As October turned to November, the number of birds went down as expected. Nevertheless, this is often a good time for a late fall surprise, and this year was no exception. On the first day of November we found a wagtail with a suspicious call; a very good candidate for an Eastern Yellow Wagtail (østgulerle). It was present for five days, then disappeared in the bad weather, to miraculously show up again on November 17th.
It is a complex and difficult matter of ID to tell this East-Siberian species from eastern subspecies of our Yellow Wagtail. The call is a clue, and we hope some descent call-recordings can give us a positive ID.
Another good bird the first day of November was a smart Siberian Chiffchaff (sibirgransanger) on the same location as the Wagtail.
Our famous Rosy Starling (rosenstær) made it into November; the very last observation was when it came in for night roost on November 1st.
A few Blackcaps (munk) was still around eating rose hips I the start of November…
…and a couple of Chaffinches (bokfink) around the fish racks.
Still quite a few Redwings (rødvingetrost) around…
…while a single Mistle Trush (duetrost) was more of a surprise.
Our detour to Henningsvær was also rewarding. A Rook (kornkråke) had moved into the neighbourhood – probably the same bird as we saw in Svolvær in October.
This fall also offered plenty of Black Grouse (orrfugl), as dozens could be seen on the Islands along the coast. This happens every now and then because of good reproduction and failing food supply in the hillsides during fall.
Grey-headed Woodpeckers (gråspett) were also well represented around Henningsvær…
… and a small flock of Bohemian Waxwings (sidensvans) – always a nice encounter!
However, the biggest surprise in Henningsvær was an extremely late Tree Pipit (trepiplerke) on November 9th!
Back at Røst it has been stormy, and the birdlife is really quiet. Among shorebirds, the Purple Sandpipers (fjæreplytt) have dominated…
… but a few Ruddy Turnstones (steinvender) are still around.
On the last days of our stay, a late Common Chiffchaff (gransanger) was the only songbird left.
Now we follow the birds southwards, to spend the winter months in Southern Norway. Follow us for updates!