Hej everyone!

This is Johanna, one of the new volunteers that have arrived yesterday. It’s my third time at the station in Skagen now and I am very exited for the two weeks ahead. While Skagen welcomed us with sun yesterday evening, today started not bright. The rain and the storm made a count impossible, so we started the day a bit slower and then the three of us went for a long walk around the tip, where we saw some Sanderlings (Sandlober), a couple of hooded crows (Gramage)  feeding on a harbour porpoise cadaver, and of course some groups of gulls and cormorants (Skarv). We also saw two Merganser ( Toppet Skallesluger), Gannets (Sule), one Guillemot (Lomvie), and a Red throated diver ( Rødstrubet lom  ), as well as a group of Oystercatchers ( Strandskade). Besides we also found a dead Crested Grebe (Toppet lappedykker), a dead Guillemot (Lomvie) and a lot of dead seals.

What a surprise, we were the only persons walking at the beach today, and I always enjoy those walks where you are just surrounded by nature. Especially when you are walking around the tip, it is hard to imagine that it is flooded by tourists, not gulls, during the summer.

Seaweed fight at Grenen

In the afternoon the two other new volunteers arrived. Simon has been spotted before in Skagen, and having overwintered at the Wadden Sea he now migrated north. He was aided by some strong southernly winds and so arrived ahead of schedule. Magnus is from Danmark, so he hadn’t such a long travel to the station. He also brought some typical Danish cake for us, which was delicious.

In the evening, Simon K. and James decided to go out night catching and after half an hour they came back with a Rock pipit (Skærpiber)! We were all very excited, what a success! Now Mira, Simon and Magnus went out again for a second try. We will keep you updated!

Ringing (Ellekrattet):

Rock Pipit (Skærpiber) - 1

Total: 1

Today’s observations in Dofbasen from observers in the area

People: Mira Kieckbusch, James Wareing, Michael Anker, Simon Kiese, Magnus, Johanna Veentjer

The solitude of the lighthouse has been shattered by the arrival of the volunteers Johanna and Mira, the first newcomers of the spring. They have migrated north this spring from Kiel in Germany. The arrival of some company has of course been lovely, although it has led to me nearly losing my voice having not spoken so much for a long time. We have also discovered that the world of birding and birders is a typically small one, with it not taking too long to find links between us. What this does mean though, is that I can justifiably start eating the chocolate that the Autumn volunteers kindly left for the Spring team. Tomorrow two more volunteers will arrive and the lighthouse will suddenly be back to life.

Back to life was not what I felt like this morning when my alarm went at six to tell me to go birding. The wind and the rain could be heard from within my bedsheets and sitting at the beach was the last thing on my mind. I quickly sent a message to Knud asking whether perhaps the weather was too poor for birding. He was ever positive and assured me that the forecast would be rewarding. He was, as always, right and the rain soon abated, even to be overcome by sun towards the end of our stint. That Knud was also questioning his life choices when cycling through the rain was though reassuring to hear.

I was rewarded with two new birds for me, a Glaucous Gull (Gråmåge) and a Red-necked Grebe (Gråstrubet lappedykker), which I felt as the bare minimum payment for the courage to get going this morning. Other notable sightings were Iceland Gull ( Hvidvinget Måge) and Shag (Topskarv). The horizon was often quite misty so there are none of the usual ship sightings for me to needlessly digress onto. 

With us being treated tomorrow to an extra day of February, the weather forecast has taken this a little too literally and predicted rain and wind again. The forecast was sure enough for Knud and I to agree not to go birding, which I will be a little grateful for. The arrival of new volunteers means that the responsibility of the writing of the blog will be shared around, but I am sure you will not be too disheartened to hear that. I will be leaving Skagen reluctantly on Sunday so am looking forward to making the most of my final days here. 

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing, Knud Pedersen and Michael Anker

Michael has continued his ringing work with the results below:

28th February

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 5

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 14

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll) - 1

Musvit (Great Tit) - 1

Solsort (Blackbird) - 1

Blåmejse (Blue Tit) - 1

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 1

Total: 24

On Sunday, I took another day-trip outside of Skagen to the Råbjerg Mile, which is the largest moving dune in Northern Europe. Each year it moves by around 15m, gradually making its way towards Kattegat. It is quite a spectacle and most unexpected to find something akin to a desert. They used to be more common in the area and quite prohibitive to efficient agriculture given how much they can move, but the Danish government stepped in to control them. Råbjerg Mile was left and given conservation status to act as a demonstration of this natural phenomenon and I was grateful for it.

