Ecorally diary from Sunday’s inter-city birdwatch

Diary kept by Tarvo
Photos: Arne Ader
Translation: Liis
Woodlark (Lullula arborea) on road
 
At 6.00 in the early morning a gang of sleepless people gather outside Haapsalu Kaubamajastore. People were divided into 3 teams and we tried to cover most of the city area. My companions were Kaia K., Marika M. and Hille V. At a moderate pace we set  our course towards Valgevälja to hear the inhabitants of the city border forests. Quite soon the local crane pair (Grus grus) let their duo call sound. Robins (Erithacus rubecula), wrens (Troglodytes troglodytes) and song thrushes (Turdus philomelus) were quite common. Just after 7 the first reward came – in the thicket at the ditch two hazel grouse (Tetrastes bonasia) whistled. At the edge of the clearing the woodlark (Lullula arborea) was singing. That doesn’t happen every year at the end of March. Many winter guests were also moving about – we saw a waxwing group of some twenty birds, redpolls were seen tens of times in the course of the morning.
 
But we did not leave the forest without setbacks. Although we had collected almost 40 species in less than 2 hours no raven showed up and of the woodpeckers we only could note the great spotted one. On such a beautiful morning we had at least hoped to meet the black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), quite common in these forests.
 
On approaching the water treatment plant already from far off the bellowing of the bittern (Botaurus stellaris) was heard  and at least three water rails (Rallus aquaticus) bawled without pause. A solitary lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) also flew over us – many early spring migrants already are in a hurry and this also remained the only observation among three teams in Haapsalu. It was compensated by the great number of dunnocks (Prunella modularis) jumping around among the shrubs. We didn’t hear the bearded tit (Panurus biarmicus) at the water treatment plant but already at the next stopping palce – at the birdwatching tower they twittered quite a number of times.
 
 Cranes
 
From the birdwatching tower we saw the crane migration that we had already noted at the water treatment plant. During a few hours we counted 127 migrating cranes in six flocks. Among ducks only the northern pintail was missing. Surprisingly no one of three watching teams saw it that day in Haapsalu – even more, the pintail was not seen in any of 21 cities (!).
 
At the promenade near the hotel we once more scanned birds. There were many white-tailed eagles in the air and finally we managed to see towards Noarootsi the only buzzard (Buteo buteo) of the day too. 70 species had been collected and more than an hour of the rally was left. We were still optimistic and at Väike viik quickly scurryingt ringed plovers (Charadrius hiaticula)  appeared – these waders were only seen that day in Haapsalu. Barnacle geese (Branta leucopsis) have been here for some time already and were registered in a matter of seconds at the holm. But where were the oystercathchers of Haapsalu? This early arriving migrant was only seen in Kärdla on Sunday.
 
At the Eeslahe a large flock of greater scaups (Aythya marila) could be seen but that was all there was. So we went round the bay back to the Tagalahe shore and in the last minutes of the rally got as the last species the shelduck (Tadorna tadorna). We insisted with the raven but that species couldn’t be caught. Later it turned out that it was a large error – the other two teams were also left without this species (for the first time in 13 years :)). But that is the charm of the bird rally – if time is restricted a quite common species can stay out of reach. As final score we got 73 species, with this the group with the longest species count in Haapsalu as well as the whole of Estonia. But with the early spring the success of the coastal cities was in all ways to be expected.
 
From the other teams the black redstart, meadow pipit (Anthus pratensis), red-breasted merganser (Mergus serrator), mistle thrush (Turdus viscivorus), coal tit ( Parus ater) and goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis) were added. Thus the Haapsalu score was 79 species and because of the missing raven we had to be satisfied with repeating the best result until now (from 2008). Although our advantage on Tallinn finally turned out to be minimal the victory was brought home all the same.
 
Shelducks


 

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