Our efforts today started before midnight, as we set up nets to catch storm petrels (Lille Stormsvale) and nightjars (Natravn). Jule was on the night shift, and she stayed up all night doing the net checks. We all hoped to be awoken in the night with news of a bird in the nets, but unfortunately we didn’t catch anything. The morning teams said goodnight to Jule as we headed to the field and she headed to bed for some much-needed rest. 

I took the morning count from World’s End 3 while Julian, Simon and Páll ringed at Kabeltromlen. There weren’t crazy numbers of birds on the ocean but it was interesting overall with a few Mediterranean Gulls (Sorthovedet Måge) and a Little Tern (Dværgterne) on the beach. A Eurasian Hobby (Lærkefalk) streaked in and made a low pass over the beach, sending the gulls and terns out to sea in a frenzy, and an Arctic Loon (Sortstrubet Lom) cut across the tip high up. The main highlight came along with a slight bit of frustration: in the last hour I picked up on a large shearwater (skråpe) flying northwest close to the horizon. Watching it at a distance through the heat haze, it was difficult to be fully certain of an identification, so I left it as a Great/Cory’s/Scopoli’s Shearwater (Sort/Atlantisk/Scopolis Skråpe). Exciting, but a bit disappointing.

The ringing team caught four Icterine Warblers (Gulbug), a Marsh Warbler (Kærsanger), a Yellowhammer (Gulspurv), and a young Black Redstart (Husrødstjert). They also had a flyover Eurasian Green Woodpecker (Grønspætte), rare out this far on the peninsula, and the Cinereous Vulture (Munkegrib) passed by overhead on its daily foray out to Grenen. 

Juvenile Black Redstart (Husrødstjert) in the hand

After we all returned, we had a new arrival: Sofie, who will be staying and volunteering for a few days at the station! Welcome! We all took naps and then we got ready to go on an exciting venture: the wildlife rehab center had received a Eurasian Eagle-Owl (Stor Hornugle), and we would be ringing it! But before then Simon needed to drive one hour away to pick up rings from another Bird Ringer since we did'nt have the right siize among the otherwise many different ring types in our stock. A large crew drove down to help and watch: the station volunteers, Simon and Lisa, Knud and Inge Pedersen, our guest Søren, and Mette from the station cafe. At the center, first Jule ringed a juvenile Herring Gull (Sølvemåge) also at the center, and then Simon went into the enclosure to catch the owl! It was quite cool to be able to see such an impressive raptor up close, and it was also a species that Simon had never hold before.

Eagle Owl (Stor Hornugle) at Jerup Rescue Center (Vildtplejestation)

Simon with the newly-ringed owl

After, everyone returned home, while Páll, Jule, Juliane and I headed to Jerup Strand to look for shorebirds. It was fun to finally be able to see shorebirds on the ground, and in numbers! Feeding on the mud were dozens of lapwings (Vibe), golden-plovers (Hjejle), redshanks (common/Rødben and spotted/Sortklire), ringed plovers (Stor Præstekrave), whimbrels (Småspove), bar-tailed godwits (Lille Kobbersneppe), dunlin (Almindelig Ryle), and oystercatchers (Strandskade), among other shorebirds. Not only that, but there were also six Eurasian Spoonbills (Skestork) sweeping their bizarre bulbous bills through the water, a lifer for Juliane and I! Jule was able to read the color ring on one, so perhaps we’ll find out where it's been. My lifer Corn Bunting (Bomlærke) sang from the grasses, and it was my first time seeing the godwits in their striking orange breeding plumage. Juliane saw her first Black-bellied Plover (Strandhjejle), and Jule was excited about a Marsh Harrier (Rørhøg) flying over. Juliane brought a collection of beautiful shells back as well.

After we returned, Juliane made dinner, and we quickly ate before heading out to set up nets on the beach. We’ll try again for storm petrels and nightjars again tonight, hopefully with better luck than last night!

The team setting up storm petrel nets

This was Juliane’s last day at the station before returning to Germany in the morning, and although it was quite busy, it was a good day to end on! She described it as “full, bright, and exciting” in our evening meeting, and I agree.

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Brian Browne, Juliane Rößler, Páll Kærbo, Jule Tappe, Simon Kiesé, Simon Christiansen, Lisa Vergin, Knud and Inge Pedersen, Sofie Bugge Kobberø, Søren Roed, Mette Christensen, Jeppe Therkildsen Madsen.

