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Brambling

 

January 5

The wind had calmed down but the locally dense downfall disturbed observations. I headed for Sõrve säär and decided to check the bays in clearer moments. There were many waterfowl still in place everywhere. On the second weekend of January (January 14.-15.) the mid-winter waterfowl count will take place and whoever will be able to to sum up all these swans, ducks, mergansers, gulls and others? In an ordinary winter a great part of the sea at the shore will be frozen by this time and the waterfowl have generally flown on towards south. Everyone can take part in the mid-winter waterfowl count, directions can be read on the Estonian Ornithological Society’s web page.

At Rahuste village I noted a blue neck ring on a whooper swan, with binoculars it was no problem to read the ring code – 2U60. I was told by the director of the ringing centre, Olavi Vainu, that the bird was ringed in Ilmatsalu near Tartu in 2010 as a juvenile, last winter it was seen a couple of times in Germany and it returned to Ilmatsalu in summer. This winter however it has stayed on in our waters to start with. Observations of  ringed or otherwise marked birds should be sent to the Matsalu ringing centre, more detailed information on the ringing centre web page.

As new species in my 2012 list a goshawk near Üüdibe village and a  brambling at the bird feeder at Sõrve bird station were added today. Altogether the year list now holds 77 bird species.

Treecreeper

 

January 4

A strong gale, during the day the average wind speed on western Saaremaa was 20 m/s and one did not particularly want go out. But the day did not remain quite without new species. Just outside Karala village a pipit-like bird flew up in front of the car and into the meadow verge. On checking it turned out to be a meadow pipit. In winter it is a rarity but during  warm winters some few stay to winter on the west coast. For me it was also a new ”winter point”. In the winter months (December – February) I have now seen altogether 152 bird species in Estonia.

There was nothing to be done on the shore in such strong wind, I turned inland to look for the dipper at Odalätsi springs. The dipper , an annual winterer here, had however gone  walking somewhere else. There were open  waters everywhere on the forest floor and it simply could not be found in the large area. I have to wait for winter, then these birds will gather in the few river stretches with open water. But a treecreeper was added as new species in the year list, it was busy in a tit flock at the river bank.