starting to click (20150528)

Hovs Hallar was chilly and breezy, hardly good conditions for searching out invertebrates but we found a few nice things like this click beetle (Athous subfuscus).

Took the team out for a breath of fresh air. Terrible weather continues to dominate our month, set to become the coldest Swedish May since 1962! It has doubtless affected my search for invertebrates, for example I have yet to identify an Odonate in BK this year and I can only imagine what a normal moth trapping May would be like!

Today we worked Klarningen for birds, picking up a Temminck's stint and two ruff. Then moved on to Hovs Hallar for a picnic and a look in the bushes for invertebrates. It was appalling weatherwise and we found very little but of course I still managed to add two click-beetles (Athous subfuscus and haemorrhoidalis) and a new soldier-beetle (Cantharis nigricans) to my BK list (which hit 600 this week).

Checked Påarps Mal on the way home but it was quiet.

great hobby (20150509)

Had a quick birthday birding session after going through two largely empty moth traps (frost overnight!). Checked Ripagården en route to Hovs Hallar. A little ringed plover was singing in the carpark, together with a cuckoo and the first of three thrush nightingales. Walking the site suggested a light fall overnight with plenty of wheatears, a single redstart and a few lesser whitethroat on the ground. Offshore a single black-throated diver and three red-necked grebes. Walking back to the car I was overtaken by a hobby powering inland.

failed twitch

Chased a couple fo ring ouzel at Hovs Hallar this afternoon but dipped badly. Plenty of white wagtails on the ground and a few siskin and sparrowhawk in the air. I loath working Hovs Hallar alone (too much cover) but it has undeniable potential for turning up rares.

breezy

Got out this morning and tried to add black-throated diver to my year-list again and failed again too. Checked out Yttre Kattvik first, no divers on the sea but a few red-throated divers, gannets and guillemots going west in a strengthening westerly wind. Kattvik was likewise quiet and a quick look at Båstad produced a gannet and the over-wintering white wagtail. The latter starting to look a little worse for wear. Eskilstorpsstrand proved a little too exposed so I moved on to see how the destruction of the Petersberg wetland was getting on. The main pool is now half empty - they could have done it during the wader season if they really cared! Sad to see this site going under the bulldozer's blade. Last stop was a chilly Klarningen, here three red kites suggested a slight return movement of raptors might be happening. There was definitely a touch of spring in the air but the westerly wind was now really strong so I headed home.

After lunch we all went out for a foam party at Hovs Hallar. A few gannet and kittiwake evident going past the bunker. Elemental.

wildfowl count - part 2 (20140920)

The second part of my September wildfowl count produced some great birds including two BK year-ticks - nice to get a reward sometimes.

Getting out of the car at Torekovs rev just after 0800 was greatly enlivened by a close flyby Richard's pipit, calling well as it flew low south (just flushed from golf course?). Only my second BK record and my first self-found bird. Excellent. The rev was otherwise quiet although six shoveler were present, barnacle geese were obviously moving in modest numbers and a single bar-tailed godwit was only my second of the year...

Next stop was Rålehamn where a brief glimpse of a wryneck was confirmed by a sudden, surprising and very brief burst of song. The rest of the count up to Hovs Hallar passed without further excitement.

hot and windy

 Dragonflies were the order of the day, despite the windy conditions and the fact that I would probably of been better off birding! My first Coenagrion puella were on the wing at a number of sites.

Out and about again today in the hot sun and windy conditions. Hit Drängstorp first hoping for Coenagrion armatum but instead had to settle for a huge emergence of Coenagrion lunulatum and my first Leucorrhinia rubicunda for the Atlas square.

 Coenagrion pulchellum

Next stop was Boarp, which was disappointing as the  water level in the ordinarily shallow and very good fourth pond was way up. Did get more puella here though and Coenagrion pulchellum, but very small numbers and no sign of any emergence at the site.

 Hovs Hallar produced at least seven migrating honey buzzards in a one-hour watch

Hovs Hallar for an hour in the middle of the day was good for honey buzzards (seven through) but the hoped-for rosefinches failed to sing. After lunch I had a quick look at the pool at Lönhult but it was too exposed for a reasonable odo-survey.

