We woke up to a very wild and windy day so decided that this morning it would be best to focus on some inside tasks rather than attempt anything outdoors. The first tasks of the morning were cleaning and admin which ended up taking till lunchtime to complete. After some weather watching and indoor birding, where we saw a rather storm blown Kittiwake (Ride) and a few Gulls (Måge). After some lunch, we decided to attempt gull feeding for the second time this week.

Picture 1: Stormy Beech

Before heading out we kitted up in warm clothes and snow suits in preparation for the cold. As we walked out of the door we saw the Blink sign, hence the name of the blog which states that they served a range of food and beverages including fish!! You will have to continue reading to see what happens!

Picture 2: J64YZ

As we cycled into Skagen, Thomas spotted a Rough Legged Buzzard (Fjeldvåge) so we decided to stop and take a look. After this short interlude we carried on cycling into Skagen. On the way to the Habour, we spotted multiple flocks of Gulls (Måge), a good sign we both thought as yesterday was rather quiet. Stopping for some gull ring reading we spotted a Great Black-Backed Gull (Svartbag) with ring J64YZ, this gull we have now seen three times, twice in the harbour and once at the tip. A proper local to Skagen!

Picture 3: We Serve Fish!

Once reaching the Harbour we waited for a while to assess the gull situation. After a while the gulls started to congregate in the area, lured in for food by boats. As the boats increased so did the gulls too so I decided that we should attempt to feed them. After two failed attempts already and cycling the full box backwards and forwards we decided that we might as well try even in the freezing wind. The fish was still rather frozen, cold and solid so we teared small chunks and tried to entice the gulls. Was it really going to work? We truly had some stiff competition but after a while we gained some customers. Arguments broke out with the sheer number of gulls compared to fish but overall, it was a successful session, and the food was enjoyed all round.  

Picture 4: Gulls vs Boats

Some of our other wildlife harbour sightings were 129 Eiders (Ederfugl), 3 Guillemots (Lomvie) and 5 Red-Breasted Mergansers (Toppet Skallesluger). Whilst cycling back into main Skagen it was notable the sheer increase of gulls from our initial visit, overall, we probably had over 1000.

We both were getting rather cold so cycled back to the lighthouse for some hot drinks and a quiet evening. We had a short chat with Simon and are completing the admin for the day.

Highlights:

Rough Legged Buzzard (Fjeldvåge)

Link to Dofbasen here.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, and Simon S. Christiansen

Picture 1: Feeding Snow Buntings (Snespurv)

We started the morning with a nice breakfast before walking to Grenen to feed the Snow Buntings (Snespurv). The wind had changed to a north easterly, so we went prepared with a scope and warm clothes. We spotted a few birds moving out at sea including a Bean Goose species (Sædgås spp.) flying very low north before gaining height and heading in the NE direction - this is our 3^rd (possibly 6^th) in the past two days which is exciting. On arrival to Worlds End III, it looked like there had been some activity as some of the food has disappeared from the feeding spot. Eleanor scattered food in the area, and we set up the scope to have a 45-minute sea watch and to read some Gull (Måge) rings. There were low numbers moving, but some Gannets (Sule), Kittiwakes (Ride), and Red-throated Divers (Rødstrubet lom). A flock of 12 Red-throated divers (Rødstrubet lom) passed before a large diver came into view from the west. The pale/white bill, large body, white belly, and dark black back with extended feet were obvious and pointed to it being a White-billed Diver (Hvidnæbbet lom). The bird gained some height and headed in the NE direction being lost to view. Unfortunately, before Eleanor could see it, but we hope it will come back soon.

Picture 2: Cake!

No luck on the gull (Måge) ring reading, we headed back for lunch before planning a Waxwing (Silkehale) search in Skagen. Cycling the back routes, we checked gardens, roads, and even the cemetery without luck, but found nice finch flocks in the trees. Where else would a Waxwing (Silkehale) be hiding? One more street led to us cycling down a road towards our favourite bakery, so we just had to stop and get some treats as it would be rude not to. Croissant cake all round and some nice warm drinks too, needed on a cool, grey day in Skagen.