This day started at a rather unusual time, or not, if you are at the Bird Observatory! Around midnight, Brian and I where still on the beach of Grenen, trying to catch waders. Unfortunately, we weren’t lucky so instead enjoyed a nice night walk, admiring the view of the lighthouse in the dark. At sunrise, our usual tasks called: Brian, Juliane and Knud attended to the migration count at World’s End 3 and Simon K., Páll and me were ringing birds at Kabeltromlen. It was my first time at this legendary site so I was shown all the nets and was excited to ring my first birds – hopefully many are still to come! There was also a slight breeze of wind, forcing us to leave some nets closed. Still, we caught surprisingly many birds with a strong second round of 15 individuals, including two Icterine Warblers (Gulbug) and many juvenile birds.

Icterine warbler (Gulbug)

Above us, some passerines were busy: Redpolls (Gråsisken), Common Crossbills (Lille Korsnæb) and a Tree Pipit (Skovpiber) flew over our heads while we were ringing. Checking the nets, a couple of Common Snipe (Dobbeltbekkasin) flew away startled. We used the spare time in between net checks for some seatwatching, getting an impression of what Juliane, Brian and Knud where dealing with a few hundred metres north: Migration was again slow with little to no activity on the sea. Some nice birds were still around though, like a Golden Plover (Hjejle), a Whimbrel (Småspove), three young Mediterranean Gulls (Sorthovedet Måge) and even a Yellow-legged Gull (Middelhavsmåge) on the beach.

Yellow-legged Gull (Middelhavsmåge). Photo: Knud Pedersen

Our guest Søren Roed also joined both the count and later the ringing to get an impression of what we are up to every morning. After this sleepless night and busy morning, we went back to the station and admired a stuffed stone-curlew (Triel) in the exhibition. You should check it out! All took a nap and got some rest before entering the data of the morning. I also went into town to get some groceries for the next couple of days that are going to be busy again. Until the evening, we took things slow to be prepared for what’s to come this night: We are going to try to catch and ring storm petrels (Lille Stormsvale)! If you want to find out whether we caught one of these magnificent birds, check out the blog tomorrow!

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area.

People: Brian Browne, Simon S. Christiansen, Simon Kiesé, Søren Roed, Juliane Rößler, Knud, Pedersen, Jule Tappe, Páll Vang Kjærbo

Today the day for me and Brian started extremely early, since we wanted to catch some birds at night. Brian went out to Kabeltromeln and tried to catch Common Snipe (Dobbeltbekassin) or other waders in the muddy patches along the paths, while I opened the net for nightjars (Natravn) again. After many sleepless hours, both of us remained unsucessful unfortunately. Maybe next time!

But our day wouldn’t have to stay without any birds, since there was CES-Ringing at Skarvsøen awaiting us. While Simon K., Brian, Páll and I participated in the ringing, Jule carried out the migration count at Worlds end 3 together with Knud. Above the calm sea without any wind, not much activity was to be seen today. But her morning was not without any highlights: a new highcount for the season of five Mediterranean Gulls (Sorthovedet måge) showed up, as well as one migrating Long-tailed Duck (Havlit). At the same time, our Ringing was quite successful, with 31 ringed and 9 recaptured birds in total and some pretty cool catches. We recaptured an over 6 year old Common Whitethroat, which must be familiar with Simon K. by now. According to our data, it was in his hand in 2024 and 2025 before.

Over 6 year old Common Whitethroat (Tornsanger), captured in Skagen every year since 2023!

We were also happy to capture our first Marsh Warbler (Kærsanger) for the season and see the comparison between Marsh- and Reed Warbler (Rørsanger). Later I had the opportunity to extract a beautiful adult Eurasian Jay (Skovskade), which might be the coolest bird I have ever taken out of a net by myself! Brian got to ring his first ever Steel-ring and learnt some handling techniques for such a big bird. We all were left with some pecks and bruises, but it was super exciting to admire the starring eyes and wings of a Jay from up close. On the last net-check, Brian got treated with a glowing red male Bullfinch (Dompap), which was one of the species he was hoping to get good looks on since he arrived at Skagen.