This week has also seen the return of Knud Pedersen from his short migration north to Norway. Knud holidays there every year, so his return is a reliable indicator of spring coming. The weather though disagreed and has remained stubbornly cold (around 2 degrees first thing in the morning). It was a pleasure to have my birding partner back and we have been out for three hours each morning this week.

Yesterday, we had just been talking about Walruses (Hvalros) and how rare a sighting they were here, when I spotted one on the horizon. Knud has this remarkable ability to talk about something and then see it. This was no ordinary Walrus though, but in fact a Dutch walrus-class submarine. This was as unexpected as it was exciting to find. Flying proudly above the submarine was a flag with red, white and blue colours. It is important to correctly establish the orders of these colours, as they are the difference between retreating hastily for the bunkers and casually watching on. Fortunately, they were Dutch (could have been Luxembourg, but instinct told me that landlocked countries probably do not have navies) and it happily cruised along the horizon with two men sitting on the top. They must have been undoubtedly cold but I imagine fresh air is at a premium for submariners and I like to imagine them as birdwatchers.

In terms of sightings of the avian variety, the most notable have been Shag (Topskarv), Black-throated Diver (Sortstrubet lom), Glaucous Gull (Gråmåge) and White-tailed Eagle (Havørn) - the last two unfortunately seen by Knud alone.

Today marks the last day that I will be alone at the lighthouse before the spring season volunteers join us. It therefore means the end of all those habits that one can get away with when living alone but they will of course be welcomed! I am of course looking forward to the luck that each new birder brings on their first trip out.

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing, Knud Pedersen, Michael Anker

Michael Anker has been busy ringing in the last three days, with the results below:

25th February

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 20

Musvit (Great Tit) - 1

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 28

Gulspurv (Yellowhammer) - 3

Blåmejse (Blue Tit) - 2

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 4

Total: 58

26th February

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 3

Gærdesmutte (Wren) - 1

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 26

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 2

Musvit (Great Tit) - 3

Blåmejse (Blue Tit) - 3

Rødhals (Robin) - 1

Total: 39

27th February

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 2

Blåmejse (Blue Tit) - 5

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 33

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll) - 1

Musvit (Great Tit) - 1

Total: 41

Good afternoon from sunny Skagen after a couple of days' radio silence (you can all stop worrying about me now). We were hit by a storm yesterday, producing winds of near 100km/h, so there was nothing of any note to report. I generally remained caved away other than for a brief run to town and back. Running against the wind, I was all but jogging on the spot, which much have looked as strange as it did foolhardy to the few onlookers in their cars. Having said that, the return with the wind on my back was a joy. When not at the lighthouse, I also displayed my troglodytic tendencies by spending some time in one of the old bunkers watching the waves crash in front of me. 'Fun' fact: 'Troglodytic', deriving from the Ancient Greek for cave dwelling, produces the scientific name of the Wren (Gærdesmutte) genus, as they tend to enter small crevices in their search for food. But I significantly digress...

My seawatching cave, no wrens were found here

Today was another beautiful Skagen morning for which its light deserves its reputation. I headed out to watch the seabirds and what they lacked in numbers, they made up for in variety. I believe, I may have seen an Iceland Gull (Hvidvinget måge), so I reached for my camera to get definitive proof. My camera had other ideas, telling me there was no SD card inserted. If there is a quality I do not like in people, it is lying. At least with people though, you can try to beat this with logic and proving them wrong. When inanimate objects lie, it is even worse. They are immune to logic, and no matter how hard I tried to persuade my camera that there really was an SD card inside, and it had actually used said SD card 10 minutes before, it remained steadfastly stubborn. Annoyed by this wanton and abject laziness, I returned to my scope to find the putative Iceland Gull had disappeared.  

The signs of spring are continuing to emerge (when the weather allows) and the Sky Larks (Sanglærke), were in full voice this morning. Green-winged Teal (Krikand) and Goldeneye (Hvinand) were notable passers by, while 6 Common Ringed Plovers (Stor præstekrave) dropped in. With the camera going on strike, we have to make do with a photograph of a plover through the scope itself...

Having declared Denmark Viking-free a few days ago, I was perturbed to find on the horizon the ship 'Magne Viking', which was heading on a course directly for Britain. I can only imagine its intentions...

If Celine is reading this post, good morning 

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing

After nearly a month of being here in Skagen, today was the first day that I ventured out further than a few kilometres. Having arrived in Denmark at night, I did not know what to expect from the rest of the country. Would it be just like Skagen or a land of febrile Vikings? But more of that later.

