Michael´s Third Year

[michael-ibk]

583/E215.) Rough-Legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus) / Raufussbussard

 

Seewinkel, 28/10. A very distant ebc-crop but still one of my top sightings from this day. Even in winter this bird is a rarity in Austria, and it was my very first one. The very white head and breast against the dark belly are diagnostic features.

 

 

And it also lead the way to another very good sighting for me - I had spotted this bird very far away from the main road and used some dirt tracks to get to this position. There was no way to turn so I had to follow the track further in the meadows and was rewarded with my first sighting in Austria of Grey Partridges.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

584/E216.) Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) / Kaiseradler

 

Seewinkel, 28/10. My highlight. Possibly Austria´s heraldic bird, there´s some debate if this Eagle or the White-Tailed Eagle is on our National enblem. They reach the Western end of their distribution area in the East of Austria. Very very rare and even extinct in the country for more than 190 years. They have slowly come back from neighbouring countries.Intense protection measures have proven to be a huge conservation success, 2016 more than 30 yound ones fledged. The very patient bird shown here is a juvenile, born this year.

 

 

 

 

Edited November 16, 2018 by michael-ibk

[xelas]

Well worth the trip to Seewinkel if only for the eagle!

[PeterHG]

That eagle is really beautiful! Some very good birds in spite of the weather. Partridges have become rare in our country and it's been some years since I had a decent sighting and you got some good shots there.

[Galana]

Some excellent results made your trip worthwhile. Love the "Hungarian" partridges as we call them.

[michael-ibk]

10 hours ago, PeterHG said:

Partridges have become rare in our country and it's been some years since I had a decent sighting and you got some good shots there.

 

Same here Peter - an 80 % decline in the last 20 years!

[michael-ibk]

585/E217.) European Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis) / Grünspecht

 

Seewinkel, 28/10. Almost forgot this one, probably because this guy and me have had a troubled relationship over the last three years. I want him, he does not want me. One of my nemesis birds - this is supposed to be our second most common Woodpecker but this is actually my very first photo of this species.

 

 

 

[Zim Girl]

Great new additions  -  love the eagle and grey partridges.

[TonyQ]

Well done with the Green Woodpecker ( haven't seen one this year) ,the Eagle and the Rough Legged Buzzard. The magic 600 is looking very close!

[michael-ibk]

 

On 11/19/2018 at 8:48 PM, TonyQ said:

The magic 600 is looking very close!

 

So close and yet so far? But I´m not giving up without putting up a good fight.

 

586/E218.) Sandwich Tern ( Thalasseus sandvicensis ) / Brandseeschwalbe

 

Fiumicino (Italy), 10/11. All roads lead to Rome as everybody knows, and who am I to disagree. So that´s where I went earlier this month for a seminar - of course a good opportunity to try to get some new additions. I had one day out in the vicinity of the Eternal City, around some nice wetlands and also coastal area. A beautiful day, and had this been Spring I would have clicked away like a madman - I saw almost 60 different species. I used a guide, Alessandro Ammann, and heartily recommend him - a very knowledgable and enthusiastic man whose company I enjoyed.

 

Sandwich Tern was relatively easy to find - they are quite common along the Coasts. A very rare migrant in Austria, one or two are seen almost every year on one of our bigger lakes.

 

 

Here with a lot of friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2018 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

For the next target Alessandro was looking for Pigeons. Why would we go for flying rats you ask? Because they attract birds of prey, and indeed on a field with thousands of Feral Pigeons we´d see a lot of (Hen and Marsh) Harriers, Kestrels, Common Buzzards and even a Merlin who dashed through too rapidly unfortunately.

 

 

And although too far away to get more than a "just about" record shot there also was a

 

587/E219.) Booted Eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus) / Zwergadler

 

Maccarese (Italy), 10/11. Always cool to see a new raptor. A familiar bird from Africa but this was the very first one in Europe for me. Used to be a breeding bird in Austria until about 200 years ago but now an extremely rare migrant in spring and autumn. In Italy they seem to be quite common.

