meadow Brown

Nioby Fritillary

Alcon Blue

Large Copper batava (endemic to the Netherlands)

Greyling

Common Blue

Silver-whashed Fritillary

Queen of Spain Fritillary

Ringlet

Southern Small White

Singing Siberian Chiffchaff

 Terje Hansen and Ann Kristin Østgård recorded a bird yesterday on Herdlevær, which they believed to be a Siberian Chiffchaff. Terje sent me the recording and I think it sounds good for that taxon. Other people couldn't find the bird back yesterday evening. 

I tried for it today and found the bird back in the garden of the house which had both Dark-sided and Red- breasted Flycatcher. It was the first bird I heard getting out of the car. There was much wind, so the recording are not top, but nice anyhow. I also got a record-shot.

Tristis is rare as a spring bird in Norway. The song matches other recordings made on the breeding grounds. Besides that the bird also looked good for that taxon with grey plumage and dark legs and dark bill with light on the cutting edges, but what does a tristis look like in June?

Anyhow, listen to the recordings below.

Another bird Terje and Ann-Kristin found was a female Red-backed Shrike at Blomvåg. That one I gave only 30 minutes without seeing it. Nice place though with a family of European Stonechats...

🎤 Siberian Chiffchaff song

🎤 Siberian Chiffchaff song

record-shot of the tristis

🎤 European Stonechat female calling

male European Stonechat

American Wigeon

 On Friday an American Wigeon was reported on a lake "in the mountains" in Vaksdal. I twitched it yesterday. It was on a lake with some other wigeons, but not showing all the time. I got nice scope views, but no pictures alas. Stein Rune Rise gave me permission to use one of his of earlier that Saturday. Thank you for that!

nice drake American Wigeon, photo by Stein Rune Risa