Good birding weekend here (1 Viewer)

Hi

I have been out this weekend here in the nature preserved areas of the Lake of Neuchatel and Lake Geneva.

Yesterday at Cudrefin (Lake of Neuchatel):
- about 30 Greylag Gooses
- about 20 Common Redshanks
- a few Little Grebes, Common Shelducks, Common Greenshanks, kingfisher, White Wagtail and Common Tern
as well as the usual mallards, Eurasian Coot, Tufted Duck and Red-crested Pochard

Today at Les Grangettes (Lake of Geneva):
- hundreds of Great Crested Grebe
- even two Common Eiders !
- a few Common Redshanks
and the usuals.

It is the first time I saw common eiders here on the borders of Lake Geneva.

Some of the photos can be seen under
http://www.pbase.com/tcom/oiseaux&page=3

What a fantasic place. Neuchatel is amazing.

I would imagine that Eider is an extreme rarity in Switzerland? I remember reading about a Gannet at Lake Geneva once. Am I correct?

tom mckinney said:

What a fantasic place. Neuchatel is amazing.

I would imagine that Eider is an extreme rarity in Switzerland? I remember reading about a Gannet at Lake Geneva once. Am I correct?

Click to expand...

I have been told that Eiders are not so rare in Switzerland. Eiders are crossing Switzerland on their way between Africa and northern Europe. In spring when the Eiders are going to northern Europe, some of the one year old Eiders, which do not breed, stay in Switzerland. They will go back to Africa when the others from northern Europe are going back.

You are right about the Gannet. One has been seen last year on the Lake Geneva. Up to now, 4 Gannets have been sighted in Switzerland.

I'd read that Eiders were once very rare winter visitors to Switzerland from the Baltic. But then someone accidentally introduced Zebra Mussels to some of the big lakes in boat ballast water; these freshwater mussels are an invasive nuisance, but they are also very good Eider food. As a result, birds that arrived tended to stay, and numbers slowly built up (up to 600 in winter), and some are now even breeding.

Michael