The ice melts

Whilst I was away at the weekend the ice melted on Maridalsvannet. This is early but despite it having been so dry the water levels are currently high so the lake doesn’t yet look that appealing. That being said though there have already been some good birds and maybe when the ice doesn’t melt until the end of the month as is often the case that means that a lot of birds are missed out on as they cannot splash down even if they wanted. Both species of diver are already back and their display calls ring around the valley. More impressively though has been the three , yes 3, species of grebes that have graced the lake. Following last years first ever record of Little Grebe in the Dale a bird in exactly the same place it was probably the same bird. Great Crested Grebe is more expected but a Slavonian Grebe hanging out with Teal is record early as this species normally passes through, and not annually, at the end of the month.

Raptors are still very thin on the ground but the first Osprey of the year turned up on Tuesday and a Peregrine was hunting in the valley today. Today also finally saw the first day with really good numbers of passerines on the (very dry) fields: Bramblings, Redwings and Meadow Pipits were the most numerous.

A real treat today was being able to listen to the calls of migrating Curlews and a flock of 6 really wanted to land but in the end gave up and flew north.

an ice free Maridalsvannet looking towards the south

my first Osprey (fiskeørn) of the year - a particularly well marked female

migrating Curlews (storspove)

Little Grebe (dvergdykker)

Slavonian Grebe (horndykker)

and the best picture of all, a Great Crested Grebe (toppdykker)...

there have been up to 10 Lapwing (vipe) on their favoured two fields and there are already two nests. Nest 1

Nest 2

Green Sandpiper (skogsnipe)

a Kestrel (tårnfalk) today and a Brambling (bjørkefink)

a young Peregrine (vandrefalk) that I saw three times today

Yesterday I thought I would see if Sørkedalen had anything more to offer and caught up with the plastic hybrid goose that has been around for a couple of weeks and a real piece of plastic had me for quite a few seconds thinking I had seen my first Ring Ouzel of the year…

what looks to be a hybrid Emporer x Barnacle Goose together with Pink-feet

showing leg colour

and I thought this was a Ring Ouzel...

Going on a Blyth’s Hunt

We are now entering a period with lots of rain and thunderstorms forecast which would normally get me excited but in mid-June in Oslo I think there is little that is likely to turn up other than a Gull-billedTern…

I have kept up my nocturnal outings in an attempt to increase #Oslo2024 and even visited Sørkedalen (as well as Maridalen) on Monday night when conditions were perfect but think I soon need to admit defeat. Marsh Warblers are the only birds I am finding although I did try quite hard to turn one into a Blyth’s although cooler heads (or ears) brought me back down to earth. I didn’t hesitate to follow up a report of one in Sørkedalen today although as I feared (being the bad twitcher I am) I failed to find it even though I got there only an hour later (and pictures leave no doubt as to it having been present😊)

 The GND is still on Maridalsvannet and seems to be making short work of the crayfish population. It is now possible to see three species of divers at the same time. The diver went missing on Sunday before I refound it on Monday at the southern end of the lake, around 3km from where it had been on Saturday. It is one thing though for a diver to go awol – they do after all dive - but not the Whooper Swan family which has just vanished. With such small cygnets they surely cannot have gone far but I have checked all likely sites in vain.

 I have managed to find where the Hobbies are breeding though which is a new site although I am not yet certain I have discovered which (Crows) nest they are using.

it really poured down today although the Great Northern Diver (islom) didn't seem to mind

although Monday's nocturnal outing failed to produce any exciting "night singers" I did hear Little Ringed Plovers on a field in Sørkedalen, coincidentally the last field in the valley to hold breeding Lapwings although that is now a few years ago. I visited the next day to find the farmer working on the field and found no plovers but today I located a pair although suspect that their breeding attempt had failed to the tractor.

the male

the female

and the male again

Hobby (lerkefalk)

this 2cy male Common Rosefinch (rosenfink) is the only bird I know of in Maridalen this year although in Sørkedalen there are quite a few. In the video you can hear this bird singing

Hawkie x 4

Since my last post on Sunday daily temperatures have fallen to -15C early in the mornings although they rise to a barmy -5C in the afternoons. There have been no major changes in the bird scene although my Pygmy Owl seems to have moved on to, as yet undiscovered, new pastures.