The day started with another beautiful full blue sky and so I decided to do a seawatch. The birds though, did not seem to have received the invitation and it was incredibly quiet. So I decided to change my plan and go for a walk instead. On my fourth attempt of trying to find the Common Kingfisher (Isfugl) that we ringed 10 days ago, I was still unsuccessful and with the slightly warmer weather it may have decided to move on. I look forward with hope to finding out where she goes next. 

There was a nice surprise of seeing two Common Cranes (Trane), potentially the pair that breed here. This, big movements of Jackdaws (Allike) and a seeming increase in the number of Common Blackbirds (Solsort), was definitely a sign of the seasons changing. There were also quite a few Crested Tits (Topmejse), which I always enjoy seeing. If ever a bird rock band was formed they would be one of the first names on the list. Either that or they look like me after I take my hat off after a long walk. 

In the afternoon Simon and I ventured out of Skagen. The primary reason was to see if we could find some 110 Ruddy Turnstones (Stenvender) that had been reported at Jerup Strand, but I also enjoyed to see more of the landscape here. We saw 5 (and no Vikings)....but it turned into a productive scouting mission for a potential future visit for catching and ringing birds. Snow Buntings (Snespurv), Common Ringed Plovers (Stor præstekrave) and Sanderlings (Sandløber) were also present so it may prove to be a productive spot. 

On the way back, we stopped off at the lovely Ålbæk harbour. This unfortunately produced nothing to report home on in terms of the birds and my vain attempts to find a Purple Sandpiper (Sortgrå ryle) are growing increasingly frustrating, leaving me only 11 days...Noting how short the time is left here is rather sad but I will endeavour to make the most of it before I am forced to move on. 

On that note, good night from Det Grå Fyr.

People: James Wareing, Simon S.Christiansen

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

I had the pleasure of being joined today by Ib Krag Petersen from Aarhus University for my Fulmar (Mallemuk) walk. Ib brought wonderful company but unfortunately no luck in finding fulmars. We did however find three more Common Guillemots (Lomvie) to collect for Ib to take back with him to the university for analysis. Again, Ib was aware of the rule that guests must bring the luck of new/exciting birds and, while not spectacular, we did see the Fuglestation's first Common Ringed Plover (Stor præstekrave) of the year.

The hunt still continues for a new left shoe for Simon S.Christiansen. I found the third right shoe in a row (perhaps the container was for a one-legged shoe shop...). The hunt is like a sequel to Cinderella, we know the person the shoe fits, we just need to find the shoe. I am not sure Disney will buy this script...

We did though find quite a few dead seals on the beach, including this blind one. Interestingly, research has shown that that seagulls target the eyeballs of baby seals to blind them and make them more vulnerable to further attacks. It could also be that it is a soft entrance point to get to the meat inside the body. 

A 5 hour walk also provided the opportunity for a lot of conversation (like a sugar rush to my system after the recent isolation). The expected topics came up between two birders from England and Denmark: exciting birds, conservation and Brexit. 

For once, Brexit talk did not sour the mood and we must have been having so much fun as we decided to walk back to the lighthouse after our 10km beach walk. This is where the adventure began as we took a cross-country route back home. Google Maps told us that there was a path, or maybe there once was a path, or maybe it just looked like a path...but it was not a path. There is no such thing as bad weather or conditions though, just the wrong clothing. I had the wrong clothing. As you can see from the photos below, it got a little wet. Ib resorted in the end to taking his shoes off and I resigned myself to some very cold feet. Regardless of the discomfort, we felt like heroic intrepid explorers and arrived back home having conquered the moor looking soaked and not so heroic.  

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing, Ib Krag Petersen and Michael Anker

Michael Anker continued his ringing efforts with the results below:

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 9

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 3

Gulspurv (Yellowhammer) - 3

Total: 15

Saturday may have been sandwiched between two days of rain and wind, but I am optimistically declaring the start of spring. Birds were signing, I saw my first bee, and there was even a small flock of 20 Mistle Thrushes (Misteldrossel) flying south. 

It was a day of Skagen at its best with its beautiful renowned light and blue skies a constant accompaniment as I spent nearly the entire day outside. I began with a Fulmar survey walking 10km along the beach from the lighthouse to Gammel Skagen. I had the pleasure of being joined by Alfred (he who brought us the waxwings). Alfred had very kindly made me a memento from this day (which you can compare (favourably) to my artwork below). Thank you, Alfred. 

