looduskalender.ee

Pictures from Harald Misund,
67 North.

Harald is going to keep us up to date with the progress of autumn in Norway.
First pic - somewhere among those trees is a WTE nest area. The trees are aspen, birch, rowan.

This is at 67 degrees North.



In the same area


and a very long feather!

Harald's photos, taken on September 20th.

Nesting area


Blokkebær V.uliginsum L. Krekling Empetrum nigrum L and Skrubbær
Cornus suecica L


Tyttebær V.vitis-idaea L and Krekling E. nigrum L


Teiebær Rubus saxatilis L

Aha, the Swedish cornel, hönsbär (Cornus suecica; 2nd photo) - thank you so much, Harald!
When I translated the Looduskalender article about it I was going to protest that the dwarf cornel fruit isn't exactly “rootsi punane”, Swedish red, “faluröd” – a much cherished, traditional, Swedish national heritage, red to red-ochre coloured paint (made with leftovers from the Falu copper mines , fascinating story, that too, but not exactly Seasons) - but a rather bright glossy cinnabar red. - Thought I would get photos on vacation, but the cornels were gone. So, thanks!
And while we are about it, Mr. Carl von Linnaeus and I think that the dwarf cornel flower is quite noticeable and quite pretty too, with 4 large pure white bracts (“petals”) and a dark „eye” in the middle; Linnaeus praised it on his Lapland journey: ” … I greatly admired the pleasing sight of this plant that covered the ground in the vast forests and copses with its snowy-white bracts” (Linnaeus, Flora Lapponica, 1737/ from Virtuella floran ; my translation)
As always from Harald - wonderful photos!

More autumn - getting on for winter - pictures from Harald.

The coastline North of Bodø have the first sign of winter.
The small outlying Isles are fine WTSE habitat. Still some leaves
at the birch trees.



2 Mesiosen, the same place as earlier. The big Aspen in centre has
lost most of the leaves, in upper part in red color a rowan
tree.
Wet cold snow coming in from West.

Harald said, in his e-mail, that

In a period of 102 years, September this year gave new record in rain.(a lot of rain)

Autumn in Norway looks rather like winter, to these UK eyes!
Thank you Harald!

Falkflaug 4-5 October 2009
The first snow came when the birch trees have still their yellow leaves, but at first gale they will soon gone.
The ptarmigan and grouse are weary shy at the moment and try to hide themselves from the hunting Gyr Falcon and Golden Eagle.



After a cold night and still weather the first thin ice will spread over some of the surface, then the mountain behind no longer be mirrored in the lake
.



Still the fungus has some warmth, or the sun warms the darker part so the snow melts
.

Some beautiful photography there. Thank you Harald and thank you Jo for being the 'postman'.

More pics from our best Norwegian photographer.

The outlet of Saltfjod and to left come also the Beiarfjod. The Isle to right is Fugløya and to left Sandhornøya.
The weather is shifting between rain in lower part and snow at higher level, just as days in October are.


On the other side of Saltfjord the Falkflaug mountains will not show their tops up to c 1200 meter, but they had become covered by snow in the last few days, but that can soon change so near the coast with some heavy rain, but maybe the winter have fastened the grip.


Some bird feather from a Herring Gull so have ended his day as prey for a young Goshawk.
The Goshawk sat with his prey in a garden nearby and was mobbed by several Hooded Crow.

9 October
The winter comes closer each day, and the birch trees lost more and more of their leaves, and the rowan tree in the background have beautiful red color. Below in the aspen one adult WTSE sitting for taking a short break at noon.


9 October at 5pm
The wind from West comes with a little more snow, and in the shelter of the wood some more WTSE have come in for the night.
The adult and two of this year's young, and one immature bird, so is not from this nest area.


3 juv 1 ad.
Since WTSE are in good camouflage, they are all marked in the red circle.

With thanks to Mutikluti for doing the photobucket work.

Harald has sent eight photographs of his area of Norway. He announces the end of autumn and the beginning of Norwegian winter, so he says these are the last of his Seasons pics.

There must be a way to ask him to send some winter pics. Maybe it's just white from now on, until Spring?
Pics still being loaded in bucket. Coming later.

Overlooking Bodø westward, Saltfjod to left.



Bodø South and looking East, some part of Skjerstadfjord visible
and the mountains behind so far East at Saltfjellet.


Bodømarka North, the surrounding terrain.

Some birch trees have many bend.


Always green, Linnea borealis L. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linnaea_borealis)


And the mushroom (Fluesopp) had lost the red color.

The Aspen (Osp) are all naked. A preferred winter food for Elk


Messiosen, still some birch still have their leaves on, but the first storms are waiting, and they will soon sweep off.


.