Michael and Zach, later joined by Simon, headed ringing at Kabeltromlen while Lauren and I headed south for a day of observations. They had an excellent morning at Grenen, catching 45 birds of 14 species including an unexpected adult, female Lille Korsnæb (Common Crossbill) and the first two juvenile Topmejse (Crested Tits) of the year- both of which were new species for Zach and Michael! Simon also finished the collection of blood samples which will be sent away to be tested for West Nile Virus.

Adult, female Lille Korsnæb (Common Crossbill).

" juvenile Topmejse (Crested Tits).

Lauren and I started observations at Buttervej where the morning was initially rather slow. We soon headed further south to Storklit where we spent a further 6 hours raptor watching. The heat haze and blue sky made observations challenging however throughout the time we saw 56 Hvepsevåpe (Honey Buzzards) (which I believe is the highest single day count of this species this year), 2 Havørn (White-tailed Eagles), 5 Fiskeørn (Osprey), a resting Duehøg (Goshawk) and 1 Blå Kærhøg (Hen Harrier). Despite the good number of Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzards), we were slightly disappointed, as we packed up, to have not seen any ‘rare’ eagles which we had hoped might come with the warm weather and drifty south-easterlies.

As we were cycling home on the road north of Flagbakken, I spotted a distant, small kettle of raptors which I decided to get off my bike and check. I couldn’t believe it when I laid eyes on a large eagle- a Steppeørn (Steppe Eagle)! We had good views of this 2k bird which we then chased on our bikes towards Saftevandsbakken. This is the same individual which was seen a week prior, which we had actually missed as we had been visiting family in London, and so we were thrilled to finally get the chance to see this species!

A full list of today's observations can be found here.

Skagen Fuglestation: Michael Colley, Zach Pannifer, Dante Shepherd & Lauren Evans

Kabeltromlen Ringing Totals:

Tornsanger (Common Whitethroat)- 3

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat)- 2

Gransanger (Chiffchaff)- 1

Rødrygget Tornskade (Red-backed Shrike)- 1

Løvsanger (Willow Warbler)- 4

Topmejse (Crested Tit)- 2

Solosrt (Blackbird)- 1

Lille Korsnæb (Common Crossbill)- 1

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler)- 2

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler)- 1

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler)- 2

Munk (Blackcap)- 20

Havesanger (Garden Warbler)- 3

Bogfinkne (Chaffinch)- 2

Total: 45

Michael and I left the station at 3am to have the nets at Kabeltromlen for sunrise. We had a much better morning than the mainly empty nets of the last few days, catching 38 birds, over half of which were Munk (Blackcaps). We also re-trapped a Rørsanger (Reed Warbler) which had been ringed at Grenen as a first-calendar year bird in 2017 making it 6 years old! This individual has therefore migrated to Africa and back 6 times and considering the average lifespan for this species is 2 years, this was quite a remarkable bird.

6 year old Rørsanger (Reed Warbler) caught at Kabeltromlen.

Zach joined Michael and I at Kabeltromlen for morning observations whilst Dante headed south to Storklit for raptor watching. The highlights of the day included 35 Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzards), 2 Fiskeørn (Osprey), 1 Sortklire (Spotted Redshank), 1 singing Hvidklire (Greenshank) and 1 Ringdrossel (Ring Ouzel). The afternoon consisted of data entry and shopping for Zach and Michael whilst I birded the east coast where my highlights were 5 Kærsanger (Marsh Warblers), 2 Gulbug (Icterine Warblers) and a Crested Tit (Topmejse).

In the evening, Dante gave us all an informative lecture on his area of expertise- identification of rare, vagrant gulls. We also said goodbye to our guests Jens & Jane from the apartment.

Dante giving his lecture on rare gull identification.

A full list of today's observations can be found here.

