polecat (20140325)

Not how I hoped to find my first BK polecat... Dead on road at
Västra Karup.

Nipped out in the afternoon for a look around for firecrests again. On the way stopped for a dead polecat at Västra Karup, my first in Sweden and the first Artportalen record for BK.

It was bitterly cold in a NW wind at Yttre Kattvik and I saw no small birds of any kind. On my way round to Ripagården I stopped for a huge gathering of gulls following a plough and picked up four adult lesser black-backed gulls. At Ripagården things were slow but there were four white wagtails on the beach and two song thrushes in the plantation.

Swedish tick in BK!

This morning (another sun-drenched affair) we took our annual outing to Hallands Väderö, we had been on the island for all of 15 minutes when the phone rang, it was Martin Åkesson telling me that there was a hoopoe at Burensvik (back on the mainland and a much-wanted BK tick for me)...

En route to Torekov and the ferry to Hallands Väderö with Team Benstead I had a single house martin at Västra Karup, my first of the year. The mirror-calm sea allowed views across to Vinga Skär from the mainland before we got on the boat. Many auks loafing off the end of the island or standing about on shore, including guillemot (20), razorbill (20) and black guillemot (25). From the boat we had a close view of Vrenen which had a massive 70 black guillemot around it.

After an SMS from Martin Åkesson almost as soon as we got on the island, telling us of a hoopoe at Burensvik, we only had time for a walk up to the lighthouse and back along the Tångakärret trail before taking penultimate boat off the island. Hallands Väderö is a magical place, no doubt, and of course there must have been some mega lurking somewhere but we did not find it. Instead we enjoyed the clamour of the gulls, the spring bird-song, the 12 grass snakes sunning themselves along the edge of one of the pools and the glorious views and weather. There were few surprises but it was nice to see rock pipit (they vanish from the mainland in mid-April) and a woodcock flew past us near the lighthouse. I tried not to fret but it was great when the ferry hove into view and we could get back to have a crack at the hoopoe (after buying ice-creams...).

Håkan Johansson had kindly been keeping me updated on the hoopoe's movements and whilst flighty it sounded nailed down to a particular area. I arrived just as the gallery was starting to break up and everyone was drifting off back to their cars. They pointed me in the right direction and I snuck up on the bird. Fantastic and we all enjoyed the next hour and a half searching it out and watching it feed. A ring ouzel was calling occasionally from the juniper but I never saw it.

My first BK tick this year and what a beauty!