Sunrise at Blåvandshuk. Picture: Marit Nillissen

Morning Observations:

Around 06:30, I was ready for the new morning observations. It was a bit foggy this morning, so I couldn’t see the wind farm in the sea. The first two hours there were a lot of Common scoter “Sortand” and Red throated divers “Rødstrubet lom” migrating. I also saw a lot more Northern gannet “Sule” then yesterday. Eventually the migration started to slow down and I went back to the station.

Todays observations can be seen here.

The ringing:

Songthrush "Sangdrossel". Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

It was warmer than some of the last mornings when I opened the nets this morning. But still, there was icy frost on the poles and some of the nets. But it promised to become a nice morning. It was not as sunny as yesterday, but we still had some sun. It felt like there were even more Songthrushes “Sangdrossel” singing than the last days, so I was thinking that today, I would have one in the nets. I was right, it was even two. And it got a really nice morning for ringing. Apart from one zero round, I always had some birds in the nets and something to do. And some nice species that we always have around the house at the moment but that do not often go into the nets did us the pleasure and got caught: A Starling “Stær”, a Treesparrow “Skovspurv”, some three Greenfinches “Grønirisk” and a Woodcock “Skovsneppe”!

Starling "Stær". Picture: Marit Nillissen.

I kept the nets open a little longer than standard time, until 13.00, but at 12.30 it was just one new Goldcrest and a recapture Blackbird “Solsort” and at 13.00 the daily Lesser Redpoll “Lille Gråsisken” (it is everyday different birds of course) was in the net behind the pond, so it was okay to close.

It was a sunny afternoon, but I used it to make a list of which rings we have in stock, and which need to be ordered and checked how many nets of different lengths we have in reserve.

A good bird to end the blog: Todays Woodcock "Skovsneppe". Picture: Marit Nillissen

At the station: Marit Nillissen and Hanelie Sidhu

A beautiful sunrise over the bog this morning. Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

Morning observations:

This morning I did the morning observation with Joseph. It was a beautiful morning, with little wind and a nice sun; a relaxing start of the day. In total we saw 278 Common scoter “Sortand” and 170 Red-throated divers “Rodstrubbet Lom” migrating and some other species like the Northern gannet “Sule” and Common eider “Ederfugl”. We even saw the first two Sandwich terns “Splitterne” which we were really excited about! The beginning of the migration season is really here.

Around 10am the migration slowed down and I went back. Joseph had already gone home in the meantime, because he is going to Copenhagen to visit his girlfriend.

Todays observations can be seen here.

At the morning observation. Picture: Marit Nillissen

The ringing: 

One of todays Lesser Redpolls "Lille Gråsisken". Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

Already when I opened the nets I could see, that it would be a very nice morning. And it was, all sunny and the nice weather made some more birds fly. It was nineteen new birds ringed today, it is going up again! Two beautiful Goldfinches “Stillits”, one new Chiffchaff “Gransanger” and a Lesser Redpoll “Lille Gråsisken”, ringed by Morten in 2022 were the highlights of this morning. Between the rounds, when I had a short rest in the house, I met Joseph, getting ready to leave to Copenhagen after a short morning Obs, he will be back in a week, let´s hope the Jay “Skovskade” that he is hoping for in the nets will wait to fly in until the 27^th of March! Tomorrow it will be a little warmer in the morning, low winds but not so much sun, let´s see what it will bring!

Robin "Rødhals". Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

People: Joseph Stephan, Marit Nillissen and Hanelie Sidhu

With four degrees, this morning was a little warmer than the last mornings, no minus degrees anymore. While I was waiting for the first round, Karen was packing her things to leave home, and do some birding stops on the way. It was some nice days, and we are sure that we will meet her again at some point this spring season.

For me it was a day of recaptures. By now, the nets need to be open at 06.00 in the morning but they were already at 05.45 and I did the closing round at 11.15. Standard time is just until 11.00 and until then, it was just recaptures in the nets. At 11.15, I had a new couple of Yellowhammers “Gulspurv” and a new Dunnock “Jernspurv”, all in one net. The whole morning, I heard Redpolls “Gråsisken” calling so after standard time, I left three nets open and had sound on for a little while, but I just caught one Lesser Redpoll “Lille Gråsisken”.

