Valdres cabin weekend installment 3

This covers passerines excluding Siberian Jay and Cuckoo (if they count as passerines?)

There are not many passerines at altitude but Norway’s two commonest breeding species – Meadow Pipit and Willow Warbler are pretty much ubiquitous and Bluethroats, Wheatears and Yellow Wagtails are also pretty widespread. Shore Lark and Snow Bunting can be found high up and slightly lower down Lapland Bunting but we only had three birds this year and this species is in serious trouble in southern Norway.

male Bluethroat (blåstrupe) right outside the cabin

male Lapland Bunting (lappspurv)

they perform quite long display flights

Shore Lark (fjellerke)

the american name Horned Lark is very descriptive

male Snow Bunting (snøspurv)

female (Grey-headed) Yellow Wagtail (gulerle/såerle)

this Pied Flycatcher (svarthvit fluesnapper) was singing by a nestbox at the cabin in an area with few trees and bushes

Redstart (rødstjert) are fairly common in the mountain birch forest

this male Ring Ouzel (ringtrost) clearly already had young to feed which seems like a very early date

this singing 2cy male Common Rosefinch (rosenfink) at 940moh was definitely unexpected

A week of nothing

When it is mid May and I go a whole week without posting then I think you already understand that I am going to say it has been dire.

The hot, sunny weather continues and there just seem to be few birds. We have just a looong weekend with Friday being Norway’s national day and yesterday was a holiday in celebration of Pentecost (don’t ask me what that is…). We spent 3 days at the cabin at Hulvik which I had expected to provide loads of good birds but it didn’t for once. A nocturnal trip produced zero Nightjars or other interesting nocturnal birds (although it was a tad early in the spring there should have been more) and a sea gaze from before 5am in what were not bad conditions produced a single Red-throated Diver migrating north and that was it!!!!

I have added to my Oslo list with Reed Warbler #171, Redstart #172 and Common Rosefinch #173.

Rain that is forecast on Thursday night and Friday morning will if the bird gods are feeling generous produce floods of marsh terns, Little Gulls and hirundines….

3cy+ male Common Rosefinch (rosenfink)

finally Redstart (rødstjert)

male Red-backed Shrike (tornskate) in Maridalen

he had attracted a female and was dancing for her

male Whitethroat (tornsanger)

Hobby (lerkefalk) today

a Sparrowhawk (spurvehauk) trying to chase the Hobby away

an unexpected meeting with a Beaver in the middle of the day today

and even more unexpected was getting close to a fox that was feeding on a long dead Moose carcass in a river

Beitostølen summer 2023 Birds

The last week was spent as is tradition in Beitostølen. This year we had the company of Sr1 and Sr2 over from Blighty and it was definitely birding lite on my part although I did use a bit of time on butterflies when the weather allowed (which will be the subject of my next post).

It was 5 weeks since I was on Valdresflya with Conor and the hot June had caused all the snow to melt. It was still a late melt though and there were few birds to find with especially passerines such as Meadow Pipit and Wheatear as good as absent from the higher areas. One bird that was absent on our visit in June was Dotterel but I found an incubating male this time right by a path. In fact it was him would found me as he was suddenly, and silently, at my feet doing a distraction display. After walking on he quickly returned to his nest. I wanted to show him to the Seniors but could not find him when I returned (I had expected him to make himself known again) but Sr1 outdid himself by locating him on the nest and he did not once move whilst we watched him. I assume when there is more than one predator close to the nest that sitting tight and hoping the camouflage works is a better tactic than trying the distraction display.

Otherwise we had close encounters with Long-tailed Ducks which were taking insects off the water alongside Tufted Ducks and Teal.

The only raptors (or owls) of the whole week were singles of Kestrel and Merlin. The Merlin was clearly breeding and as a bird specialist it will be far less affected by the lack of rodents that causes the absence of other raptors.

Pied Flycatchers seemed to be very numerous with fledged young seen and a pair was feeding young in a box by our cabin and allowed me to witness the behaviour that I had hoped to watch in the garden this year. The male would feed within 20m of the nest box and found endless quantities of insects and his presence probably was the reason we could sit outside without being bothered by mosquitoes.

I paid just a quick visit to the Great Snipe lek to assure myself it was still in use (which it was) but did not take any pictures.

male Dotterel (boltit)

spot him?

male Long-tailed Duck (havelle)

female

female Merlin (dvergfalk)

male Pied Flycatcher (svarthvit fluesnapper) with a mouthful of food

with a moth

and a male Redstart (rødstjert) with a caterpillar that it was taking to a fledged youngster

we were used to the Pied Flys giving alarm calls whenever Magpies (skjære) were around but one morning it was the Magpies that were alarm calling and the reason was an Adder!