Calm sea, calm day

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, Påll Vang Kjærbo, Magnus Lund Christensen, Rasmus Matthiesen-Juhl, Jule Tappe, Lærkebjørn & Mark Desholm