 Mute swan

Last stop of the day was another speculative listen for rosefinch at Öllövsstrand, again no joy, just a noisy thrush nightingale. The stars here though were two territorial map butterflies.

 Map butterfly

Driving out I glimpsed a male black redstart around the farm buildings at Öllöv and Number 1 and I returned later finding the nest-site and watching both adults shuttling to-and-fro with food for the hungry chicks. Nice find.

Last bird of the day was perhaps the best find, a breeding pair of black redstarts feeding young at Öllöv

white wing invasion (20140518)

Paul Cook and I had a day birding together today and headed first to Hovs Hallar. Two-and-a-half hours here produced little in the way of vismig sadly, although we had two whimbrel north and a few yellow wagtails were on the go too. A male red-backed shrike was feeding below us on the undercliff. Refuelling at Torekov we picked up four swifts that looked resident.

The sun blazed from the sky as we headed out to Hallands Väderö on the boat. Over the next five hours we kicked about. Thrush nightingales and icterine warblers were in song. The southern woods had two fantastic singing male red-breasted flycatchers and a few wood warblers. Trogging round from Kappelhamn to the lighthouse was very quiet and before we knew it we were back at the jetty. On the boat back we picked up a single razorbill in the company of two guillemots.

Two singing  male red-breasted flycatchers were the highlight of a sunny five hours on Hallands Väderö. The weather was not conducive for a fall but we missed a few migrants apparently including the first BK rosefinch of the year...

During the day huge numbers of white-winged terns had been swarming into southern Sweden and it did not come as too much of a surprise to get an SMS telling us that Martin Ekenberg had found at least ten at Klarningen. Luckily we were just about to get off the boat when this news arrived and we endured the tense 20-minute drive over to the site. On arrival though we found the white-winged tern count had reached 18, it was quite superb. An osprey was hunting over Eskiltorpsdammar. Paul and I walked over to the river for an epic encounter with the loose flock as they fed busily, completely unconcerned by our presence.

Whoar!

A last ditch attempt to see the black stork at Barramossa failed sadly but it was a good day all the same.

self-found hoopoe - just splendid

Today's highlight was easily my single-observer five minutes with a hoopoe at Hovs Hallar. There were too many non-birders (NoBs) walking the path for it to stick around for those trying to twitch it sadly, but it may still be lurking somewhere.

Got up rather late this morning but got to Sinarpsdalen for 0800 and my attempt to add lesser spotted woodpecker and grey wagtail to the year-list was partially successful with a single female grey wagtail popping up to look at me.

Klarningen next, chasing garganey. No joy but there were a few birds on site including 23 wigeon, four shoveler and eight redshank. News of a hoopoe flying over Förslöv sent me off to Hovs Hallar on a gamble. After a random police breathalyser test I reached the site and eventually settled in my usual place looking south from the low ridge towards Gröthögarna. Now Hovs Hallar is the site in BK where I should spend more time. Geographically it has huge potential, especially in spring and it is hugely under-watched. This New Year I made a resolution to visit more often but it is a hard place to work in the traditional sense but a great place to sit and watch birds go by. This static form of birding has taken me ages to get used to but it paid off very quickly today.

I had hardly settled in when a bird flying past caught my attention. A single avocet resolutely heading north high above the sea. Only my fifteenth BK record and coming after a blank year in 2013 a most welcome addition to the year-list. On the sea a single gannet and red-necked grebe. Raptors were dribbling through with sparrowhawk and kestrel heading north and out over the sea, their presence indicated by corvid harassment. Amazingly a snow bunting went through north too hugging the shoreline but not stopping. Then the crows were up again and I looked on in amazement as the hoopoe appeared to the south flying towards me for a minute before dropping into the scrub - my second BK bird. I texted out a message and looked up in time to see it coming on towards me again. This time it landed in view and after a few desultory pecks of the turf it was flushed by Easter walkers and hopped the wall. I gave chase but looking over the wall revealed no bird, an amazing vanishing act. Håkan J arrived just a few minutes too late and Jan was not far behind but I fear they dipped.