Picture 3: Looking into the harbour.

After our stop, we headed to the harbour to feed the gulls (Måge). By mistake we forgot to take the fish out of the freezer in enough time to defrost, and funny enough gulls do not like frozen fish so we ended up feeding zero! We did however gain some nice views of a male Goosander (Stor Skallesluger) and the everpresent Eiders (Ederfugl). With fading light and decreasing temperatures, we headed on back. We had a brief chat with Simon before he left. Eleanor is cooking some lovely food, and we are planning a short nighcatching session so wish us some luck - This led to some amazing views of 2 Short-eared Owls (Mosehornugle).

Highlights:

White-billed Diver (Hvidnæbbet lom) - Grenen
Bean Goose species (Sædgås spp.) - Grenen
Goosander (Stor Skallesluger) - Skagen Havn
Short-eared Owls (Mosehornugle) - Grenen

Link to Dofbasen here.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, and Simon S. Christiansen

The day started with a long walk to Nordstrand for me. I arrived at the observation site, and sheltered from the easterly winds, I started counting. There was a nice stream of Guillemots (Lomvie) with an obvious increase of breeding plumage birds compared to December, which was nice to see. Next to good numbers of Red-throated Divers (Rødstrubet Lom) a first highlight was a Black Guillemot (Tejst) and a Long-tailed Duck (Havlit). After a while, Knud arrived, and we counted for three hours at the end, with birds of note being a Whooper Swan (Sangsvane) and two female Shelducks (Gravand).

Knud and János observing at Nordstrand

Thomas and Eleanor had been brought to Gammel Skagen by Simon in the morning, to do a Fulmar walk, where they look for dead birds on the beach, which are then collected for scientific purposes. When they reached Nordstrand we had a short conversation, and later they also found a dead Gannet (Sule), which is now in our freezer in the lab. Further, they also found a dead Catfish (Havkat) and saw a Fox (Ræv) on the beach. On my way back, I saw two Bean Geese (Sædgås), which apparently were also seen by Thomas and Eleanor, and a Pintail (Spidsand).

Beach finds of Thomas and Eleanor

After lunch, Thomas and Eleanor went for a walk, and I did some data entry work. Later Simon visited us, and we had a very good dinner made by Thomas. We tried nightcatching Woodcocks (Skovsneppe) again, but without success. 

It was my last day in Skagen and tomorrow I will be heading back to Germany. It felt very good to spend the week here with good people and birds, and I am looking forward to come back in spring.

Link to today's observations from the area.

People:  Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, Simon S. Christiansen, János Schadl, Knud Pedersen

Picture 1: Islom!

Today was a day of two halves. The morning was spent by the Observatory team finding birds in the field between Worlds End III and Det Hvit Fyr. János chose the former and completed a few hours at Worlds End III where he had a good watch including Black Guillemot (Tejst), Red-necked Grebe (Gråstrubet Lappedykker) and two Black-throated Divers (Sortstrubet Lom) as the highlights. Eleanor and I checked the areas between Det Grå Fyr and Det Hvit Fyr, via Jennes Sø, ending with a lovely walk along the beach. Our highlights included flocks of finches in the trees and a flock of Pink-footed Geese (Kortnæbbet Gås) and a Greylag Goose (Grågås) which was very unexpected. When we got back, we all had a nice lunch together. Simon and Lisa hosted the board meeting at the observatory today, so it was great to say ‘hi’ to all involved and to talk a little to them about our birding plans.