Female and male Yellowhammer/ Gulspurv. Picture: Marit Nillissen

Bent was also out with his scope this morning and we were exchanging one of the nets at Kratett together.

Marith and Joseph came back very early from the observation, as they did not have many birds on migration.

This morning at the obs. Picture: Joseph Stephan

Todays observations can be seen here.

In the afternoon, we went to the beach all together and hammered in three new poles to mark, where the electric fence for the breeding Terns will be set up.

Joseph and Marit working with the poles on the beach. Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

Tomorrow it will be sunny all day with very low wind, we are looking forward to it.

At the station: Marit Nillissen, Joseph Stephan, Bent Jakobsen and Hanelie Sidhu

While Hanelie was opening the mist nets, Karen and I prepared for the daily morning observation. The weather was chilly, with temperatures around 0°C in the morning and a steady northwest wind. 

The first two hours of migration were a pleasure to watch, with 498 Red-throated Divers flying south and 266 Gannets flying north. After 10 AM, the migration pace slowed down a bit. You can find the complete list of observations here.

Hanelie was thrilled to ring more birds than yesterday - even a Goldfinch found its way into the net today!

We were also excited to welcome Marit to the station. She will be assisting with migration counts and working on her bachelor’s thesis, which focuses on analyzing standard data, including interval-based standard counts.

After lunch, Marit and I went to the bog to retrieve a dead Black-legged Kittiwake that Frida and I had found two days ago. We labeled it with the species name, date, and precise coordinates before placing it in the freezer for Levi. He will be studying the stomach contents of stranded seabirds for his bachelor’s thesis.

In the evening, we enjoyed a delicious leek quiche that Hanelie had prepared.

With a promising weather forecast ahead, we made our way to bed, looking forward to another beautiful day tomorrow.

People at the station: Hanelie, Karen, Marit, Joseph

An update on yesterday’s nighttour: There were many visitors that came to the tour and showed a lot of interest in birds and nature. We had several stopps and saw Red deer “Krondyr” and looked at the planets: Jupiter with its two moons, Venus and Mars. It was a beautiful night sky and we were very lucky with the weather.

First stop of the night tour. Picture: Hanelie Sidhu

In the morning, Lise and I were the first who got up to open the nets. Lise was here at the Bird observatory for a short period last autumn. Now she has received her X-licence and was very much looking forward to the ringing day. It was a nice morning with nice company. But the birds did not play along. Lise and I walked rounds and rounds, checking the empty nets. Now we need Blackbird “Solsort” no. 90, I said to Lise at some point. All the last days I had this 2k male Blackbird “Solsort” at the Kratett nets. And no. 90 did us the pleasure. It was the first bird that we found in a net – at Kratett of course. So Lise could practice holding the bird. Next round, an adult followed the example of no. 90, which did not have a ring yet. We could see the difference between a 2k bird with a moult limit and an 3K+ with just one generation of feathers. We also looked at the different feather groups and discussed where to look for the moult limit. There were no more birds until closing time, so we just had a nice lunch and then it was time for Lise to leave back to Aarhus.

Todays ringing totals:

Blackbird/ Solsort: 1/1

It was a big farewell day, also Frida left to back to Copenhagen today, but both promised to be back at some point in spring, we are already looking forward to it.

Henrik again was the first at the Obs this morning. There was quite a good number of Gannets “Sule” today but the highlight was definitely a Yellow-legged Gull “Middelshavs-sølvmåge” that he found! He also took great pictures of the bird. Apart from the Marsh Tit “Sumpmejse”, which is a rarity at Blåvandshuk on a very local scale, this is the rarest bird that was found a Blåvandshuk this year. Congrads to Henrik!

Todays obserbations at Blåvandshuk can be seen here.

