Another hygge day at the skagen bird station!

Although the weather was better than yesterday, the wind was too strong to resume bird ringing. Instead, after breakfast, we all had a nice time counting migrating birds at World's End III.

Migration counting at World's End III

It was a slow start, with lots of Common Scoters (Sortand). Louis counted more than 1,000 individuals in the first hour! After that, Black-legged Kittiwakes (Ride) became the main characters, until the Pomarine and Arctic Skuas (Mellemkjove and Almindelig Kjove) appeared, although they were pretty far away.

I didn't know this before, but it seems that skuas have a special kind of magic for seabirders. Not only are they unusual birds, but their behaviour is also really interesting, as they chase other seabirds to steal their food. With their dark plumage, they're like real pirates of the sea! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a good look at them, but I'm excited to see one up close in the near future!

Although I'm still getting used to identifying all these seabirds, I'm already feeling more confident with migration counting! Today was my second time doing it, and I could tell I'd improved since yesterday (although I'm still struggling to tell Razorbills (Alk) and Common Guillemots (Lomvie) apart). We were also lucky enough to see a Snow Bunting (Snespurv) really close, right in front of us. Meanwhile, Lone and Lars also went birdwatching and spotted several species, including Sanderlings (Sandløber), Rock Pipits (Skærpiber) and Bearded Tits (Skægmejse).

After the third migration count, Sarah went to Kabeltromlen to check the mist nets and put up the tent, getting everything ready for tomorrow, as the forecast is looking really good. Thanks to Lone for the extra help!

On our way back to the station by bike, we spotted some Yellowhammers (Gulspurv) nearby. One of them was ringed, but unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a photo of it. I'll catch it on camera next time!

After lunch, we tackled our daily Sudoku puzzles to sharpen our minds and also our birdwatching skills. In the afternoon, Cora went into town to do some shopping and get a haircut (it looks great!), while the rest of us chilled out at the lighthouse. It was windy outside, making it the perfect afternoon to read about seabirds and study shorebirds with a warm cup of tea.

Bird sketches and study notes

We'll be having dinner shortly, and Mio and Cora are heading out for another night-catching session. I'll probably join them! Hopefully, we'll catch some more Snipes (Dobbeltbekkasin) tonight, and the moon won't be too bright!

For those of you reading this blog and feeling extra hygge today, we have a short animated movie recommendation: Piper, a cute little story about a sandpiper, perfect to pair up with a warm drink!

Today is also Lisa's birthday! We hope you had a great day and got many presents, happy birthday!!

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

People: Mio Brix, Cora Köberle, Simon S. Christiansen, Sarah Partridge, Louis-Marie Gourmelon, Christina Liu, Michael Ancher, Knud Pederson, Lars og Lone