My last day!

This morning most of the team was at the ringing. It was a steady session with mainly Blackcaps (Munk) but a couple nicer species like Marsh Warbler (Kærsanger) and Icterine Warbler (Gulbug). One of the last birds of the morning though was this female Red-backed Shrike (Rødrygget Tornskade). This is the fifth Red-backed Shrike (Rødrygget Tornskade) that we have caught here this spring which is higher than the previous spring totals of this species. My favourite bird of the day a leucistic Lesser Whitethroat (Gærdesanger). We have seen this same bird hanging around the nets since late April, so it was nice to see it up close one last time. The spring, however, has not yielded a Danish rarity yet so the whole team has their fingers crossed that one makes its way into the nets soon.

Female Red-backed Shrike (Rødrygget Tornskade)

Skagen's famous leucistic Lesser Whitethroat (Gærdesanger)!

János was the only one on the migration count this morning. He had an enjoyable morning with quite a few Arctic Skuas (Almindelig Kjove) and some gulls to look at in detail on the beach. Though the best thing of the morning was a massive flock of over 2500 Velvet Scoters (Fløjlsand)! Almost double the previous day record in Skagen. Unfortunately, they were a bit far out to look for rarer species, but it was still an amazing sight.

After a quick lunch I went on a walk around a few sites like Skarvsøen and Ellekrattet to look for some later spring scarcities. Species in mind were Great Reed Warbler (Drosselrørsanger) and Blyth’s Reed Warbler (Buskrørsanger) as neither had been found in the field yet the spring. However, to my surprise, I was able to find a Bonelli’s Warbler (Bjergløvsanger/Balkanløvsanger)! I managed to get a nice twenty second view of it allowing me to see all the important features. The bird did not call for me though, meaning I could not be certain whether it was an Eastern Bonelli’s (Balkanløvsanger) or Western Bonelli’s Warbler (Bjergløvsanger). I didn’t mind though. As it is still a very nice bird to see in Denmark. The others came out to try and re find it with me, but we had no luck. Maybe it turns up somewhere else in the coming days.

In the late afternoon Alvin also caught a Black Redstart (Husrødstjert) n the lighthouse garden. This is the first nice bird that the net in the garden has caught this spring, so we were all pleased. Plus, it is only our second Black Redstart (Husrødstjert) caught this spring.

Young Black Redstart (Husrødstjert)

Because the wind was low, we decided to go out and try catch some Nightjars (Natravn) over the night. We went a bit South of Skagen to the plantation and set up nets for 11pm and left them out with playback for three hours. We were super happy to find one young male Nightjar in the nets. It is a species we all really wanted to catch because of their amazing cryptic plumage and other very strange features (like combs on their claws!). We were absolutely mind blown by how amazing this bird was, and we hope to catch more in the coming nights. Nightjar (Natravn) catching does require to stay up ll night which can be very tiring! Each year the station tries to catch Nightjars (Natravn) in Skagen which sometimes means that we get some really nice recaptures. At the same site we also heard a few roding Woodcock (Skovsneppe) which was also nice as we haven’t really seen them since late March. My last day here in Skagen has been absolutely brilliant and I don't think I could've asked for a better ending.

Young male Nightjar (Natravn)!

Today was in fact my last full day in Skagen as I leave tomorrow morning to head back to Scotland. I have had the most amazing time here and have learnt so much. Not only have I gained some very valuable skills, I have also met some amazing people that I have been able to get super close to. So, this goodbye is harder than I imagined it would be. I am sure we will all meet up in the coming years again. I also want to thank all the local birders from Skagen who have passed on all their skills to me across the spring. The scene here is very special and I am sure I will be visiting here again soon! I hope you all have an amazing rest of the spring filled with lovely birds.