The afternoon was spent completing the final part of the resting bird/NOVANA counts – this time at Skagen Havn. We set off after lunch and made it to the harbour in good time. On arrival, we decided to split, taking a North/South approach and meeting at the gull feeding spot to undertake some feeding after the survey had been completed. Or that was the plan. When we arrived at the feeding spot, a local birder said that he saw the Great-northern Diver (Islom) 3m away, exciting news! János was already present but had no luck relocating. After a search in the immediate area, I spotted the bird about 30m away. Using some excellent fieldcraft, we hunkered behind some metal and had some great views of the bird feeding some 15 – 25m away. Incredible. It is always a favourite of mine, so any Islom seen is always lovely, especially moulting from summer to winter plumage and showing so nicely. It was especially nice to get locals on the bird too, including nearby Jørgen. A great end to the daylight and big smiles all round. In fact, it was Eleanor’s first Great-northern Diver (Islom), and János’ closest making it that extra bit special. A quick trip to Netto and back in time for tea, and some great cake left by Simon and Lisa, thank you for the free food! János cooks tonight, and admin tasks are completed by Eleanor and I. Lets see what tomorrow brings with calmer weather and hopefully some sun.

Today's highlights:

Great – northern Diver (Islom)
Black Guillemot (Tejst)
Red-necked Grebe (Gråstrubet Lappedykker)

Link to Dofbasen here.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, János Schadl, Simon S. Christiansen, Lisa Vergin, Knut Pedersen, Jørgen Kabel.

This weekend is the winter date for the national waterfowl count. For us, this means that we have to count all the resting sea ducks and other seabirds from the harbor in Skagen to Nordstrand. The weather today was excellent for this purpose, with light winds and good visibility. After breakfast, we started at the lighthouse tower, from where we had a very good view.

View from the lighthouse

Some highlights where two Black-throated Divers (Sortstrubet Lom) and Long-tailed Ducks (Havlit). From there we went on towards Grenen stopping now and then to scan the sea. At the tip we saw a flock of 20 Snowbuntings (Snespurv), so maybe they found our feeding spot and the Sanderlings (Sandløber) where also back, which was nice. 

Counting at Nordstrand

On our way to Nordstrand we saw a Rough-legged Buzzard (Fjeldvåge), a Scaup (Bjergand) and surprisingly a few groups of Mallards (Gråand) and Teals (Krikand) which might be due to the still frozen lakes. Further good birds where a Little Gull (Dværgmåge) and a Turnstone (Stenvender) as well as good numbers for both Velvet Scoter (Fløjlsand) and Great Crested Grebe (Toppet Lappedykker).

Successful end of the count

We walked back through the dunes and had a short lunch break at the lighthouse befor Simon picked us up, to get the new bikes we got donated from the Lions Club and Mikkel Stig. They where much needed since many of the old ones have problems with the gear or the breaks and are generally quite exausting to use! 

New bikes!!!!

We biked back and finished the day with very good pizza by Eleanor.

Link to today's observations from the area.

People:  Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, Simon S. Christiansen, János Schadl

Picture 1: Lighthouse in the stormy weather

Today was a very windy and wet day to start. The wind was whistling through the windows, so a slower start was needed. János went out to do some observing for an hour but it was very quiet and rather cold, so he turned back. The highlight was a Velvet Scoter (Fløjlsand) amongst a small flock of Common Scoters (Sortand). Meanwhile we both decided that the weather called for some indoor cleaning and organising tasks. Whilst it was wet, we set about cleaning both the obs and the apartment. This took a good couple of hours of hoovering, spritzing and dusting to get it ‘ship shape’.

Picture 2: Snow Bunting feeding area

After a tasty lunch of rye bread and fried eggs inspired by smørresbørds yesterday we came up with a joint plan for the afternoon. We gathered some seeds for the Snow Buntings (Snespurv) and went to the usual spot but it was flooded by the sea and meltwater. Not good! However, we relocated the site and set up a new feeding area altogether. Hopefully, they will be a little happier now as we saw two flocks totalling up to 30 Snow Buntings (Snespurv) flying towards the general area.

Picture 3:  4k+ Caspian Gull (Kaspisk Måge)

We checked the gull flocks and found two adult Caspian Gulls (Kaspisk Måge), and had nice view of Gannets (Sule), flocks of Cormorants (Skarv) and a Velvet Scoter (Fløjlsand) too…

Picture 3: Little Auk (Søkonge)

...plus, the remains of a Little Auk (Søkonge) and a Razorbill or Guillemot (Lomvie/Alk). On our way back, we walked down the now slightly flooded Sandormen track to Ellekrattet which was a new area for János. One of our walk highlights was a Treecreeper (Træløber) which was a rather unexpected surprise. It was starting to get dark, so we decided to come back for some tea and a cookie plus a game of matching pairs which János won.