People: Michael Colley, Zach Pannifer, Dante Shepherd, Simon S. Christiansen & Lauren Evans

Ringing (Kabeltromlen):

Solsort (Blackbird)- 1

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler)- 4

Tornsanger (Common Whitethroat)- 3

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat)- 1

Gransanger (Chiffchaff)- 1

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler)- 4

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler)- 1

Gærdesmutte (Wren)- 1

Bogfinke (Chaffinch)- 1

Havesanger (Garden Warbler)- 1

Munk (Blackcap)- 19

Total: 38

Today’s weather was a bit windy, we thought of waiting a bit longer before we opened the nets this morning in case of fog, but we later change our mind to continue to do an early start. Lauren and Michael had opened the net at kabeltromlen for sunrise.The ringing was a bit quiet because they were less birds flying, because the wind was strong that we could not open some of nets that are in the open and we were later joined by the guests at the station apartment Jane and Jens with some of the board members of the Skagen observatory.We had 16 birds of 6 species, which was not a busy day, and we had our second Jay (Skovskade). Simon had a meeting with the board members at the station.

People: Dante Shepherd, Lauren Evans, Michael Colley, Zach Pannifer & the Board of The Bird Observatory

Zack and Dante were out this morning for the morning observation. Highlights from the morning observations and raptor counting with a Mantague's Harrier as the best.

Honey Buzzard / Hvepsvåge 31

Serin / Gulirisk 1

Black Redstart / Hus Rødjert 1

Redstart / Rødsjert 3

Montagus Harrier / Hedehøg 1

Observations ind Dofbasen registred by observers in the area

Ringing (Kabeltromlen)

Skovskade / Jay 1

Sangdrossel / Song thrust 1.

Munk / Blackcap 5

Tornsanger / Common Whitethroat 4

Bonfinke / Chaffinch  4

Gærdesanger / Lesser Whitethroat 1

Total: 16

This morning Lauren and Michael went ringing whilst Dante and I split up for observations. The strong easterly wind meant that ringing was quiet, with a total of only 16 birds. Observations were slightly better but the highlight of the morning went unidentified - a small Shearwater (Skråpe sp.) species flew fast west on the horizon. A low flying Black Kite (Sort Glente) was also nice to see. In the evening I went out to look for the American Black Scoter that Dante had found the other day. I could not find it but I did have an Osprey migrate out towards Sweden.

Highlights from today's observations: Mallemuk (Fulmar) - 2, Sort Glente (Black Kite) - 1, Rødrygget Tornskade (Red-backed Shrike) - 1, Grå Fluesnapper (Spotted Flycatcher) - 1, Lille Korsnæb (Crossbill) - 40, Fiskeørn (Osprey) - 1

Link to today's full observations here.

People: Dante Shepherd, Lauren Evans, Michael Colley, Simon S. Christiansen, Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe & Zach Pannifer

White Wagtail (Hvid Vipstjert) by Zach Pannifer

Ringing (Kabeltromlen):

Sangdrossel (Song Thrush) - 1

Solsort (Blackbird) - 2

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler) - 1

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat) - 1

Rødhals (Robin) - 1

Landsvale (Swallow) - 1

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler) - 3

Løvsanger (Willow Warbler) - 1

Tornsanger (Whitethroat) - 2

Munk (Blackcap) - 3

Total - 16

Another day dawned with a mysterious fog that had descended the previous evening, but like the resilient birds we study, we patiently awaited the opportune moment to venture out for another day of ringing and observation.

Accompanied by a buzzing entourage of mosquitoes, Michael, Zach, and I headed over to Kabeltromlen. The mistnets welcomed more birds than it did yesterday, surpassing yesterday's count. Among them were an Icterine Warbler (Gulbug) and a Song Thursg (Sangdrossel). Amidst the flurry of feathers, Troels brought the team Danish pastries to share, energizing us for what’s to come. nthusiasts in Skagen. After capturing photographs of the Nightjar, we released it onto a neighbouring tree branch, where it blended back into its surroundings.
Misty Morning

As the ringing session approached its end, Simon's heard the call of a Nightjar (Natravn), setting our pulses racing with anticipation. Zach and I went about our rounds, until we heard it call again, and with a sense of urgency finished the round, ready to look out for the mysterious guest. Zach found it camouflaging itself as an ordinary branch, where it flew straight into the nets. Simon livestreamed the moment on Facebook, sharing the experience with bird enthusiasts in Skagen. After capturing photographs of the Nightjar, we released it onto a neighbouring tree branch, where it blended back into its surroundings.

