Michael's Ninth Year

[TonyQ]

Seewinkel looking good!

Beautiful additions @michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

 

12 hours ago, Peter Connan said:

Congratulations on blasting past the 200, and since Seewinkel I guess you will soon be past 250 as well.

Thanks for the bunnies. But even more so the Ibex. That's like saying "sorry for the bicycle with the bent front wheel, here is a Porsche 911".

 

Love that comparison Peter! Thanks!

 

 

7 hours ago, Galana said:

Good to be reminded of what Spain can offer a patient birder. Loved the Seewinkel landscapes too.

 

Or even to an impatient birder like me.

 

6 hours ago, Kitsafari said:

A brilliant count from just 3 days - catalonia remains one of our favourite places to bird. Cute bunnies!

Seewinkel is looking lovely, and is calling to me. sadly, not this year.....

 

 

 

Next year then. Always ready to "guide" you.

 

4 hours ago, PeterHG said:

Tempting photos from Seewinkel, both the birds and the scenery. Good effort with the low shutter speed on the kestrel!

 

Thanks Peter, I should probably have tried an even slower shutter speed to give the photo the effect I was really looking for.

 

And thanks @TonyQ!

 

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

251/E115) European Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) / Turteltaube

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. A vulnerable species, getting rarer and rarer. From Wiki: According to a 2001 study cited by the European Commission, between two and four million birds are shot annually in Malta, Cyprus, France, Italy, Spain and Greece. Environmentalists have described spring hunting in Malta as particularly problematic as it is the only country with an EU derogation to shoot birds during their spring migration to breeding grounds.

 

[michael-ibk]

252/E116) Pygmy Cormorant (Microcarbo pygmaeus) / Zwergscharbe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. A Seewinkel special, only breeding here in Austria. Basically an Eastern European bird, reaching the Western end of its distribution.

 

[michael-ibk]

253/E117) Montagu's Harrier (Circus pygargus) / Wiesenweihe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. A scarce breeding bird in the area.

 

[michael-ibk]

254/E118) Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio) / Neuntöter

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. Normally very common but not so easy this time. Quite obvious not all of them had already returned from the South.

 

[michael-ibk]

255/E119) Common Grasshopper Warbler (Locustella naevia) / Feldschwirl

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. A super-tough bird to see so I was quite happy getting it.

 

[michael-ibk]

256/E120) Barred Warbler (Curruca nisoria) / Sperbergrasmücke

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. Really did not want its photo taken. Freshly arrived, this was the very first record for 2024.

 

[michael-ibk]

257/E121) Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix) / Nebelkrähe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. Well, it was there.

 

 

[michael-ibk]

258/E122) Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) / Waldohreule

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. A Seewinkel classic.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

259/E123) Rook (Corvus frugilegus) / Saatkrähe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. I know my duties as a card-carrying BY member.

 

[michael-ibk]

260/E124) Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) / Rauchschwalbe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. Just love them. A true spring / summer bird to me.

 

[michael-ibk]

261/E125) Great aka Eurasian Bittern (Botaurus stellaris) / Rohrdommel

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 27/4/2024. One of the weekend's highlights! Had heard it in the morning the previous day so decided it could not hurt to try again. I was driving very slowly, scanning the reed very thoroughly while Alex on the passenger seat was steering. And then it was not in the reed at all but outside in the submerged meadow! A very, very cool sighting of a difficult bird.

 

 

[michael-ibk]

262/E126) Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) / Kuckuck

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. An unusually cooperative individual.

 

 

 

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

263/E127) Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) / Flussseeschwalbe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. A lovely sighting of courtship behaviour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

264/E128) Hawfinch (Coccothraustes coccothraustes) / Kernbeißer

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. One of my nemesis birds, and it seems I will never manage a decent photo.

 

 

Life is just not fair btw. Recently a (non-birding) friend sent me a mobile video of a Hawfinch drinking on his terrace, just a few metres away. "What is this bird? It's not going away", he said.

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

265/E129) Eurasian aka Common Linnet (Linaria cannabina) / Bluthänfling

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. One of the area's most common songbirds.

 

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

266/E130) Western aka Common House Martin (Delichon urbicum ) / Mehlschwalbe

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. Both the scientific and colloquial name of the bird are related to its use of human-made structures. It builds a closed cup nest from mud pellets under eaves or similar locations on buildings usually in colonies.

 

[michael-ibk]

267/E131) Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) / Nachtigall

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. An individual that apparently has not completely mastered the supernatural invisibility trick. Got it in this very tree two years ago, so might be the same inadequate bird.

 

 

Got a few characters from the ring but probably not enough (although I did send in the data I had). @xelas, do your photos show something of the ring?

 

[michael-ibk]

268/E132) Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus) / Rotfußfalke

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. Another fresh arrival from their Winter quarters. One of Austria's rarest breeding birds but two of their nesting sites in the area are well known.

 

 

[michael-ibk]

269/E133) Eurasian Hoopoe (Upupa epops) / Wiedehopf

 

Seewinkel, Austria, 28/4/2024. My favourite bird, and so far 2024 has been generous:

 

 

First a rather distant but okish sighting in Oman.

 

 

A really patient individual in Catalonia.

 

 

And then a pair at the same road in Seewinkel two days in a row. Now the "Hoopoe Road" to Alex and me. Simply could not be bothered to go away even when we were within 5 metres with the car.

 

 

Well, it was busy.

 

 

That concludes the Seewinkel weekend. ebird report with all locations here. 115 species in 3 days.

Edited May 6 by michael-ibk

[Peter Connan]

Great BIF's. Eepecially liked the feeding Tern sequence.

[michael-ibk]

Thanks Peter, it was a lovely moment to watch.

[PeterHG]

Agree on the BiF shots, excellent! A very good score for three days Seewinkel with some really special ones, like the Bittern. 

[michael-ibk]

Thanks Peter. You must visit again, then we will introduce you to Dolce Vita also.🙂