The plan for the evening is to have some food and maybe do some net sewing, we will see what happens later whilst the storm passes!

Link to Dofbasen here.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, János Schadl, Simon S. Christiansen

We had decided to do a harbor trip in the morning, so after a short breakfast, we got the bikes out and headed in the direction of the town. There was still much ice on the roads, so we often needed to get off the bike and almost slipped on several occasions. It stayed dry for most of the time, but the wind was strong and made it quite exhausting to get from one place to another. It felt good to be back in Skagen after my stay last autumn, and fun to see the area covered in snow. 

Harbor birding. Photo by Eleanor

Today was a day of good fun, nice fieldwork, 15,000 steps, and some good birds of note.

We started the day getting ready for the first Fulmar (Mallemuk) survey of the year. Simon gave us a much-appreciated lift to Gammel Skagen to start the survey, so thank you Simon. For some context, the survey is 10km and conducted to locate, record, and collect any dead birds who have been stranded or died naturally before washing up on the beach. Certain species such as Gannets (Sule), Kittiwakes (Ride), Puffins (Lunde), Guillemots (Lomvie) and Skuas (Jager) are collected for the new ‘Seabirds Under Pressure’ (SUPRE) project, and as of yesterday, our data will become part of a new national survey looking at Seabird wrecks in Denmark, focusing on dead seabirds recorded and collected along the North Sea coast. More on the survey can be heard here by Simon who was interviewed on early morning radio news yesterday.

Picture 1: Deceased Seal.

Our aim to find and record dead birds was aided by Eagle-eyed Eleanor, who found a lot of nice pebbles and sea glass, however interrupted mainly because I was checking out the gull (Måge) flocks along the route, as well as the live birds resting on the sea. The first find of the day in the flocks involved a 4^th calendar year Caspian Gull (Kaspisk Måge) near Gammel Skagen, the first one Eleanor has ever seen, and always a notable species in the area. This was followed by our first dead wildlife including a Common Gull (Stormåge), and a male Harbour Seal.

Picture 2: Spot the odd one out!

Coming across a flock of about 700+ Gulls (Måge) near Nordstrand resulted in zero ‘white winged gulls’, however we found another bird with white wings hidden in the flock, it was a 2^nd calendar year Whooper Swan (Sangsvane)! Very odd and unusual to say the least, and even more crazy is that we lost it within a few minutes of finding it due to a walker scaring all the gulls (Måge) – hence the blog title ‘How do you lose a Swan!?’ A few more kilometres passed, and we found the swan flying along the beach near the Tip, magical. The area around the Sandormen track was very wet, due to the snow melt, so this section involved giving Eleanor a piggyback across the water with all our bags. Our reward came in the form of great views of a Rough-legged Buzzard (Fjeldvåge), and luckily no wet shoes. A couple more dead birds were found including a Cormorant (Skarv) and a Gannet (Sule), before returning to the lighthouse for lunch.

Picture 3: Lighthouse View

After lunch, we decided to check the solar panel for snow or ice, of which there was none. We decided to go up the lighthouse to enjoy the views before we cleaned the apartment ahead of the arrival of Jånos’, another volunteer who will stay with us for a week. Breaking news came when Knut found a beautiful Great-northern Diver (Islom) in the harbour, we will look for this tomorrow! However, light was fading, and some more net sewing was completed by Eleanor, whilst I completed more tasks and made a nice dinner for the two of us. A long but fulfilling day. And whilst I write to blog, we welcomed Jånos!  

Link to Dofbasen here.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, Simon S. Christiansen, Knut Pedersen, János Schadl

Picture 1 - A Room with a View

After a very stormy night we woke up to a wet day. The snow has visibly started to melt, and you could hear the wind whistling through the building, and waves crashing against the shore. A real change from the thick snow of the last few days. Since we arrived nearly a week ago, we have been unable to see grass or vegetation but today this is all changing!!