3K Yellow-legged Gull/ Middelshavs-sølvmåge, pictures by Henrik Böhmer

In the afternoon, John Frikke and Annete came to the Bird Observatory. Nationalpark Vadehavet, Johns working place, is very much involved in the Little Tern “Dværgterne” project, as the breeding sites of the terns are in the National park. So John and Joseph did some planning for the project and I benefited from it by learning a little more about the National Park and eating some delicious cake with them. Mange tak!

Karen enjoyed the birds at the beach most of the day and took some great pictures, as of these Sanderlings "Sandløber". Picture: Karen Koefoed.

At the station: Henrik Böhmer, Lise Manstrup, Hanelie Sidhu, Karen Koefoed, Joseph Stephan and Frida

Today began with Hanelie opening the mist nets while David, Henrik, Karen, and I prepared for our daily morning observation. The weather was fantastic - 6°C with a steady west wind and occasional strong gusts.

We were fortunate to observe a resting Great Northern Diver (Gavia immer) along with several species of waterfowl and two species of waders migrating south along the coast. You can find a complete list of all our observations here .

Morning Observation. Picture: Joseph Stephan

Hanelie had a great time ringing 12 birds in total, including a Goldcrest (Regulus regulus).

Goldcrest/ King of Birds/ Regulus regulus, picture: Hanelie Sidhu

After a traditional Danish lunch with delicious rye bread, egg salad, curried herring, and a variety of fish, we spent some time pressure washing the picnic tables. We then painted them, giving the yard a fresh new look.

Painting the picnic tables. Picture: Joseph Stephan

Before the evening tour, which was guided by Henrik B. and Bent J., we enjoyed a vegetarian pasta amatriciana and some soda.

Start of the night tour. Picture: Joseph Stephan.

We're excited for tomorrow - the weather forecast looks amazing again!

People at the station today: Hanelie, David, Henrik, Frida, Lisa, Karen, Joseph.

I was the first going out to open the nets early in the morning today and what I first noticed was that it was really cold. It even had minus degrees, at 06.15, when all nets were open, it was -1,5 degrees. Back at the house, I recommended Karen and Joseph to wear very warm clothes as they were preparing to go to the obs. Henrik was already at the observation spot at sunrise and had a really good number of Red-throated Divers “Rødstrubbet Lom”, but as it was so cold and there was not so much more exciting to expect, he left quite early to do some office work at the station. Karen and Joseph came later but stayed longer until the number of Red-throated Divers “Rødstrubbet Lom” went down a lot. They had a Woodcock “Skovsneppe” which is a common bird here at this time, I often flush them early in the morning when opening the nets – unfortunately non made its way in the nets so far this early spring – but it is not so often seen at the obs.

Todays observation at Blåvandshuk can be seen here.

This morning at the obs.

Despite the cold, it was a very sunny morning and when I checked DMI I had expected it to be a better day than yesterday in the ringing. And yes, it kind of was, while I just had one new Blackbird “Solsort” yesterday, it was five new birds today. Frida joined me on the second round and then went to the beach to the others. It was unfortunately a zero round but later in the morning, when Henrik, Frida and Joseph sat at the table in the house and worked, I could show them some birds, one of them was a Goldcrest “Fuglekonge”, which was the first in the net this spring season, I had already been missing them.

Siskin "Grønsisken"

Karen was really happy to be back in Blavand and stayed outside the longest. She also took some great pictures as of this Ringed Plover “Stor Præstekrave”  fouraging at the beach.

Ringed Plover "Stor Præstekrave fouraging. Picture: Karen Koefoed

At the station: Henrik Böhmer, David Manstrup, Hanelie Sidhu, Karen Koefoed, Joseph Stephan and Frida.

Today started with Hanelie and me opening the mist nets while Henrik went out for the morning observation. It was quite chilly, only 2 degrees, with a northerly wind blowing at 3 m/s. For the first net run, Frida joined the ringing, and I went to join Henrik for the observation.