Adult Eurasian Jay (Skovskade)

Male Bullfinch (Dompap)

After the Ringing was done, many Raptors showed up again and were flying with the warm winds on this bright sunny day. There were a lot of Honeybuzzards (Hvepsevåge) and even a White-tailed eagle (Havørn) amongst them. After watching them for a bit, everyone returned to the station and went for a much needed nap. After our evening meeting,Simon K. prepared delicious Dinner and I made some warm Apple crumble. Afterwards I took a short walk along the beach, where a dark-morph Arctic Skua (Almindelig Kjove) flew by. Later in the night Jule and Brian went out to try and catch waders again. Unfortunately, they were without success. Luck doesn’t seem to be on our side at night!

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area.

People: Juliane Rößler, Brian Browne, Jule Tappe, Simon Kiesé, Páll Vang Kjærbo, Simon S. Christiansen, Knud Pedersen, Søren Roed

We went to bed last night unsure what the morning would look like with strong winds and rain forecasted, but planned on going out anyway. When we awoke at 4:00, the wind was whipping but the rain had not materialized so we biked out to World’s End 1 to start the morning count in a more sheltered place. However, the rain arrived soon after us and soon it was difficult to see past the breakers. There were few birds moving, and what was moving was not easy to identify through the mist and haze. We finally ended early once the rain picked up and obscured the ocean almost completely, with close to zero migrating birds to show for our efforts.

Arriving back at the lighthouse, we warmed up with some hot chocolate and then all went to our beds and napped for the next three hours. After we reemerged, the rest of the morning and early afternoon was spent doing computer work and data entry while the wind rattled the windows. Simon K left to go into town with his father, and they had a nice afternoon visiting the art museum and Skagen Bakery. As the weather abated slightly, Jule set out to go look for some birds and enjoyed a nice walk by the sea, but saw few birds in the weather.

Around 16.00 we drove into town and went grocery shopping before meeting Simon’s father and going to the bowling alley! We bowled two games and had a lot of fun— Simon and Juliane tied the first round and Jule won the second, miraculously beating her first score by over 100 points.

Action shot of Juliane

After bowling we returned for an evening meeting with Páll, who had spent the day canoeing eight hours from Mosbjerg to Teersted. He saw a Common Kingfisher (Isfugl) along the way. We also welcomed our new arrival in the guest apartment, Søren— welcome to the station! The rest of the evening was spent eating potato leek soup in front of the world cup final. As it got dark, Juliane went to sleep while Jule, Simon and I grabbed the hand nets and went out to go night catching. Jule walked through the heath while Simon and I walked the beach to Grenen, but we all returned at the same time empty handed. With an early start tomorrow morning for ringing at Kabeltromen tomorrow, we jumped quickly into bed.

Det Grå Fyr on our way back from night catching

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Brian Browne, Juliane Rößler, Jule Tappe, Simon Kiesé, Páll Kærbo, Kersten Kiesé, Søren Røed

This morning, a loud bang woke us up. There was a thunderstorm outside! Heavy rain beat against the windows and there were loud rumbles, so we had to postpone our daily migration count by an hour. On our way to World’s End 3, I was greeted by a very cute Common newt (Lille Vandsalamander) that had dared to walk the paths around the lighthouse after the rain.

Common Newt (Lille Vandsalamander) next to the lighthouse

The migration count that Brian, Juliane and I did, was slow with only a very small number of passerines and little activity on the sea. However, after the rain, the views of the rising sun and calm sea were magnificent!

After the count, we all went our separate ways. I decided do some more birdwatching in the bushes behind World’s End, coming across a number of Common Whitethroats (Tornsanger), Siskins (Grønsisken), Linnets (Tornirisk) and Great Tits (Musvit). The highlight of the walk was an unexpected Cuckoo (Gøg) that was perching on a branch. Also, I came across a Common Toad (Skrubtudse) that was lying on the sand in the middle of the pathway. A very nice sight! After a short lunch break, I went on another walk around Storsig where I was surrounded by Common Kestrels (Tårnfalk) and saw an extremely fast Woodpigeon (Ringdue) flying with the wind.

Meanwhile, Juliane and Brian went back to the lighthouse and entered some data on the computer. In the afternoon, Juliane biked to the CES site to cut vegetation so we are prepared for some bird ringing next week! While cutting, she even got to see an Adder (Hugorm), a common snake around the heathers of Skagen. After that, Juliane looked at the sea from Nordstrand and was amazed by the high number of Northern Gannets (Sule) and the interesting pattern of waves that the wind created in the sea.