Picture 2 - Net Sewing

With the weather in mind, we set about making an indoor plan for the day. One of the major tasks which could be completed was net sewing which needs to be done before the spiring team arrive. We quickly found this was a very challenging task to complete indoors due to space and length of nets. After many failed attempts we tackled one net. I took the lead on the sewing with Thomas assisting by holding open sections. More to complete in the next few days but one down out of ten.

A well-earned break, some lunch plus some hot drinks was needed. Whilst eating lunch we saw a small feeding frenzy of birds consisting a few Eiders (Ederfugl) and some gulls (Måge) but not much else. Today has been very quiet on the bird front.

We decided that we needed some fresh air so walked into Skagen to get some food to stock up for the next few days. It was horribly wet, and we got rather drenched. In the UK you would say: ‘It was raining cats and dogs’ which it certainly was today! On the way we saw a brief glimpse of a Common Buzzard (Musvåge) but nothing else.

Picture 3 – The Lighthouse drenched in Fog

When we got back, we took off our rather wet snow suits and dried off. The plan for the evening is to have a quiet one and wait till the storm has passed. Hopefully tomorrow will be a calmer day, fingers crossed!

Link to Dofbasen:

Observers: Eleanor Harris, Thomas Weston

Picture 1 – Sun rise

We knew today was going to be a bit stormy, but we did not know when or how extreme it would be. However, our day started around 8am, whereby we woke up and got ready before going out and seeing a rather lovely sunrise over the sea – in fact this was the only time we fully saw the sun today which was a bit of a change to the past few days.

Picture 2 – Forgotten fish!?

Simon arranged to pick us up for some Gull feeding at the harbour around 10am, so the morning was spent chopping up left over fish that was found in the freezer. We presume that this was left by the autumn team, but unsure of its origins, we thought it would make good gull food!

Picture 2 – Gull feeding  

Picture 3 – Colour ringed Herring Gull (Sølmåge)

It was great to see Simon and we headed over to the harbour in search of gulls. On the drive we hardly saw any gulls (Måge) heading towards Grenen, so we presumed they must be somewhere else. That location was indeed the harbour, and, on our arrival, we found large flocks of Herring Gulls (Sølmåge), Great Black-Backed Gulls (Svartbag), a few Common Gulls (Stormmåge), and a couple of Black-headed gulls too (Haettemåge). Eleanor and Simon were using some of the bread to entice the birds over, whilst I used some of the fish that we prepared earlier. The gull feeding was a great success, and many gulls came over to the food! We ring read a Herring Gull (Sølmåge) from Norway and called this one ‘Elsa’ or ‘Sven’ as it was originally ringed in Arundal and thought we must stick to the current Frozen scenes in Skagen. This is not massively far from the observatory, but it was great to see this bird hanging around the harbour and enjoying our fish, plus posing for a photo or two too. We checked other areas of the harbour and found a Long-tailed duck (Halvit), a few auks (Lomvie/Alk) and about 50+ Eiders (Ederfugl) all sheltering from the wind. A big thank you to Simon for the trip and dropping us back off.

Picture 4 – Sanderling (Sandløber).

Back in time for lunch, and a walk to see whether our bird feeding efforts were being successful resulted in food still present at the lighthouse net but no obvious birds in the vicinity whilst we were there. We decided to walk along to Worlds End three to check the Snow Bunting (Snespurv) food, which was half eaten but still present for our Bunting friends. On our walk, we ended up finding three Snow Buntings (Snespurv), two rather showy Sanderlings (Sandløber), and a single Dunlin (Almindelig Ryle) amongst the sea foam.  The wind was strong, and snow started to fall so we walked along the Sandormen track whereby a Woodcock (Skovsneppe) was one of the only birds seen in the storm.

Getting colder in temperature, we spent an afternoon and evening completing admin tasks and relaxing, much needed as the storm intensified outside.

Highlights:

• Snow Buntings (Snespurv) at Grenen
• Long-tailed duck (Havlit) in the harbour

Link to Dofbasen.

Observers: Thomas Weston, Eleanor Harris, Simon S. Christiansen