After lunch we all took the bus down the hill and walked back up Sinarpsdalen in the blazing sun. Butterflies and bees were on the wing. I finally caught up with a singing willow warbler and four hawfinches were good to see as usual. A black woodpecker called in the distance. A great day.

Peacock

Hawfinch

it rains

Ed and got up early and checked out Hovs Hallar hoping for some vismig but the heavens opened up and we headed to Klarningen after half an hour. Here we found the place rather empty of birds, a flyby pintail, a gadwall and two little grebe being our only reward. Rain continued throughout the day and although we walked the Killeröd-Önnarp loop we failed to locate our target bird - nutcracker and had little else besides. A wash-out!

Waterfowl Census Part 2 - Torekov to Hovs Hallar

Kicked off the day's birding at Förslöv with a single flyover two-barred crossbill. Just wish I could see some at the coastal sites I frequent before they vanish back where they came from.

Today was my chance to finish my survey work and I could not have picked nicer weather, constant drenching drizzle throughout the morning, although it did clear up in the afternoon I was pretty wet. Started at Torekov rev which typically produced the best of the birds; two brent geese, a shoveler and four 1K grey plovers. The walk northwards produced little of note but did include a total of nearly 100 dunlin. Ripagården produced a nice adult peregrine ripping up a small bird (starling?) and I saw the presumably the same bird perched close to the road and looking fantastic against the newly-tilled soil later at Vråen. Shame my camera was drying out in the back of the car!

No time for birding

Not much time for birding lately. Yesterday I got in an hour and a half of birding at Hovs Hallar before breakfast. The highlights being a single singing male common rosefinch and three red-throated divers south.

Today I had half an hour at Klarningen in the pouring rain, autumn wader passage has started already. Two spotted redshanks were BK year-ticks and the site was also hosting at least ten green sandpipers.

Mammal mayhem

I failed to mention earlier in the year that there was a lynx in Bjäre (I did not want to jinx the lynx...), it was seen by at least one birder just a couple of miles from my house. It may still be around. Now we have a wolf doing the rounds and it looks like it is coming through this way. Would be nice.

I had the mid-afternoon in the field walking between Ripagården and Hovs Hallar. It was very quiet, I was constantly accompanied by linnet, goldfinch and white wagtails which was nice but I was rather hoping for a ring ouzel.

Meanwhile offpatch at Norra Häljaröd a black scoter was found and showed well for a while... Will it behave at the weekend?

No place like home

The mist and gloom at Torekov rev just after dawn lifted enough to produced this pied wagtail, a scarce bird around here. In Sweden you search through white wagtails in the slim hope of one of these little beauties, they are much harder to find here than white wagtails are in the UK!

Great day for birding, with lots of birds on the move and I managed to get out and enjoy some of it. Started early at Torekov rev in the mist again. Visibility was rather poor and light levels remained low for some time but the birds slowly gave themselves up. I quickly got onto a pied wagtail but I chased it almost to Torekov to get a decent looks at it, a description and a photo. A nice bird to find. Back on track, the deathly quiet and seemingly deserted rev finally coughed up at least 14 purple sandpipers, three green sandpipers and a redshank - astonishing. Over in the mist and unseen a grey plover called - an early record. Light levels brightened slightly stimulating a chiffchaff into song - my first of the year. Not a bad start.

Back at home I tried to get the team keen but they were racked with another cold and in the end I headed out for Ripagården and Hov Hallar alone. Ripagården was bursting with song, chiffchaffs, dunnocks, song thrushes and wrens have arrived. The sea produced a brace of gadwall and overhead the calls of green sandpiper were almost continous, with four along the shore and at least seven migrating north overhead.

Common frogs were spawning in a frenzy at Ripagården today as the temperature hit a massive 15 degrees C.

