Hello,
I'm Samuel, a French birder and photographer freshly settled in Helsinki.
I write a blog called Eiwawar, where I show my pictures and tell about my adventures, but I felt like I needed a more "day-to-day" diary.
April 15: I was near Hämeenlinna, one hour north of Helsinki, for Black grouses. A friend of mine had given me a good spot for them, so I camped in the vicinity to be ready at dawn. I'll spare you the tale of that freezing night, to tell you that I saw the grouses display in the swamp (lifer 1), that I was too far for pictures, and that I spent only one night there x)
I cycled around during the day, and despite the temperature (and the snow falling down, also), I was sure that spring had come: Whooper swans, cranes, lapwings, Song thrushes, Chaffinches crowded the bare fields along the road. My friend directed me to a place where I could see geese on a migration halt: Greater white-fronted geese but also Bean geese (lifer 2) were there, and it felt great. In the evening, I slept in my bed, which felt great as well
April 16: I didn't move much, but I shot Fieldfares in my street (Facebook link to a picture).
April 17: a cold day again, but I paid a visit to Suomenoja, a protected pond in Espoo. The Black-headed gulls were not nesting yet, but I saw plenty of Great crested grebes, goldeneyes, Gadwalls and shovelers, and also one of my favourite: the Horned grebe
April 18: a sunny, warm (for Finnish standards) day, I went to Suomenlinna after work. I saw my first oystercatchers and Barnacles geese of the year, but the highlight was the eagle owl. A man approached me and asked me: "Are you also going to take pictures of the owl?
- An owl? What owl? Where?"
That big badass was perched on a wall, looking over the harbour... chill (lifer!).
April 19: I went to Suomenoja for sunrise, for some pictures. Goldeneyes, coots and shovelers were my main subjects, though I also saw a Goshawk cross the area.
Recap: spring has come, and birds are all over the place. It's awesome
Stay tuned
I'm Samuel, a French birder and photographer freshly settled in Helsinki.
I write a blog called Eiwawar, where I show my pictures and tell about my adventures, but I felt like I needed a more "day-to-day" diary.
April 15: I was near Hämeenlinna, one hour north of Helsinki, for Black grouses. A friend of mine had given me a good spot for them, so I camped in the vicinity to be ready at dawn. I'll spare you the tale of that freezing night, to tell you that I saw the grouses display in the swamp (lifer 1), that I was too far for pictures, and that I spent only one night there x)
I cycled around during the day, and despite the temperature (and the snow falling down, also), I was sure that spring had come: Whooper swans, cranes, lapwings, Song thrushes, Chaffinches crowded the bare fields along the road. My friend directed me to a place where I could see geese on a migration halt: Greater white-fronted geese but also Bean geese (lifer 2) were there, and it felt great. In the evening, I slept in my bed, which felt great as well
April 16: I didn't move much, but I shot Fieldfares in my street (Facebook link to a picture).
April 17: a cold day again, but I paid a visit to Suomenoja, a protected pond in Espoo. The Black-headed gulls were not nesting yet, but I saw plenty of Great crested grebes, goldeneyes, Gadwalls and shovelers, and also one of my favourite: the Horned grebe
April 18: a sunny, warm (for Finnish standards) day, I went to Suomenlinna after work. I saw my first oystercatchers and Barnacles geese of the year, but the highlight was the eagle owl. A man approached me and asked me: "Are you also going to take pictures of the owl?
- An owl? What owl? Where?"
That big badass was perched on a wall, looking over the harbour... chill (lifer!).
April 19: I went to Suomenoja for sunrise, for some pictures. Goldeneyes, coots and shovelers were my main subjects, though I also saw a Goshawk cross the area.
Recap: spring has come, and birds are all over the place. It's awesome
Stay tuned