Bad weather – good Birds

Today was a rainy day, and even though the forecast told us that it would stop raining in half an hour every time we checked it, it continued pretty much all day. We got up as usual, and since the weather was definitely not good enough for ringing, we waited a bit for the rain to stop and at some point decided to do the migration count despite the adverse conditions. Packed in several layers of warm clothing and waterproofed with a rain jacked, rain pants and rubber boots, we where well equipped and Florian, Amira and I arrived only 20min after sunnrise at Grenen.

Next to many Red-throated Divers (Rødstrubet Lom), our first highlight of the day was a Great Northern Diver (Islom) only five minutes after the start of the count. Later followed by a Yellow-billed and a Black-throated Diver (Sortstrubet Lom), this was the first time in this autumn season that we managed to see all four european Diver species in one morning! It was very nice to be able to see and compare all of them in such a short time span, and the Yellow-billed Diver (Hvidæbbet Lom) was a lifer for me. Later we also got very good views of a resting Great Skua (Storkjove) before we gave in to the rain and went back after 2,5 hours of counting.

Florian and János during the count. Photo by Amira

While we were counting, Miles had a quiet morning, updating the picture archive and baking a delicious „Pallid Swift Cake“ for us in remembrance of the Pallid Swift (Gråsejler) that was in the area for the past few days and often came surprisingly close, giving good views.

Miles Pallid Swift Cake. Photo by János

After we came back, we had lunch and I had a restful afternoon. Miles went for a run, and then he, Amira and Florian went for a swim, spotting a remarkably late House Martin (Bysvale). Later, Florian left for the grocery store to buy food for dinner, and Amira climbed the lighthouse tower to use the good acoustics there and played her recorder (instrument). In the afternoon the skagen fuglestation hoodies we had designed and ordered finally arrived, and they turned out very well!

Miles, Florian and Amira wearing the new Hoodies. Photo by János

No ringing today due to the rain

Highlights from today’s observations:

Great Northern Diver (Islom) 1

Black-throated Diver (Sortstrubet Lom) 1

Yellow-billed Diver (Hvidæbbet Lom) 1

Great Skua (Storkjove) 1

House Martin (Bysvale) 1

Link to today’s observations from the area

People: Miles Scheuering, János Schadl, Florian Hatt, Amira Nuseibeh