Alfred's english was very impressive but at times communication was a slight hurdle. It was reassuring though to know that in most languages it seems that 'ah' and a finger point is well-understood as 'there is an exciting bird in that direction.' Occasionally though even finger pointing did not work so, inspired by my trip to Skagen Art Museum last week, I decided to draw on the sand to show Alfred where a Snow Bunting (Snespurv) was. Alfred took one look at my 'artwork', look even more confused and just found the bird himself.

The walk was for me a 'half-success'; we did not find any Fulmars (Mallemuk) but did instead find 4 Common Guillemots (Lomvie). We also found a right shoe in Simon Christiansen's size so the hunt is now on for the left one. For Alfred the day was an unqualified success with two new birds for him. If there is something more satisfying than finding a new bird yourself it may well be finding one for somebody else. We added to Alfred's already very impressive list with Black-legged Kittiwake (Ride) and Brant Goose (Knortegås). 

Birders young and old

In the afternoon, I took advantage of the lovely weather for another leisurely walk. There were not too many birds about, but I did see some Bullfinches (Dompap) rather close and there were 106 Greater White-fronted Geese (Blisgås) flying over.

Bulllfinch (Dompap)

Mute Swan (Knopsvane)

Just as I was nearing home I heard the squealing of a baby pig. Instinct told me that reedbeds were not the habitat of farmyard animals and that could only mean one thing, Water Rails (Vandrikse). This sound is as comical as they are hard to find, so I enjoyed 20 minutes scanning the reeds to catch a glimpse of them. In my excitement at a movement from a reed I inched forward a step too far and the water crept into both my walking boots. Despite me declaring it spring, the water has not warmed since my swim last weekend, but birding is not about glamour but the glory of finding exciting birds. Unfortunately, I left without either glamour or glory....

Whether returning back with glamour, glory or neither, it does not matter when you can call here home

Link to today's observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing, Alfred Godsk Geckler and Michael Anker

Michael Anker also continued his ringing efforts with the results below:

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll) - 1

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 12

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Nordlig Gråsisken (Common Redpoll) - 15

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 3

Kvækerfinke (Brambling) - 1

Total: 32

The day started with a rather quiet seawatch. The fog was persistent on the horizon and did its best to hide whatever was out there. I could only let my imagination conjure up Albatrosses, Shearwaters and Eagles, but for the checklists they apparently do not count. Alas, instead I was left with a few Common Guillemots (Lomvie), Common Scoters (Sortand) and Common Eiders (Ederfugl). 

This was perhaps the first red flag that it may not be the best day for birding

We had the pleasure of another visitor to the station today, with 11 year-old Alfred joining Simon and me to go and feed the gulls. Birding is usually the domain of the slightly greyer haired (I am allowed to say that with my own silver streaks multiplying by the day), so to have someone as young as Alfred to keen was a pleasure. The gulls came eagerly to the food but none of them unfortunately had a ring. A desperate search of every corner of the harbour to find something to impress Alfred with could only yield a Little Grebe (Lille lappedykker). They are a nice little bird but not one to write home (or a blog post) about. 

Alfred though was clearly well aware of the tradition that new visitors bring special birds and he left his surprise until the end. Skagen town centre is not usually the place where you are on the highest alert for birds, especially not outside Lidl, but fortunately a birder's eyes are never at rest. In a non-descript tree by the side of the road were 36 Bohemian Waxwings (Silkehale). I have already called a few birds cool, so have not left myself much room for literary manoeuvre, but these birds are really cool.

I have only seen them once before, as they only make it to the south of England (where I am from) every ten years or so. They tend to come in big groups, raiding fruit trees for a few days/weeks and then moving on. What I particularly like about them, aside from their appearance, is that they can turn up in the most random locations. You rarely need to go to a nature reserve or a field in the middle of nowhere to see Waxwings. Instead they are quite happy turning up in car parks, city centres and front gardens. We were delighted and spent a pleasurable 15 minutes watching them feed before they flew away in the direction of the cemetry.   

One very happy young birder

A birder photographing a birder, who is photographing a birder, who is photographing a bird

Alfred continued to make us feel old, by documenting our sightings on his Instagram page. Meanwhile, I am sitting here in the analogue age, writing a blog post that may or may not be read by my mum and a few Skagen Fuglestation diehards. Anyway, as I often tell my dad, there are few things worse than an old man trying too hard to be young, so I shall stay loyal to my blog. 

