misty morn

Horrible misty, drizzly morning but I got out for a little while. Checked Klarningen at dawn. Ducks are on the move and still using the site; mallard (77), teal (5) and a solitary pintail. Next stop was Eskilstorpsstrand, nice conditions on the sea for looking through the sea-duck but the visibility was rather poor. A close flock of 175 scaup was a treat though and in amongst them were three pochard (a real surprise) and about 35 tufted duck. Also here gannet (2), long-tailed duck (4) and Slavonian grebe (3).

back in the saddle

Been hard to get out of the office since I got back from two months abroad but got back into the field today and I am even back to blogging after a mostly moth-related hiatus! A first season of mothing became rather time-consuming!

Today I checked Påarps mal for water pipits but it was very windy from the SW and small passerines were difficult to pin down. Offshore there was a large concentration of gulls that proved to be mainly kittiwakes (at least 150), as awell as six gannets. Two dunnocks in the car park were a good reminder that temperatures were hovering near double figures in December!

To get out of the wind we headed for Båstad and enjoyed some mild December birding here too with white wagtail (2), wren (1), chiffchaff (1) heading up the notable passerines. In the harbour a kingfisher kept calling from a concealed perch. Offshore we had a flyby great northern/white-billed diver, that looked like the latter but I need better views for a BK first... As dusk approached a pre-roost gathering of hawfinches got into double figures here - my largest flock to date in BK.

As dusk approached we went for coffee at Klarningen to look for raptors. Nothing doing on the raptor front but there were still wildfowl on site, although nothing exciting.

more mothing (20150607)

18 species of moth greeted me in the trap at Rosentorp this morning, probably my most diverse catch to date and including four lifers. A quick look at Klarningen later produced very little of note.

 This morning's catch included my first flame shoulder (Ochropleura plecta)

and my first white ermine (Spilosoma lubricipeda).

marsh warbler (20150604)

Managed to get to Klarningen today for a sniff around. A hobby and Martin Ekenberg greeted me on site but otherwise the short session was notable for me finally getting marsh warbler on my year list. Afterwards Number 2 and I headed to Eskilstorpsdammar for a look around. We were hoping for a diurnal snatch of grasshopper warbler song but had to make do with more marsh and reed warblers. The highlight for me though was my first Mother Shipton (Euclidia mi)!

avocet twitch (20150531)

Nipped out briefly to Klarningen when Mats discovered a pair of avocet on site.  Only my second record at Klarningen, the first bird did not stick around presumably due to a lack of prey. But these birds (like the godwits earlier in spring) were obviously finding stuff to guzzle.

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.

pm session

Had a look around on the hill this afternoon, bumping into two pairs of crane, a spotted flycatcher (year-tick) and three whopper swans. A quick look into Klarningen produced a lifer red fox for Number 1. Also here hobby (2), shoveler (20), ruff (5), little ringed plover (2) and lots of swifts (at last!).

micro magic

Found this little micro (and I mean little) in the garden settled on a Salix leaf near our big birch trees. Apparently an Ectoedemia occultella, a leaf-miner on birch. May saw me start to pan-list in earnest and I have got my BK list to 544 already! What will the total be by the end of the year?

Spent most of the day in and around the house. Lunch time found me prowling the garden for my first Ectoedemia occultella - a really dinky micromoth. An afternoon session with Number 1 had us searching the beech woodland at Tvehöga for the singing red-breasted flycatcher. No sign but great to hear the wood warblers here. A quick look at Klarningen produced three ruff, two wood sandpipers and a common sandpiper. Recently-hatched goldeneye fluffies were on the water and a pair each of shoveler and gadwall were of note.

quick Klarningen (20150514)

A quick fifteen minute session at Klarningen revealed just a pair of shoveler and a scouting adult white-tailed eagle.

double shift (20150507)

I did a quick morning look-in at Klarningen and bagged a few year-ticks. I love this time of year. A scan though the waders produced two Temminck's stint, two wood sandpiper, a greenshank and a common sandpiper. In amongst the swirl of hirundines halted by the cool conditions were at least five sand martins. In the UK sand martin was always the first hirundine on my year-list each year but here it has been the last every year...

In the cool and blustery evening I returned to Klarningen chasing Martin E's great snipe from last night, whilst I waited for dusk I enjoyed a nice session. A crane greeted me on the access track. The female merlin was still buzzing about. A pair of gadwall and shoveler were on site and a few water rails were squealing in the Juncus. Two greenshank and a glorious summer-plumaged spotted redshank fed in front of the tower. Eventually and just as I was starting to feel despondent the great snipe broke into song. Nice.

Not said much about my mothing on the blog, just finished my first month of light-trapping and the learning curve has been very steep. I will start posting the best-looking species soon when it gets a little calmer. This scarce prominent (Odontosia carmelita) fell to my mobile UV trap at Bränneslätt after dark. A great looking species.

On the way home I snoozed in the car at Bränneslätt whilst my mobile UV moth trap did some work. An hour-and-a-half was enough to net me a new moth - two splendid scarce prominents (Odontosia carmelita).

sylvias (20150505)

Hit the coast today trying to catch up on the flush of migrants that have come in whilst I was away. First up was a wander around Öllövsstrand, where I quickly mopped up the three common Sylvia warblers and got a bonus pair of grey partridge to boot.

Påarps mal next and the expected pair of little tern were available and a greenshank flew past. Also here a few yellow wagtails and a common sandpiper.

