CHASING YET A NEW ELUSIVE SPRING IN TROMSØ, N.NORWAY
I started writing these small impressions of birdlife and seasons in and
around Tromsø, N.Norway (70°N) exactly three years ago, I just saw. Since
then I must have sent out at least twenty "snapshots" of the course of the
seasons here. Please warn me, if this gives a surfeit of Tromsø birds!
When I was out in the field today, it struck me how different the scenery
must be for most of you, contrasted to my own impressions. This was when I
registered that there were some small, south-exposed fields where much of
the snow already had largely disappeared. Most of you, when teleported to
that place, would probably first see all the snow still around (snow depth
in Tromsø now 80 cm, less than normal still), rather than the few bare
patches! Likewise, when I optimistically report that during my 100 km drive
today there were only a few patches of road that were still heavily covered
with snow and ice, most of you will probably say: "and he calls that
"only"." I'll have to write down my impressions "from my own eyes", so this
kind of different perceptions can not be helped.
Today was a nice, mild and sunny day, although with a strong breeze;
temperatures are a bit above freezing, and the sun is already quite strong,
so one hears everywhere gurgling and dripping water below the snow. As I
said, most of the roads are now bare, but with typical "winter scars" in
the form of potholes and sudden humps, caused by the ice.( A sign of spring
in themselves).
Today I drove a bit inland, along the Balsfjord, the long and deep fjord
south of our town. The tide was low, and the first time I stopped was
opposite a wide intertidal area, with behind it the dark blue fjord water,
full of small whitecaps in the brisk wind, and with the usual backdrop of
quite impressive snowy hills on the other side of the fjord (here 1-2 miles
broad). In the intertidal now the Oystercatchers and Common gulls have
returned in full strength, and the air is ringing with the kle-peeet
kle-peeeet of the oystercatchers, never a bird to hide its presence. Most
of the gulls are still a bit more subdued, but most of them seem
nevertheless to be pairing off. A lone Curlew is foraging near the low
water mark; it seems hard to understand usually what the benefit of the
curvature of the bill is under normal feeding intertidally.
In the fjord there are many scattered groups of diving ducks, usually
neatly sorted out by species: Common Eiders here, Oldsquaws over there, and
a tight clump of King Eiders a bit further offshore; the Mallards mostly
hug the shoreline.
In order to get to the south-exposed fields around Selnes, that are my
destination this morning, I have to circumnavigate the 20 km long Ramfjord,
a narrow side fjord of the Balsfjord, surrounded by steep mountains, and a
much more arctic type of fjord than the always open Balsfjord. The
innermost part of Ramfjord is frozen solid, with the ice crisscrossed by
the tracks of the ice-fishermen(Not so many as yet on the ice this Saturday
morning, for that is shopping day here too). All the Ravens of the
neighbourhood seemed to have congregated in this area: I saw at least 30-40
when driving past. They clearly patrol the holes of the ice-fishermen;
probably many of them clean the fish (mostly Cod) that they catch out on
the ice.
Just south of the entrance of the Ramfjord the little river Anderdalselva
runs out, and one of my traditional stops is on the bridge itself, where
there is room for two large cars passing each other, something that does
not happen all that often in this distinctly rural area. Two young Glaucous
gulls (2. years, I deem) show that winter still has not really left us as
yet, but on the other side of the bridge I see the first Teal (Green-winged
Teal) of the year, and the Starlings sing from the farm houses. The
Yellow-billed loons are not to be found today either, the white-caps, and
my old-fashioned lack of a telescope, make it hard to spot them.
My other traditional stop and walk is a bit further on, at a peninsula
jutting out into the fjord, which as so often before is already largely
snow free. A Northern Lapwing is present, and here there are once more many
Starlings, primarily a coastal bird here north. Then I note that one field
is "moving", and my field-glasses show it to be covered by a slowly moving
carpet of at least 500 Snow Buntings (mostly in winter dress as yet),
trying to fatten up before the big trek across the Norwegian Sea.
Suddenly the whole flock explodes into some kind of reverse snow storm!
That usually means a predator, and so also in this case. A female Merlin
lazily drifts past, apparently "just testing" and not exceptionally hungry.
But the buntings take no risk, and disappear in the opposite direction.
My walk here is along the road through a "culture landscape" with a lot of
small trees. I search them for signs of spring, swelling buds for example
(No leaves as yet anywhere here north). The birches? Not really. The
alders? Maybe, with a bit of optimism. The willows? Definitely, so here is
another sign of spring to come.
And while I check the trees , I hear a high, somewhat plaintive eeh eeh
eeh: the first real song of the Willow Tit for this year!! So not to worry
that there are no other summer birds to be seen as yet than the many flocks
of Snow Buntings. And that even the Coltsfeet still have cold feet, and are
not yet in bloom. Spring will come also this year!!
Wim Vader, Tromsø Museum
9037 Tromsø, Norway
http://www.imv.uit.no/ommuseet/enheter/zool/wim/index.html
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