Michael Anker gave an effort in ringing birds in the misty weather.

Link to todays observations from observers in the area

People: James Waering, Alfred Godsk Geckler and Simon S. Christiansen, Michael Anker

Ringing (Jennes Sø):

Musvit  (Great Tit) - 1

Ringing (Nordstjernevej):

Grønirisk (Greenfinch) - 6

Bogfinke (Chaffinch) - 1

Stor Gråsisken (Mealy Redpoll) - 2

Total: 10

Could there be anything more romantic on Valentine's Day than going birding before coming back home to a candlelit dinner? When I add that this is all alone, I struggle to think of an alternative and I am sure my partner would agree...I have been kept company over the past two days instead by the birdies of Skagen, who were starting to come out in higher numbers as the snow melts away. 

I started the day with a seawatch, overlooking what seemed like more of a pond than a winter sea. This certainly makes for more pleasurable birdwatching as birds do not appear for a second before disappearing behind a wave for the following 15 seconds. The only observation of note was a Long-tailed Duck (Havlit), which was 'showing well' in the parlance of birders. Fittingly for today there was also a Red-breasted Merganser (Toppet skallesluger) couple who wondered close to shore. They rarely stuck together though and often dived at different times, perhaps not yet in the spirit of the day. 

Mr Merganser, questioning his life choices

The weather brightened up yesterday afternoon showing Skagen in its full glory. I took advantage my going for a walk looking for some non-seabirds for a change. There were some nice finds, including a female Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Spurvehøg) and some Bullfinches (Dompap) who teasingly came close enough for photographs but insisted on a mesh of twigs in the foreground to blur them (perhaps they had artistic effect in mind). 

Mrs Sparrowhawk, alone this Valentine's Day

Mr Bullfinch, dressed for the occassion 

I also managed to get a photo of a bird that I very rarely do. This has nothing to do with it being rare, in fact the opposite, it is too common to often think it worth closely observing. There is also someone I know who will always appreciate a photo of a Common Woodpigeon (Ringdue) happy Valentine's Day....

Link to todays observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing

My solitude in the lighthouse was interrupted over the weekend by the visitor of a former volunteer Esben and his friend (also Esben). They were a pleasure to have here, bringing both lovely food and company.

There seems to be an unwritten law here that when a new birder comes, they bring luck on their first visit out. My first seawatch with Knud produced a Sooty Shearwater (Sodfarvet skråpe), so I was keen to find out what the Esbens could offer. We set out at night, armed with a net, thermal scope and flashlight to see what birds we would find. The thermal scope is a seriously cool piece of equipment, betraying the presence of any life by its body-heat. It feels almost like cheating! Within two minutes we had found a Common Kingfisher (Isfugl), and managed to catch it, place it in a bag in order to take it back and ring it.

This is only the third time the station has ringed a kingfisher and so we called Simon so he could come and take part. We met Simon with his car parked at the side of the road, as I (with only my eyes uncovered) handed him over the bag. If the police were observing, this would have seemed like the most obvious illegal activity and our explanation that it was only a bird would have been laughed at. Fortunately, the police are rarely to be seen here.

It was a real treat to take it back and measure and observe it closely. They are always a delight to see in the wild with their vibrant blue colours so to see one so close up was special. This female has been here since November and, if she does move on elsewhere, we are excited to see where she will turn up. As a side note, you can tell it is a female by the lower half of their bill which is orange (the male's is black). To remember, just think of it as lipstick. Another fun fact...the Danish, Dutch and German name for the Common Kingfisher literally translates as 'ice bird.' This is a bit of a misnomer though, as they can also be found as faraway (geographically and climatically) as Papua New Guinea. It is also a little strange given that they depend on getting their food from water, so when it is frozen, they have to go elswhere or starve...

The next day, the Esbens decided that what would be a really fun thing to do, would be to go for a quick dive into the sea. Always wanting to be a part of the culture I am in living in, I had no choice to agree. So we stripped down to shorts and ran barefoot across the snow into the water. I have a self-imposed rule that, whenever I go into the water, I have to be fully submerged for it to 'count.' I can report that it was 'fresh' (which means 3/4 degrees) but warmed myself with the knowledge that, according to Esben, it is 'good for the immune system.'

Unfortunately, the Esbens have now left, which means no more swimming, but I am very much looking forward to whatever luck and experiences the next visitors bring.

Link to todays observations from observers in the area

People: James Wareing and the Esbens

Ringing (Batteriskoven):

Isfugl (Kingfisher) - 1