Early Spring in Iceland (1 Viewer)

[gregbaker]

Just returned from a short break in Iceland. Wasn't intensive birding as a main focus was to see the Northern Lights, which thankfully put on a good show on the 3rd.

Caught up with all the wintering specialities in the south-west including King Eider, White-winged Scoter, Surf Scoter and American Wigeon plus Harlequin, Barrow's Goldeneye and Gyrfalcon. The Iceland Birding Pages website provides a wealth of information on current rarities and where to find some of the specialities.

https://notendur.hi.is//~yannk/index-eng.html

Did manage to see Iceland, Kumlien's and Glaucous Gull but they were few and far between. Most were in Grindavik harbour, with about 20 Icelands present. Of most interest though was that there was not a single white-winged gull to be seen in the Reykjavik area (including the harbour) when usually in early March there are thousands! Apparently they do this occasionally when there is a large shoal of capelin or herring somewhere offshore.

The moral is, despite what reports suggest, white winged gulls are not guaranteed in Reykjavik in early March.

 

[Edward]

Did manage to see Iceland, Kumlien's and Glaucous Gull but they were few and far between. Most were in Grindavik harbour, with about 20 Icelands present. Of most interest though was that there was not a single white-winged gull to be seen in the Reykjavik area (including the harbour) when usually in early March there are thousands! Apparently they do this occasionally when there is a large shoal of capelin or herring somewhere offshore.

The moral is, despite what reports suggest, white winged gulls are not guaranteed in Reykjavik in early March.

It's a classic case of "you should have been here 5 minutes ago" re the white-winged gulls. We saw an estimated 4,000 Iceland Gulls in the harbour at Grindavík on 16-17 February, when there were also lots on Reykjavík and also a Thayer's Gull. So while Iceland is easily the best place in the WP to see white-winged gulls, they do clear out for a period every winter, the timing varies, when the capelin shoals appear offshore. And then they come back again, before finally moving back to Greenland in April. Glaucous Gulls have been scarce in SW Iceland this winter as they are tending to stick to their breeding areas in western Iceland because there is so much food there at the moment. There are many thousands of Glaucous Gulls in Grundarfjörður at the moment for example.

Glad you had a good trip and you got to see the northern lights. Did you manage to escape before Wednesday's blizzard?

E

 

[gregbaker]

We escaped during Wednesday's blizzard! The drive from Thingvellir to Keflavik from 4.00 in the morning was memorable to say the least. Was amazed the planes were actually still taking off though obviously delayed.

Great trip though and would love to come back for longer and see the masses of gulls in a more typical period.

 

[Edward]

We escaped during Wednesday's blizzard! The drive from Thingvellir to Keflavik from 4.00 in the morning was memorable to say the least. Was amazed the planes were actually still taking off though obviously delayed.

Great trip though and would love to come back for longer and see the masses of gulls in a more typical period.

Good job you set off early as you would have not reached Keflavík if you had had an afternoon flight, the road from Thingvellir was closed around breakfast time.

 

[gregbaker]

Edward - did you or anyone else local manage to check out the Am Wigeons for any females present at Njarovik?

 

[Edward]

Edward - did you or anyone else local manage to check out the Am Wigeons for any females present at Njarovik?

Not yet Greg. The drakes were still there at the weekend (not seen by me) but I don't think anyone's given the females a grilling yet.

 

[Nohatch]

So while Iceland is easily the best place in the WP to see white-winged gulls, they do clear out for a period every winter, the timing varies, when the capelin shoals appear offshore. And then they come back again, before finally moving back to Greenland in April. Glaucous Gulls have been scarce in SW Iceland this winter as they are tending to stick to their breeding areas in western Iceland because there is so much food there at the moment.

Hi Edward,

Reading your post I was just wondering if you're seeing any shifts in the distribution patterns of these gulls? Different timings, different wintering sites, etc. Just curious...

Thanks,

N