Edward
Umimmak
As often happens when you go abroad, a massive rarity turns up back home the moment your back is turned. Last week was no exception as the evening before I was due to fly out to England my friend called me with the news that he'd just found a Green Heron in south-east Iceland, the second record for Iceland and a great rarity elsewhere in Europe.
Almost as bad was the news I received whilst birding in Norfolk on Sunday that a birder (and BF member) twitching the Green Heron had just found a Golden Oriole on the next farm, the 12th record in Iceland and an almost mythical bird amongst Icelandic birders.
On Tuesday four of us decided to kill two birds with one stone and try and see these two super birds. It is a long drive to the east of Iceland, 400 km each way but the scenery of waterfalls, glacial sands and icecaps en route, not to mention the good company makes the journey anything but dull.
Arriving at the farm of Hali we immediately saw the Green Heron in flight and watched it go to roost in the garden of the farm. The tiny heron could be observed closely as it manoeuvered through the branches of a conifer most nimbly until it found a position it found comfortable and settled down. After watching it for as long as we wanted at very close quarters we drove the two miles to the next farm to try and find the Golden Oriole, a bird I had been wanting to see for years and had amazingly only seen two days previously in England. Almost straight away we saw it hurtling between one garden and the next and for the next half hour we had great views of the female/first summer male in flight but it was incredibly elusive and we never saw it sitting. Golden Orioles are even hard to spot in Icelandic trees!! Still we were elated to have seen this bird at all in Iceland and headed back the 400 km to Reykjavík in the evening sun picking up my first Short-eared Owl of the year, arriving in Reykjavík at 0130 in daylight still perfectly good enough to bird in.
I set myself the target of adding 15 new species to my Iceland list this year but I've been lucky enough to see 13 already.
Rook
Bonaparte's Gull
Thayer's Gull
Bittern
Avocet
Red-breasted Goose
Canada Goose
Sand Martin
Varied Thrush
Semipalmated Plover
Swift
Green Heron
Golden Oriole
Hope the autumn's a good 'un.
E
Almost as bad was the news I received whilst birding in Norfolk on Sunday that a birder (and BF member) twitching the Green Heron had just found a Golden Oriole on the next farm, the 12th record in Iceland and an almost mythical bird amongst Icelandic birders.
On Tuesday four of us decided to kill two birds with one stone and try and see these two super birds. It is a long drive to the east of Iceland, 400 km each way but the scenery of waterfalls, glacial sands and icecaps en route, not to mention the good company makes the journey anything but dull.
Arriving at the farm of Hali we immediately saw the Green Heron in flight and watched it go to roost in the garden of the farm. The tiny heron could be observed closely as it manoeuvered through the branches of a conifer most nimbly until it found a position it found comfortable and settled down. After watching it for as long as we wanted at very close quarters we drove the two miles to the next farm to try and find the Golden Oriole, a bird I had been wanting to see for years and had amazingly only seen two days previously in England. Almost straight away we saw it hurtling between one garden and the next and for the next half hour we had great views of the female/first summer male in flight but it was incredibly elusive and we never saw it sitting. Golden Orioles are even hard to spot in Icelandic trees!! Still we were elated to have seen this bird at all in Iceland and headed back the 400 km to Reykjavík in the evening sun picking up my first Short-eared Owl of the year, arriving in Reykjavík at 0130 in daylight still perfectly good enough to bird in.
I set myself the target of adding 15 new species to my Iceland list this year but I've been lucky enough to see 13 already.
Rook
Bonaparte's Gull
Thayer's Gull
Bittern
Avocet
Red-breasted Goose
Canada Goose
Sand Martin
Varied Thrush
Semipalmated Plover
Swift
Green Heron
Golden Oriole
Hope the autumn's a good 'un.
E