Nightjar (Natravn)

People: Jakob Bjarkholt, Michael Colley, Simon S. Christiansen, Toh Ying Ying, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer, Lauren Evans, Dante Shepherd, Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe

Link to observations in Dofbasen from observers in the area

Ringing (Kabeltromlen)

Natravn (Nightjar): 1

Sangdrossel (Song Thrush): 1 

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler): 1

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler): 4

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler): 1

Tornsanger (Common Whitethroat): 3

Munk (Blackcap): 2

Bogfinke (Chaffinch): 1

Total: 14

We woke this morning to a heavy blanket of fog which had rolled in off the sea overnight. Michael, Ying, and Lauren (later joined by Simon, Jakob, and Oluf) still headed to Kabeltromlen for ringing but had a very slow morning with only 11 birds, including 4 Kærsanger (Marsh Warblers). After 4.5 hours of few birds and many mosquitoes, the fog still hadn’t cleared so they decided to close the nets and head back to the station to get on with other tasks.

Few birds at the ringing site meant lots of time for artisitc photos of the many spider webs!

Zach attempted to undertake morning observations from Kabeltromlen however the sea fog meant he couldn’t see more than a few metres in front of him! I headed out to join Troels at the Aarhus University radar station. On the way, I decided to have a quick scan of the 2000+ Sortand (Common Scoter) resting off the tip and was pleased to pick out a distant Amerikansk Sortand (Black Scoter) in the flock- likely the same bird that was seen c10km down the coast 9 days prior. Migration was rather slow, although there were still a few Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzards) attempting, and most birds turned back when seeing the fog still lingering on the horizon. In the afternoon, Lauren and I headed out to Skarvsøen to see the Drosselrørsanger (Great Reed Warbler) found a few days ago and we were lucky enough to see it perched high in a bush singing.

A full list of today's observations can be found here.

Skagen Fuglestation: Jakob Bjarkholt, Michael Colley, Simon S Christiansen, Toh Ying Ying, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer, Lauren Evans, Dante Shepherd, Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe

Kabeltromlen Ringing Totals:

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler)- 4

Munk (Blackcap)- 2

Tornsanger (Common Whitethroat)- 2

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat)- 1

Gærdesmutte (Wren)- 1

Bogfinke (Chaffinch)- 1

Total: 11

Today was mine and Dante’s first day back in Skagen after a brief trip back to London. Ying and I started the morning at 02:45am (which was a bit of a shock to the system after a week off!) by heading to Kabeltromlen to have the nets open for sunrise. We were later joined by Simon, Jakob and our guests Jane and Jens, and had an excellent morning of 69 birds including another male Kernebider (Hawfinch) and 18 Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler) which is our highest catch of this species in one day this year so far. Throughout the morning, Simon was also taking blood samples from trans-Sahara migrants to test for West Nile Virus which was interesting to watch.

Male Kernebider (Hawfinch) at Kabeltromlen.

Skovpiber (Tree Pipit) caught at Kabeltromlen.

Zach headed up to World’s End for morning observations where the highlights included 1 Pirol (Golden Oriole), 1 Serin (Gulirisk), 1 Karmindompap (Rosefinch) and 15 migrating Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzards). Michael and Dante headed out to the Aarhus University radar station at the tip to join Troels for the day. They managed to measure the flight height of numerous Canadagås (Canada Geese), Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzards) and a Lærkefalk (Hobby).