Hovs hallar was worth the walk, a steady vismig was apparent here. By the time I got up there it was midday and over the next two hours there was a steady trickle of raptors - rough-legged buzzard (1), buzzard (5) and sparrowhawk (23). Small flocks of chaffinch were moving north regularly, along with starlings, jackdaws, meadow pipits and white wagtails. Best bird though was my first Sandwich tern of the year, powering north in a determined fashion.

Spent the rest of the day in the back garden. Four waxwings dropped by briefly to fly-catch from the silver birches and my first osprey of the year circled over the garden before carrying on north down Sinarpsdalen. A great end to the day.

Counting ducks

Snow overnight meant plenty of tracks to look at. I think this was a pine marten dragging something. I followed it for ages to a lone juniper but could not get it out! Also mink, stoat and fox tracks seen during the day.

Across the sound to Hallands Väderö from Påarps mal (Torekov).

Time to do the mid-winter wildfowl count again. There were so few birds around I managed to do both my count sectors in one day for the first time - Dagshög to Hovs Hallar - 12km occasionally through drifts and on thinly covered black ice. Good exercise. Predictably as there were few birds of any kind, there was little of interest although I did manage four white-tailed eagles (three on Hallands Väderö, a rough-legged buzzard (Torekov still), a peregrine (perched on Tjällran), twelve black guillemots off Torekov and the grey wagtail at the sewage works (Torekov). More notable were the absentees; again no shags but also no grey herons or water pipits and just one rock pipit and three wigeon in the whole stretch. Tough times.

Windy weather

As usual at the weekends, my activities in the field were somewhat curtailed by the requirements of the rest of the team. The wind was blowing well from the SW though and a few good birds were spotted by others in BK today (including two great northern divers - which I still need for the year). I managed an hour sea-watching at Malen, not much coming past close here, most of it was cutting the corner but did get two Slavonian grebes, a gannet and 8 kittiwakes. The Halland flock of scaup (120) was skittish and flew about a bit before returning north.

After picking up the team in Båstad we all headed for Klarningen for a quick look. Loads of geese here with at least 650 greylags and 200 Canada, did not have long to search through them but one barnacle and 24 whooper swans were also present.

A final hour of the day sea-watching at Hovs Hallar produced just one red-necked grebe and three bullfinch...

Wild finch chase

Managed to get out for three hours in the afternoon and headed for Ripagården. On arrival a big flock of 85 redpoll swept past over the bay and appeared to land at Dalen. I gave chase south, but never caught up with them. They are so flighty and hard to pin down. Whilst here I did the Gröthögarna circuit, rather quiet; a few whoopers south (9), four grazing barnacle geese and just two goldcrests and a song thrush. The best bird was an adult peregrine tucked away out of the wind on Tjällran.

Back at Ripagården the carpark alders had a flock of 30 redpoll... I was just getting to grips with them through the scope, when the whole flock lifted in panic and headed off. Buggers. Other birds here included the willow tit (heard) and a flock of 25 waxwing over Hovs Hallar briefly before dropping back into the juniper. No sign of the red-backed shrike...

Rapid assessment

Sped around a bit today trying to track down various things reported recently. As a gambit it failed completely but I still managed a few good birds of my own.

Started off at Klarningen, thin skim of ice on the place but a bit of open water which holds a dwindling number of wildfowl. Just two wigeon and nine teal remain, but one whooper swan was new in. Waiting patiently for all of 20 minutes (!) produced a large group of migrating greylag geese, that included some yelping white-fronted geese (at least 9). The flock headed west and looked interested in Laholmsbukten so I headed off to the north end of Eskilstorpsstrand. A big flock of greylag geese were out on the sea and sure enough there were 13 white-fronts in amongst them. This species has been much easier on the patch this autumn, reflected by the elevated numbers through Falsterbo this year. Also here three Slavonian grebes.

Next stop was Båstad, no sign here of any scaup or kingfishers, just two white wagtails. Moving on quickly to Ripagården, spent some time here but the site was disturbed by men with guns and dogs and more burning bushes. They have finally removed the bush that the red-backed shrikes nest in... Somehow the covey of 12 grey partridges escaped the shooters and their dogs. Over Hovs Hallar a nice rough-legged buzzard laboriously hovered.

