davebroadley
Saturday 16th October 2004, 12:35
A delay of 11/2hrs at Heathrow for my flight to Newcastle, left me arriving at the DFDS ferry terminal and meeting the organiser of the trip David Rosair of Islandventures, with 2 minutes to spare on boarding time, which left us last to board.
A few hours birding from the ferry as it steamed across the North Sea ( very evocative, it doesn't sound the same if you modernise it " it dieseled it's way " ) produced Gannets, Fulmar, Kittiwakes, Guillemots and Razorbills were plentiful, with a lone Artic Skua, enlivened the hours before a sumptous buffet dinner, a few bottles of wine and a chance to get to know the other participants of the trip.
Arriving in Kristiansand, last on, meant first off, and we were quickly heading along the E39/E43 through Farsund to our hotel at Lista.
This, being my first trip to Norway, I found the drive stunning as we passed by lakes and fiords, sparsely dotted around with houses, with a few Mute Swans on the waters. What would they be like during the breeding season?.
Arriving at our hotel, the Lista Fly, a former German WW2 airfield, then a Norwegian/ Nato base, our rooms were in a superbly renovated barracks ( the underfloor heating in the bathroom was brilliant ).
Around the barrack square ? mature pines held flitting parties of Siskin, Chaffinch, Chaffinch, Goldcrest and a few Brambling.
We eventually headed off for an afternoon around the lighthouse at Lista Fyr, where a bird ringing station was located.
The wind, blowing S.E was quite strong and seemed to be holding up passerine migration, so we turned to the sea, where even atthis late in the day, migration was obviously in force, with a constant stream of duck ( mallard, teal, wigeon and a few pochard), sea duck ( eider, commom scoter and incredible numbers of Velvet scoter) and shorebirds.
After a while, the wind numbing our fingers, we turned to the fields and pines for a walk, the pines heaving with Finches, occasionaly erupting into the sky as a Sparrowhawk or Merlin came through trying to pick off a straggler.
In the shelter of the pines we were able to study closely the mixed flock of finches, where Brambling was the most commom amongst Siskin and Chaffinch.A supporting cast of Coal Tit, Great Tit, S/T Treecreeper and Goldcrest kept our interest as we walked through the pines towards to the fields.
A planned walk through the fields was quickly abandoned, when a massive bull came over to see this wierd bunch of people at the gate to his field.
Moving along the path, we scoped across the fields, still seeing a passage of seabirds, when a Glaucous Gull came into view harrying the shorebirds.
Returning to the lighthouse through the fields a Skua was seen to come down into the fields, which were alive with Skylarks, Meadow Pipits and a few overflying Lapland Bunting.
We reached the Skua, who was hungrily munching on earthworms, and with the aid of field guides, identified it as a juvenile Long-Tailed .
Reaching the carpark by the lighthouse, one of the bird-ringing staff informed us that a Richard's Pipit had been seen flitting around a small pond near the lighthouse, where , eventually, a lucky few of us were able to spot the it , scampering amongst the boulders and long grass, along with Rock Pipits and Northern Wheatear.
I mentioned to the bird-ringer about the numbers of Brambling and he informed me that , that morning 450 had been mist-netted, with 50 being ringed, plus a few Yellow-browed Warblers.
A few hours birding from the ferry as it steamed across the North Sea ( very evocative, it doesn't sound the same if you modernise it " it dieseled it's way " ) produced Gannets, Fulmar, Kittiwakes, Guillemots and Razorbills were plentiful, with a lone Artic Skua, enlivened the hours before a sumptous buffet dinner, a few bottles of wine and a chance to get to know the other participants of the trip.
Arriving in Kristiansand, last on, meant first off, and we were quickly heading along the E39/E43 through Farsund to our hotel at Lista.
This, being my first trip to Norway, I found the drive stunning as we passed by lakes and fiords, sparsely dotted around with houses, with a few Mute Swans on the waters. What would they be like during the breeding season?.
Arriving at our hotel, the Lista Fly, a former German WW2 airfield, then a Norwegian/ Nato base, our rooms were in a superbly renovated barracks ( the underfloor heating in the bathroom was brilliant ).
Around the barrack square ? mature pines held flitting parties of Siskin, Chaffinch, Chaffinch, Goldcrest and a few Brambling.
We eventually headed off for an afternoon around the lighthouse at Lista Fyr, where a bird ringing station was located.
The wind, blowing S.E was quite strong and seemed to be holding up passerine migration, so we turned to the sea, where even atthis late in the day, migration was obviously in force, with a constant stream of duck ( mallard, teal, wigeon and a few pochard), sea duck ( eider, commom scoter and incredible numbers of Velvet scoter) and shorebirds.
After a while, the wind numbing our fingers, we turned to the fields and pines for a walk, the pines heaving with Finches, occasionaly erupting into the sky as a Sparrowhawk or Merlin came through trying to pick off a straggler.
In the shelter of the pines we were able to study closely the mixed flock of finches, where Brambling was the most commom amongst Siskin and Chaffinch.A supporting cast of Coal Tit, Great Tit, S/T Treecreeper and Goldcrest kept our interest as we walked through the pines towards to the fields.
A planned walk through the fields was quickly abandoned, when a massive bull came over to see this wierd bunch of people at the gate to his field.
Moving along the path, we scoped across the fields, still seeing a passage of seabirds, when a Glaucous Gull came into view harrying the shorebirds.
Returning to the lighthouse through the fields a Skua was seen to come down into the fields, which were alive with Skylarks, Meadow Pipits and a few overflying Lapland Bunting.
We reached the Skua, who was hungrily munching on earthworms, and with the aid of field guides, identified it as a juvenile Long-Tailed .
Reaching the carpark by the lighthouse, one of the bird-ringing staff informed us that a Richard's Pipit had been seen flitting around a small pond near the lighthouse, where , eventually, a lucky few of us were able to spot the it , scampering amongst the boulders and long grass, along with Rock Pipits and Northern Wheatear.
I mentioned to the bird-ringer about the numbers of Brambling and he informed me that , that morning 450 had been mist-netted, with 50 being ringed, plus a few Yellow-browed Warblers.