Further south, Knud found a Slangørn (Short-toed Eagle) although unfortunately, none of the station team managed to see the bird.

A full list of today's observations can be found here.

Skagen Fuglestation: Jakob Bjarkholt, Michael Colley, Simon S Christiansen, Toh Ying Ying, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer, Lauren Evans, Dante Shepherd, Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe

Kabeltromlen Ringing Totals:

Kernebider (Hawfinch)- 1

Solsort (Blackbird)- 1

Skovpiber (Tree Pipit)- 1

Munk (Blackcap)- 18

Tornsanger (Common Whitethroat)- 3

Gransanger (Chiffchaff)- 1

Løvsanger (Willow Warbler)- 9

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler)- 3

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler)- 18

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler)- 5

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll)- 3

Rødstjert (Redstart)- 1

Gærdesmutte (Wren)- 1

Havesanger (Garden Warbler)- 3

Total: 69

What a thrilling day back in Skagen, greeted by beautiful clear skies this morning. I joined Esben, Michaeland Jakob for ringing at the CES site. The melodious Great Reed Warbler from yesterday was still singing by the Cormorant Lake and this avian celebrity emerged from the lush foliage towards the end of the ringing session. There were many cuckoos calling and flying around the site, and an uncommon brown morphed (likely female) cuckoo! We ringed a Blackbird and some Marsh/Reed Warblers along with other familiar species. A Reed Warbler was also caught with an egg in tow, which was swiftly released after banding and weighing her to return to her nest.

Over at radar and observations, Troelse, Lisa, Zach, Jane, and Jens had an eventful day, with a Black Kite, Red Kite, Ospreys, Sparrowhawks, and both the Black and Red Throated Diver. Bird migration is in its full bloom now, with many Honey Buzzards filling up the skies within the first two hours, also counted an astonishing flock of ten migrating towards the North. And then, in an unexpected twist, a Steppe Eagle arrived and captivated many for a half-hour, becoming the crowning glory of the day, a true feast for the eyes and the envy of every birder present.

People: Esben Hansen, Jakob Bjarkholt, Lisa Vergin, Michael Colley, Simon S Christiansen, Toh Ying Ying, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer, and our guests Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe

Ringing Total (CES):

Solsort (Blackbird) - 1

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler) - 1

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler) - 17

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat) - 6

Today's Observation:

Steppeørn (Steppe Eagle) - 1

Sort Glente (Black Kite) - 1

Rød Glente (Red Kite) - 1

Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzard) -27

Havørn (White-Tailed Eagle) - 2

Ringdrossel (Ring Ouzel) - 1

Stenpikker (Wheatear) - 1

Sortstrubet Lom (Black Throat Diver) - 2

Full list of observations entered in Dofbasen by Observers in the area

This morning I headed to World's End to start observations at 04:30. The first hour was pretty quiet - nothing seemed to be happening out to sea and not much was migrating over land, other than a Spotted Flycatcher (Grå Fluesnapper) that flew over heading south. Then as some fairly thick fog rolled in from the southwest a Great Northern Diver (Islom) flew north west and a Hobby did some hunting too. I then decided to leave World's End and relocate to Kabeltromlen and join Michael, Lisa and Esben so that I could watch some of the ringing whilst the fog made visibility poor for observations. I timed it pretty well because the round they did just after I arrived produced a stunning male Red-backed Shrike (Rødrygget Tornskade), which I had the privilege of also being able to hold before it was released. I also had my first attempts at extracting some birds from the nets with the help of Lisa. I also ringed four birds for some more practice durig the slower rounds. Troels also joined us to take some more blood samples testing for West Nile Virus together with Simon.

Rødrygget Tornskade (Red-backed Shrike) by Zach Pannifer

Once we had closed all the nets Simon and Lisa took me to listen to a singing Great Reed Warbler (Drosselrørsanger) by the Cormorant Lake. This was my first time checking out the lake and so I also saw my first ever Red-necked Grebes. On the way back to the observatory we took an opportunistic stop for the Blyth's Reed Warbler (Buskrørsanger) that had just been found by Troels. Whilst out Michael cleaned the observatory and then we both enjoyed a much needed nap mid-afternoon.