Last stop of the day was Påarps Mal, a quick look for shags was again a failure but a kittiwake sauntered south and a superb great grey shrike was terrorising the place. Nice end to the day.

Patch tick!

I am not sure my thrash-birding approach to getting over this cold virus is working but at least I am seeing some birds. Kicked off this morning by walking Ripagården to Hovs Hallar, hoping as ever to hear a Siberian warbler or pipit to add to the patch list. No joy on the scarce migrant front but did get some good birds. The best thing was my latest ever red-backed shrike (1K), feeding quietly but looking a little tired (origin?). My first in October. Also here a monumental 10 jays, five over-flying parrot crossbills, a redstart (another October first) and a close white-tailed eagle.

This white-tailed eagle flew up from the beach on the way back to the car at Ripagården this morning.

Drove to Torekov next and was passing the golf course when I saw this hunting...

Ooooh, a 1K red-footed falcon, perhaps only the second recent BK record and an excellent patch-tick.

Yep, a red-foot, got really close and took some truly awful flight images (not the above, took that later...), before it flew off east and away. The photos were so poor, I almost bought a DSLR on the spot. Another day. Headed to the rev next and was surprised to find very few birds on the ground; grey plover (3), dunlin (1) and bar-tailed godwit (1). Had a good look in the woods which produced a few goldcrest, more jays and a nice green woodpecker. As I walked back a lonely brent goose batted past north.

Driving home I could hardly believe my eyes when I spotted this on roadside wires just outside Torekov...

The same wires that gave me a hawk owl last year... It was equally tame and allowed a swift redress of the photographic balance. Sweet!

Waterfowl survey - Torekov to Hovs Hallar

A 10 km coastal walk in September is always going to produce a few good birds. Today was rather quiet, but two superb Lapland buntings at Gröthögarna on the trek back to the car more than made up for it.

Walked the coast from Torekov to Hovs Hallar today to count waterfowl. As usual the September count was easily done as there were very few waterfowl around! The five-kilometre stretch of coast produced the following; grey heron (3), cormorant (239), mute swan (10), mallard (110), wigeon (48), gadwall (1), teal (6), common scoter (3), eider (82), goosander (1) and red-breasted merganser (5).

During the count I was entertained by a merlin (catching and then drowning an irate starling, before settling down to a messy breakfast), a couple of lesser black-backed gulls, good numbers of wheatear and smaller numbers of rock pipit and whinchat. The bushes were full of common migrants this morning but nothing of note appeared.

It was the walk back that produced the bird of the day when I was jolted out of my reverie by a couple of Lapland buntings on the path. It was one of those occasions where you find yourself looking at a great bird through your bins without knowing quite how you became aware of the bird in the first place. Auto-birding!

Even hotter!

Dense banks of rotting seaweed in small secluded bays are my hunting grounds now that waders have started moving south. This one had three fantastic summer-plumaged adult curlew sandpipers this morning.

Nipped out pre-breakfast to avoid the heat of the coming day and to have another crack at Gröthögarna. Checked Hovs Hallar first though, hoping for a rosefinch (reported last week), nothing doing though did get a reasonable view of an icterine warbler. This species is widespread and vocal here but I see very few each year somehow.

Gröthögarna was the place though with a singing quail audible from the car park on arrival, calling from the field just inland, my first in Skåne! The harbour beach had a few waders; little ringed plovers (3), dunlin (4) and common sandpiper (8). Walking up towards the headland the first bay had my hoped-for curlew sandpipers (3 splendid adults), as well as dunlin (10), greenshank (1), wood sandpiper (1) and common sandpiper (4).

Drove home for breakfast and then took the team to the beach for a swim. I wandered along the beach to Stora Hult, a few waders here with more little ringed plovers (3), dunlin (7), greenshank (1), green sandpiper (1), wood sandpiper (1) and common sandpiper (2). The first 1K Sandwich terns of the year are on the wing. Managed a short spell at Ranarpsstrand too before I picked up the team. The highlight here was a close fly-by 2K hobby, winging south down the coastline. Also here wigeon (4) and goosander (7).