The migration was surprisingly fast, with 306 Red-throated Loons, 850 Scoters, 4 Barnacle Geese, and 4 Long-tailed Ducks flying south within the first two hours after sunrise. Additionally, a stunning adult Mediterranean Gull was resting on the beach, much to Henrik’s delight - it sent him into ecstasy! You can find the complete observation list here.

Ringing was quite slow, with only eight birds in total. The highlight was a Tree Sparrow, which, fun fact, happens to be one of Hanelie’s favorite birds to hold in hand.

After closing the mist nets together, Henrik took us on a trip to “Hvidbjerg Camping og Kapellet,” where we spotted two White Wagtails (ssp. Yarrellii), one Marsh Tit, two Common Buzzards, and one Mistle Thrush. After that, we visited “Grønningen” and enjoyed the stunning landscape, along with sightings of Lapwings and Stonechats.

Before dinner, Frida and I took a walk on the beach and were surprised by one of the most intense rainbows we had ever seen. It’s incredible how light hitting a raindrop can create such vibrant colors - truly mesmerizing to observe.

Another lovely surprise awaited us when, all of a sudden, Karen pulled up. It was such a joy to reunite, as Hanelie, Karen, and I had already met on several occasions. After a heartwarming chat, Hanelie prepared dinner - a delicious pizza with homemade dough, topped with mushrooms, tomatoes, shrimp, olive oil, salt, and pepper. We devoured it before heading to our well-deserved beds.

Wow, what a day!

The ringing:

This is not such a nice morning, I thought, when I went out opening the nets. It was a bit windier than the last days, 7 m/s, but some nets were quite exposed, and I did not open them all. When I opened it had 3,9 degrees, we had already colder mornings, but the wind made it feel a little uncomfortable outside. Apparently, the birds too thought that it was not the best morning. While I was very active walking rounds and rounds, their activity was low, just four birds in five hours made their way into the nets, two of them were recaptures.

Yellowhammer/ Gulspurv

The moths:

This morning, there was nothing in the traps, but yesterday evening, I got one moth, I have already caught it in February on our balcony in Germany, but it is a new one for Blåvand this spring: Phigalia pilosaria, in Danish Fjer-måler. It overwinters as pupa and is one of the first species in the year that hatches. Therefore, I was a bit surprised, that I did not catch it earlier at Blåvand, but now it was here. It is a male, in the macro moth you can often identify their sex by looking at their antennae, which are bigger in males. But in a few species, and Phigalia pilosaria is one of them, the females are flightless in some species without wings, in other species with very small wing bases.

Phigalia pilosaria/ Fjer-måler

Little Tern “Dværgterne” project:

During the morning, Ulf brought Frida and Joseph back to the station. They had been looking at the beach in Fanø, where the Little Tern “Dværgterne” fence will be put up and had their first meeting in person, making plans for the project. Joseph will place Tern dummies in the fenced area, to attract the terns. He brought them as raw models, made by a 3D printer back in Germany. This afternoon, Joseph sanded the pieces of the Terns and glued them together, while Frieda was already painting some Terns.

Frida and Joseph working on the Little Tern "Dværgterne" dummies.

At the station: Hanelie Sidhu, Joseph Stephan and Frida

The ringing:

The morning started a bit foggy but later, it cleared up. But the sun had problems coming through the clouds and the sky stayed grey all morning. I did not have many birds, highlights were two Starlings “Stær”, that were in the net in the second round. Thet are usually in the garden calling from the tree next two the lab, but do not go in the net very often. Maybe the fog helped.

Starling "Stær"

A Siskin “Grønsisken” was also, as always, very cute.

Siskin/ Grønsisken 

The moths (and a beetle):

Just one moth in the trap this morning, it was again Xylocampa areola “Gedeblad-ugle”. On one of the house walls outside, I found the larval case of Taleporia tubulosa “Cigarsækbærer”. When I went to the trap in lighthouse garden at dusk, I found the Great Diving Beetle, Dytiscus marginalis “Stor vandkalv”.

Dytiscus marginalis/ Stor vandkalv

At the station: Hanelie Sidhu