Highlights from the field:

Islom (Great Northern Diver) - 1

Hvepsevåge (Honey Buzzard) - 3

Lærkefalk (Hobby) - 1

Rødrygget Tornskade (Red-backed Shrike) - 2

Ringdrossel (Ring Ouzel) - 2

Nattergal (Thrush Nightingale) - 1

Drosselrørsanger (Great Reed Warbler) - 1

Buskrørsanger (Blyth's Reed Warbler) - 1

Full list of observations entered in Dofbasen by Observers in the area

Ringing (Kabeltromlen):

Rødrygget Tornskade (Red-backed Shrike) - 1

Grå Fluesnapper (Spotted Flycatcher) - 1

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler) - 9

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler) - 5

Løvsanger (Willow Warbler) - 6

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll) - 2

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat) - 2

Rødstjert (Redstart) - 1

Munk (Blackcap) - 10

Rørspurv (Reed Bunting) - 1

Bogfinke (Chaffinch) - 4

Tornsanger (Whitethroat) - 1

Havesanger (Garden Warbler) - 2

Total: 45

People: Esben Hansen, Lisa Vergin, Michael Colley, Simon S Christiansen, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer, our guests Jane & Jens Peter Brenøe. 

The day started well an early morning ringing session, where the nets where open by 4:30am at Kabeltromlen and we were later joined by Simon,We had a positive session with 72 birds of 14 species, it was marsh Warbler day with 15 marsh warbler/ kersanger and it was a nice day of ringing  with many species where recorded, we had had the first grey wagtail for the spring.

Troels was also at the ringing site taking blood samples on birds from africa for West Nile virus.

My experience of the day was, i had two new species on my in-hand list which were Hawfinch and Grey Wagtail, where the opertunity to able to age them all, then that has added to my ringing experience. Zach was on observations but also based at Kabeltromlen for the day and so helped out a bit with taking photos from the ringing when needed.  After a longday of ringing and birding, Simon and Lisa cookd us a delicious dinner.

 Kernebider (Hawfinch) by Zach Pannifer

People: Lisa Vergin, Michael Colley, Simon S Christiansen, Troels Eske Ortvad, Zach Pannifer

Highlights from the field:

Sydlig Nattergal (Common Nightingale) - 1

Nattergal (Thrush Nightingale) - 1

Sort Glente (Black Kite) - 2

Havørn (White-tailed Eagle) - 1

Biæder (Bee-eater) - 1

Sortspætte (Black Woodpecker) - 1

Pirol (Golden Oriole) - 4

Karmindompap (Rosefinch) - 1

Gulirisk (Serin) - 1

A Greenish Warbler (Lundsanger), Bluethroat (Nordlig Blåhals) and River Warbler (Flodsanger) were also seen or heard by other birders in the area. Link to full list of observations here.

Ringing (Kabeltromlen):

Gransanger (Chiffchaff) - 1

Løvsanger (Willow Warbler) - 9

Kærsanger (Marsh Warbler) - 15

Rørsanger (Reed Warbler) - 2

Tornsanger (Whitethroat) - 5

Gærdesanger (Lesser Whitethroat) - 3

Havesanger (Garden Warbler) - 6

Munk (Blackcap) - 4

Gulbug (Icterine Warbler) - 7

Lille Gråsisken (Lesser Redpoll) - 10

Kernebider (Hawfinch) - 1

Rødstjert (Redstart) - 1

Rødhals (Robin) - 1

Musvit (Great Tit) - 1

Gærdesmutte (Wren) - 1

Skovpiber (Tree Pipit) - 1

Bjergvipstjert (Grey Wagtail) - 1

Bogfinke (Chaffinch) - 2

Total: 72