Our team at the observatory also expanded today! In the afternoon, Simon (not to be confused with Simon S. Christiansen) arrived and will be staying with us until the end of August. After his arrival, he used his chance to see the Cinereous Vulture at Hulsig and got some nice pictures of the impressive bird.

Cinereous Vulture (Munkegrib) at Hulsig

He later joined Brian who was seawatching at World’s End 1 where they spotted a Northern Fulmar (Mallemuk) close to the beach. After this day of wind and rain, we all enjoyed a nice dinner together.

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Brian Browne, Lærkebjørn Desholm, Mark Desholm, Simon Kiesé, Juliane Rößler, Jule Tappe

Alles vækkeure ringede rigtig tidligt i dag, da afgangen mod dagens morgenobs på Grenens yderste klitrække var sat til kl. 04.15. Vi må dog indrømme, at det ikke helt lykkedes familen Desholm at komme op så tidligt. Men de gæve observatører fra fuglestation og samt Páll, der også deltog var klar med kikkerterne. Det blev en varm men stille morgen med vildt god sigtbarhed og de sædvanlige måger og terner (der blev også aflæst nogle), og også med en dejlig overraskelse i form af en fouragerende mosehornugle mellem klitrækkerne. Dertil en havlit, ederfugle, sortænder, en enkelt fløjelsand, en smålom og en større, (end marsvin) uidentificeret havpattedyrsrygfinne.

Omkring kl. 10 lød munkegribbe-alarmen igen igen på Zello, og fuglen lod sig nydeligt beskue fra Saftevandsbakken sammen med ca. 40 røde glenter og 3-4 hvepsevåger over og omkring den store radarkuppel. Familien Desholm var igen ude ved Tværvej i Hulsig bed aftenstid og se gribben på relativt tæt hold både siddende i et højt grantræ og cirklende lavt over tilskuernes hoveder.

Brian observerede en forbitrækkende lærkefalk, 34 røde glenter, vores allesammens munkegrib, et par musvåger og hvepsevåger senere på dagen på vej ud til Skarvsøen, hvor han talte skarverne (442) og så 20 fiskehejrer.

Til aften var Juliane ude og beskære vegetationen omkring netbanerne til CES-mærkningen i de kommende uger ved Skarvsøen. Jule indtastede data for første gang og lavede dejlig mad.

Alt i alt må vi sige, at dette års juli-tur til Skagen mest af alt minder om en fugletur til det sydlige Europa – både hvad angår luft- og vandtemperatur og ikke mindst den store majestætiske munkegrib, som nu på anden uge kredser over Skagen og Hulsigs glade ornitologer.

Vi sluttede dagen af med et dejligt aftenmøde udenfor (se foto) i det fine Skagenslys.

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Mark Desholm, Lærkebjørn Desholm, Brian Browne, Juliane Rößler, Jule Tappe, Páll Kærbo

Today Brian, Magnus, Rasmus, Jule and I all went out early to start migration counting at sunrise. It was quite a slow and warm morning, without much activity on sea. A highlight for me was the Long-tailed Duck (Havlit), which I missed yesterday and have seen it today for the first time in my life! Jule was very happy about a Crested Tit (Topmejse) passing by just a few meters away from us, since she hasn’t seen them one a long while. Rasmus and Magnus had to catch their train in Skagen, so they left a bit earlier and said Goodbye to us. We wish you all the best and hope you visit the station again soon!

Sunrise at Verdens ende 

After counting time was over, Brian took a nap on the dune while Jule and I headed back to the station. On our way we saw a Honeybuzzard (Hvepsevåge) very close, a special moment for both of us. After some rest and data entry, Jule went up the lighthouse and got a great view on the Cinereous vulture (Munkegrib) from up there. Brian looked out of the window, saw around 50 Raptors soaring above Saftevandsbakken and decided to cycle there immediately. Jule went with him and I joined them a bit later after getting computerwork done. There were a couple of Honeybuzzards (Hvepsevåge), Common Buzzards (Musvåge), Common Kestrels (Tårnfalk) and tons of Red Kites (Rød glente), but no rarities amongst them.

