Text and photos Margus Ots
Translation Liis

Counting geese on the ground in fields is easier than counting flying birds – they will not at once disappear from your field of view. But at the same time the geese in a large flock on the ground may be behind each other and the birds farther away may stay unnoticed. Often the geese in a field seem like a narrow band but on seeing the flock from another side it turns out that the goose flock covers a much greater area than supposed, the flock is as long as it is broad and at least half the birds were not noticed at all.

Text: Urmas Sellis, Estonian Ornithological Society

Transmission courtesy of Kernel, Tele2 and EENet

Supported by KIK

Translation Liis

Photos and text Margus Ots
Translation Liis

From the wintering areas in western Europe the first flocks, mainly consisting of greater white-fronted geese and bean geese reached Estonia already in March. The geese, heading for their breeding areas in the tundras of Russia, stay in Estonia at most until the end of April-beginning of May; in mid-May they already leave for the breeding grounds. In the second half of May only a few left behind can be seen.

The geese stay in particularly great numbers around Tartu, where nearly 25 000 geese are spending the night at the Aardla lake. Of those more than 85% are greater white-fronted geese, the remainder mainly bean geese.

Text and photos Urmas Tartes
Translation Liis

Two male brimstone butterflies chasing one female

Brimstone        Lapsuliblikas        Gonepteryx rhamni

In spring we can see yellow as well as white butterflies flying. Despite the seemingly great difference in colour we have to do with the same species – the brimstone butterfly.

The difference in colour is related to the sex of the butterfly – male brimstones are dark yellow, heralding a sunny and warm summer.

Video recorded by Shanta, LK forum
Translation Liis

The life of starlings before breeding is not simple; we can see parallels to it from a human point of view.

When the starling male had staked out his claim to the nestbox on March 23 (see the video at the end of this story) then it might be presumed that now a peaceful nestmaking and breeding would follow…

Far from it, for the third day already a serious competition between females is going on. Both the older but later arrived female as well as a younger lady try to show each other who is the mistress of the nestbox.

Whether we have a Mexican, Turkish or Estonian inspired soap – it is for the viewer to decide.