On Monday, my first downhill skiing trip of the winter at Oslo’s Wyllerløypa was enlivened by 4 Pine Grosbeaks seen from the chair lift. This is the second time I have seen them from the lift here and I have also chalked up Hawk and Pygmy Owl in the past. Pine Grosbeaks have been more or less absent from southern Norway this winter (following the mayor invasion last winter) so it was a real surprise to see them. I was back at the slope on Wednesday dropping off Jr Jr and a friend and I then went birding in Sørkedalen which gave me a Great Grey Shrike and Hawk Owl. I have also seen three different Hawkies in Maridalen this week aswell as the Great Grey Shrike so both of Oslo’s valleys are delivering the good this winter although it is only Maridalen that has overwintering Buzzards.

Today, in addition to some cool Water Rail action which I will blog about at a later date, I had a close encounter with a Sparrowhawk in the garden which took the Fieldfare that has been here for the last three weeks – one less species to worry about in this weekends Garden Bird count 😉

Sparrowhawk (spurvehauk) astride a Fieldfare (gråtrost) in the garden. By my reckoning the hawk is an adult female. The thrush is deceased...

Oslo Hawk Owl #1 (Maridalen west)

Oslo Hawk Owl #2 (Maridalen north)

Oslo Hawk Owl #3 (Maridalen East)

Oslo Hawk Owl #4 (Sørkedalen north)

the Sørkedalen bird. The sun is shining off apartments about 7km away

a couple of Nutcrackers (nøttekråke) were annoyed with Hawk Owl #1 on Monday

Sørkedalen

Yesterday I played away from home and visited Sørkedalen. The main target was a butterfly. Geranium Argus (brun blåvinge) is described as being widespread in Norway but is a species that has evaded my radar and in Oslo is only reported from Sørkedalen. With a sighting the day befre and it still being incredibly hot and sunny I thought it would be rather straightforward but that was unfortunately not the case. I was there around 11am and that was perhaps too early as there was very little butterfly activity and I didn’t see a Blue of any description. A reported Blyth’s Reed also disappointed when I could only find a Marsh in the same location. This bird was initially singing very slowly and much like a Blyth’s but hadn’t properly got going (as is often the case if they sing in the day) but once it got going (in response to me playing both Marsh and BRW song) then it became a normal Marsh Warbler. Hybrids are always a potential to be considered though.

Whilst sat in the car in a car park looking for butterflies along its edges I noticed a Common Sandpiper creeping through the vegetation. She eventually went to her nest which was surprisingly exposed and through the bins she could be seen panting in the heat.

In Maridalen the Three-toed Woodpecker young have hatched in the nest and were audible.

In the garden Blue and Great Tits were both still on eggs last week (a very late date). I saw fledging Blue Tits in the garden yesterday and went to check the nest boxes and found both abandoned. The Blue Tit box with 10 eggs and the Great Tit with 5. Reasons for abandoning are unknown but the heat may have played a role.

male Beautiful Damselfly (blåpraktvannymfe) - there are now a lot of these in Maridalen 

Common Sandpiper (strandsnipe)

and with bill open panting on the nest

Marsh Warbler (myrsanger)  - the long primaries with pale tips are visible as are the broad pale edges to the tertials

Heath Fritillary (marimjellerutevinge )

a rather strange male Common Rosefinch (rosenfink) with a white collar and moustache

one-toe Three-toe

Abandoned Blue Tit (blåmeis) nest

And abandoned Great Tit (kjøttmeis) nest. The Beast hair seems to have been used in the nest

And the typical 4 eggs of a Common Sandpiper all facing inwards