 

 

Edited November 23, 2018 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

588/E220.) Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis ) / Wiesenpieper

 

Torre Flavia, 10/11. Seen in a wetlands area right next to the coast. Not an easy bird to see for me at home. They are only breeding sparsingly in North-East Austria (not in my area therefore), so the only real good chance to get them would be in migration, especially in autumn, where they can pop up pretty much anywhere. Well, I went to several places in the last two months where they had been seen (not specifically for them I have to add) but drew a blank. So a good thing they are common in Italy.

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2018 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

589/E221.) Zitting Cisticola (Cisticola juncidis) / Zistensänger

 

Torre Flavia, 10/11. The fourth and last of my Roman conquests. This is the only European Cisticola. Not occurring in Austria, but a widespread bird - it´s found in Southern Europe, Africa, Asia, even in Northern Australia. Their "zitting" calls have been likened to repeated snips of a scissor  hence the name.

 

[Galana]

Well the road to Rome proved rewarding for you as you inch towards the magic 600.

Nice Zitter.

[michael-ibk]

590/E222.) Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius) / Eichelhäher

 

Mieders (Tirol), 27/5. Time to dig into the archives again. I had waited with posting a couple of birds hoping to find better ones later in the year, but well, it´s December already ... Not as common in the Alps as in the lowlands, generally they prefer broad-leaved forests.

 

Edited December 1, 2018 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

591/E223.) Eurasian Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula) / Gimpel

 

Gaisau (Tirol), 20/1. Really don´t get why all the birdbooks call this one "common" I´ve only had two sightings this year. A bird with a bad rep, it used to by a symbol for clumsiness.

 

 

Female

 

 

Male

[michael-ibk]

592/E224.) Northern Raven (Corvus corax) / Kolkrabe

 

Münster (Tirol), 14/2. The most widespread bird of all Corvids.

 

[Galana]

6 minutes ago, michael-ibk said:

the birdbooks call this one "common"

They are 'common' but just darned elusive and very shy.

I too have only had one confirmed sighting. That's a lovely colour on the male.

Jays are my bete noire.

Edited December 1, 2018 by Galana

[michael-ibk]

593/E225.) Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dyrobates minor) / Kleinspecht

 

Gaisau (Tirol), 19/2. Europe´s smallest Woodpecker. Widespread but not a common bird. Needs a high amount of dead wood which is mostly removed in most of our forests.

 

Edited December 1, 2018 by michael-ibk

[xelas]

Nice addition ... now I am officially afraid also of you, Michael !

[Galana]

Well done. It cannot be long before you join the 600 club.

[michael-ibk]

594/E226.) Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus) / Erlenzeisig

 

Eulenwiesen (Tirol), 18/11, and Lake Starnberg (Germany, 22/11). They must have had a very successful breeding year as they are very common in our forests right now. Not a shy bird but they are very small and tend to stay higher up in the trees. Fortunately a small puddle of water attracted them down to the ground.

 

 

 

Female

 

 

Males

 

This was our last sunny autumn day - one of those when I love living in the alps.

 

 

 

 

 

[Peter Connan]

Beautiful!

 

And so close to 600 now...

[michael-ibk]

595/E227.) Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla) / Bergfink

 

Eulenwiesen (Tirol) , 18/11. Where the Siskins were. Not a bird I see very often they breed in Northern Europe and only visit here (in fluctuating quantities) in Winter.

 

 

 

I was delighted to also get some Crossbills here, probably my favourite of our forest birds. As with the Siskins this very warm year must have done wonders to their breeding success, I´ve never seen them in such numbers before.

 

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

Thanks, @Peter Connan. And in order to really get there I have to open the ebc drawer again...

 

596/E228.) Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) / Gebirgsstelze

 

Tiebelmündung (Carinthia), 8/9. Just not my year for this bird. I saw them often enough but never got a real photo opportunity.