Bitterns and a bit Terns

Today´s observation started again with a beautiful sunrise. We started our count with six people. Eventually, more and more people arrived at World´s End 3. In the end we were more than ten. With the many eyes we found the young Glaucous Gull (Gråmåge) and far out a Fulmar (Mallemuk). We were also able to see two King Eiders (Kongeederfugl) in one scope view. The adult and the second-year male were sitting directly next to each other! After some days with very low raptor numbers, today we had some more migrating ones. Some species occured in high numbers today. For example several thousand Jackdaws (Allikes) and a thousand Gannets (Sule).

At the Cormorant Lake

In the afternoon Chris went shopping and the rest of us made a small trip to Skarvsoen, a pond with a cormorant colony. Luckily, we could be driven there by car, so it was convenient to reach the pond. The Cormorants (Skarv) were already in breeding mood and occupied the nests from the last year. Sadly, many of them were built with many plastic ropes.

The weather was very warm and sunny and we could watch the cormorants and enjoy their sunlit breeding plumage. The warmth also elicited the adders from their lairs and we were able to watch many of them. On the water swam a Red-Necked-Grebe (Gråstrubet Lappedykker), several Coots (Blishøne), Gulls (Måge), Teals (Krikand)…

A 3-headed adder

Lucas and Rasmus shortly went to Skagen. Mara, Cora and I decided to walk back to the station. On the walk we passed vivid Yellowhammers (Gulspurv) and startled an adult hen harrier male. That was good for applying what we had learned in Roman’s session about harrier identification.

In the night Lucas and Mara went out to catch Bitterns.

Highlights

• Our first Sandwich Terns (Splitterne) for the season
• 1 Bittern (Rørdrum) calling out of the reed
• 2 King Eiders (Kongeederfugl) in one scope
• 1 Glaucous Gull (Gråmåge)
• 6420 migrating Jackdaws (Allike)
• 983 Gannets (Sule)

Link to today's observations in Dofbasen in the Skagen area

Sum of the Raptors in the area based on observations typed into Dofbasen. 

People: Lucas Corneliussen, Simon Sigaard Christiansen, Cora Köberle, Janna Ouedraogo, Mara Glane and Rasmus Matthiesen-Juhl, Christopher Moser-Purdy, Knud Pedersen, Sebastian Klein, guests: Anne-Mette & Katrine