In the afternoon either side of a meeting with my accountant I checked Klarningen (nice female merlin and 13 wood sandpipers in 15 minutes) and Petersberg (low water here produced a single green sandpiper and the what's left of the reedbed had a singing reed warbler).

back on patch

After travelling home overnight from Corfu I was feeling a bit groggy but managed to get out for 40 minutes at Klarningen. Lots of new stuff in - a singing wood sandpiper was a first and also here 15 ruff, two spotted redshank and a handful of yellow wagtails. Five gadwall were present too.

stonechat revisited

A trip to Klarningen was always part of the plan today as I did my rounds of chores. So I was well pleased when I got an SMS an hour before I was due there that a stonechat had been found on site. Bonus. I missed Jan's bird on the 9th and then the site was burned which must have put the bird off somewhat.

An adult white-tailed eagle had a good go at catching something right in front of the tower today at Klarningen.

Sure enough on arrival the tower had residents and they quickly put me onto the stonechat sitting on a fence post in the southern part of the site. An hour-and-a-half here was very productive with more year-ticks in the shape of garganey (one male), willow warbler (1) and a whinchat (1, early record? I guess but the database is down for maintenance so I cannot easily check). Other birds included a hunting white-tailed eagle, green sandpiper (3) and a single wheatear. Nice session.

spring Arctic skua (20150418)

Had a great morning session which netted three year-ticks. Kicked off at Norra Ängalag and sat quietly to see what would fly by. There were plenty of fisherman disturbing the coastline but things were going past - the best bird being a splendid dark phase Arctic skua - a species I struggle with in the spring (usually because I am not here!). A singing male wheatear was new-in and a very welcome sight. Stuff was on the move overhead with a fairly constant trickle of passerines (siskin, pipits and wagtails) and even a kestrel. A single male gadwall dropped in at one point.

Next up was a look at Torekovs rev. Highlights here included the big flock of purple sandpipers (32), a single white-tailed eagle (2K) en route to the island and a migrating merlin (year-tick). Over at Vinga randy razorbills were a feature.

My first Cyphostephus tristriatus - a bug only found on juniper bushes with berries (if my Swedish translation was correct), that is where we found it anyway!

Later in the day we spent some time at Lya ljunghed beating bushes for invertebrates and found a great little jumping spider (Dendryphantes rudis) and a nice bug (Cyphostephus tristriatus) - the latter only found in junipers.

Last stop of the day was Klarningen - a few new birds in including four shoveler and at least seven swallows. Best of the rest included a green sandpiper and new total of five ringed plovers.

wet

Fifteen minutes was all I could stand in the tower at Klarningen in the early afternoon. The weather was atrocious and in the short time I was there nothing unusual appeared. One little ringed plover was the highlight in amongst the usual suspects.

more migrants

An SMS that there were two black-tailed godwit at Klarningen got me moving at midday for a quick look. Sure enough on arrival they were guzzling away in the eastern pool. Also here my first little ringed plover of the year, a massive 16 redshank and a green sandpiper. Nice one.

Later in the day I nipped out to Båstad to chase Sandwich terns and got a look at two feeding offshore. Lots of great looking summer plumage grebes in the bay too with five great cresteds, eight red-necked and at least 16 Slavonian grebes.

springtime (20150410)

Great weather at the moment so I got out of the house to have a look around. It felt good but I actually managed to connect with very little during the session. Checked the coast between Torekov and Rammsjöstrand at various points hoping for some migrant passerines. Plenty of chiffchaff singing and dunnock have arrived in force too but not much else.

Otherwise highlights for this section of coast were a huge flock of 36 purple sandpiper (Torekovs rev), five scaup south (off Påarps mal), more green sandpipers (2) and a crossbill overhead at Burensvik. I had singing rock pipits at two locations, have I never noticed this spring phenomenon before or have the stayed later than usual [rock pipit does not breed on mainland BK but perhaps offshore on Hallands Väderö most years].

Having dealt with a family emergency over lunchtime we were back in the field in the afternoon briefly with a moorhen on the pools at Lindab in the village being my only year-tick of the day somehow! Checked Klarningen - for four shoveler and a green sandpiper and that was my day.

stoner

Hit Lya Ljunghed straight after the school-run this morning hoping for Jan's stonechat. No sign of the little fellah but I had a nice hour-and-a-half here with flyover redpoll (1), hawfinch (1) and crane (2). A great grey shrike was still in attendance and my first displaying snipe of the year was in the air. Chiffchaffs have definitely arrived with at least three males here. A crossbill called briefly.

Checked Klarningen on the way home. Things rather quieter here than of late with many of the wildfowl having pushed on. But I did get a nice male marsh harrier for the year and heard an elusive green sandpiper. Others included curlew (6), redshank (7), snipe (2) and stock dove (1).

out on the moss

Checked Klarningen in the morning. The usual suspects in attendance; shoveler (3) and pintail (male), plus a nice female hen harrier loafing about. Spent another four hours mooching about Älemossen. Not many birds but good to hear about the restoration project planned here. We left the site after a good walk with just two long-tailed tits and four bullfinch noted.

another 20 minutes

I seem to be specialising in very short sessions in the field at the moment. Twenty minutes at Klarningen at least netted me a year-tick though in the shape of three shoveler. Only other notable species was pintail (1). Driving north I was disgusted to get hen harrier (ringtail) and rough-legged buzzard from the motorway just off-patch at Skottorp!