Red Kite (Rød glente)

Afterwards we went shopping together, I prepared Dinner and went for a fantastic swim at the beach. Mark came over for the evening meeting and told us about the Raptors and Whimbrels (Småspove) he observed today together with his kids. The meeting developed into an hourlong conversation, talking with him about bird migration studies and his former experience in politics. For me, having the opportunity to exchange with our guests of all different scientific backgrounds and perspectives, is one of the most valuable things about staying at the station! We all enjoyed it a lot, but it got quite late and we all hopped into bed very soon to be prepared for our next migration count tomorrow.

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Juliane Rößler, Brian Browne, Simon S. Christiansen, Páll Vang Kjærbo, Magnus Lund Christensen, Rasmus Matthiesen-Juhl, Jule Tappe, Lærkebjørn & Mark Desholm 

Magnus og jeg blev vækket i nat af Brian, der kom for at fortælle at Juliane havde fanget en Natravn på Storsig. Det er altid en stor oplevelse at se en Natravn i hånden, og især for Magnus, der aldrig havde set en før!

Natravn

På trods af nattens fangst, stod alle mand klar på Grenen klokken 04.40, spændte og parate fordi den standardiserede-efterårssæsons-morgenobs startede i dag! Dagens højdepunkt var en havlit, som er ret sjælden i Juli måned. Et par hvepsevåger trak ud og mange mursejlere fulgte dem. Ellers var det en ret stille, men varm morgen. Jeg er ikke sikker på at jeg har siddet i t-shirt klokken 07.00 på en morgenobs før:)

Tilbage på stationen begyndte der at komme meldinger fra Hulsig om at Munkegribben var på vej ind over byen. Vi satte os derfor ned bag stationen og kunne i lang tid nyde gribben flyve rundt skiftevis over byen og storsig. I dag skulle vi også sige farvel til Julian, som har været på stationen siden marts. Men det var ikke kun farvel i dag, for vi tog også imod Jule som skal være her indtil slutningen af Oktober

Magnus og jeg besluttede os for at gå en tur ned i byen for at handle ind til aftensmad, og for at se hvad den såkaldte Hellerup-uge (uge 29) kunne byde på. På vejen derned havde vi 11 Røde Glenter der kredsede over Storsig. Inde i byen fik vi købt en is og en øl, og kunne stadigvæk se Munkegribben flyve rundt højt over byen.

Vi fik bakset en solid gang rødkarry sammen til aftensmad, og nu skal vi se fodbold:)

Det har været en fornøjelse at være tilbage på Skagen Fuglestation for et par dage! Jeg vil også lige lade Magnus sætte et par ord på hvordan det har været at besøge Skagen Fuglestation for første gang:

Første indtryk af fugleverdenen ved Skagen fuglestation har været intet mindre end fantastisk! Jeg har kun været her i fire dage, men ved allerede, med sikkerhed, at det ikke er sidste gang jeg er her. Selvom dagene nogle gange kan føles lidt lange og søvnen nogle gange kort, gør højdepunkterne det hele værd. Højdepunkter såsom at blive vækket midt om natten fordi der er fløjet en natravn i nettet eller mit første møde med den enorme munkegrib som majestætisk kredser over fyrtårnet. Men det er ikke kun oplevelserne med fuglene der gør Skagen fuglestation til noget særligt. Fællesskabet med de andre fugleentusiaster på stationen spiller en ligeså stor rolle. Lige fra første morgenstund, til sent ud på aftenen er der god stemning og hyggelige momenter. Alt i alt en fantastisk oplevelse og en kæmpe anbefaling.

Link to today’s observations in DOFbasen from observers in the area

People: Juliane Rößler, Julian Helbig, Brian Browne, Simon S. Christiansen, Påll Vang Kjærbo, Magnus Lund Christensen, Rasmus Matthiesen-Juhl, Jule, Lærkebjørn & Mark Desholm 

The Cinerous Vulture (Munkegrib) is still ther!

After sleeping in, we went to Rødsternklit to look at a rare orchid. 

Mark and Lærkebjørn joined aswell, it was great company.

It was fun and we also saw some frogs. 

John gave us some books.

Brian saw his first Goldcrests (Fuglekonge). That's the smallest bird in Europe, so it was cool to see.

Link to today's observations on dofbasen.

There were cool people at the station. As usual.