Edward
Umimmak
Greetings bird fans
Yesterday afternoon, full of elation after Manchester United's thrashing, no.. drubbing, no...destruction of Liverpool I did a quick tour of Reykjavik with a French birder who has recently arrived to work for six months here in the far north. I had high hopes of showing him American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck and Snow Goose, all of which have been in this area all winter. But as so often happens when you fully expect to see something, then you don't and we dipped on all three.
Signs of spring are that Iceland Gulls are decreasing in number, one normally sees dozens if not hundreds in winter in the various harbours in the area but I saw very few yesterday. Red-throated Divers and auks also seem to have disappeared and are making their way to breeding grounds across the country.
The highlight of the day was, for my French companion, the two Harlequin drakes we saw on the outskirts of Reykjavik. They were sitting on the bank of a very fast flowing stream watching a pair of Mallards bobbling and diving for food, acting exactly the way that Harlequins normally act. Whether the Mallards were showing off or whether the Harlequins had been giving them lessons and were appraising their progress I can't be sure but it was an interesting role reversal.
Equally fascinating was watching two Lesser Black-backed Gulls fishing. Their method was as simple as it was effective. They simply stood on the bank and put their heads into the fast flowing stream. In five minutes we saw them catch two fish like this.
Yesterday afternoon, full of elation after Manchester United's thrashing, no.. drubbing, no...destruction of Liverpool I did a quick tour of Reykjavik with a French birder who has recently arrived to work for six months here in the far north. I had high hopes of showing him American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck and Snow Goose, all of which have been in this area all winter. But as so often happens when you fully expect to see something, then you don't and we dipped on all three.
Signs of spring are that Iceland Gulls are decreasing in number, one normally sees dozens if not hundreds in winter in the various harbours in the area but I saw very few yesterday. Red-throated Divers and auks also seem to have disappeared and are making their way to breeding grounds across the country.
The highlight of the day was, for my French companion, the two Harlequin drakes we saw on the outskirts of Reykjavik. They were sitting on the bank of a very fast flowing stream watching a pair of Mallards bobbling and diving for food, acting exactly the way that Harlequins normally act. Whether the Mallards were showing off or whether the Harlequins had been giving them lessons and were appraising their progress I can't be sure but it was an interesting role reversal.
Equally fascinating was watching two Lesser Black-backed Gulls fishing. Their method was as simple as it was effective. They simply stood on the bank and put their heads into the fast flowing stream. In five minutes we saw them catch two fish like this.