VERY EARLY SPRING IN TROMSØ, N. NORWAY
These last winters have been 'easy' here at 70*N, with never much more than 1 m
of snow on the ground, no periods of extreme cold (which here , on an island
near the open sea, anyway only is something like -15 to -18*C), and a
reasonably early snow melt. Now, 21 April, there are large bare patches near
the sea and on sunny open places, and the official snow-depth can't be much
more than 1-2 feet. The optimists are already changing from the studded winter
wheels on their cars to summer wheels , but the 'snow-sticks along the roads,
guiding the snowploughs, are still there, and now and then fresh snow showers
bring a temporary return of wintery feelings. But in general the weather is
somewhat mild, with temperatures above freezing during the day.
That is not to say that we have glorious weather: these last days have been
mostly grey and dreary, with low clouds lying like wet rags halfway up the
hills, and constant drizzle varying between rain and sleet. But last weekend
was not so bad, and on Sunday it was calm and intermittently sunny, so we
grabbed the chance to go out---we being both my daughters and grandchild Marte
of 1 1/2 years. For her---or maybe rather for grandfather-- it was a red-letter
day, as her mother showed her her very first amphipods in the intertidal at
Tisnes! (Pappadyr=daddy-animals these were known as when my kids were small)
At Tisnes where we had a picnic, there were hundreds of Eiders in the sound
just offshore and their cooing was a constant backdrop. Also the gulls were
back; pairs of Common Gulls just start occupying their territories again, and
the larger gulls have come further and will soon have their first eggs.
Lapwings demonstrate their flying abilities during acrobatic displays, and now
and then one hears the bronze flute of the Curlew. Tisnes is also a favourite
place for Shelducks, and their crisp colours and proud stance were much
admired. Otherwise the Redshanks are back, but the Golden Plovers and Ruffs not
yet, and of dabbling dicks I have hitherto only seen Mallards (galore!), a few
Wigeons, and a lone male Pintail. The first Greylag Geese were also back and I
also saw 5 Pinkfoot Geese, on their way to Svalbard. Dominating this day, here
as well as elsewhere on Kvaløya, are the large flocks of Snow Buntings,
fattening up here for a few weeks before their arduous crossing to Greenland;
they are a joy to behold, as flocks of often as many as a few hundreds wheel
and turn, white in the sun.
The weather was in fact so pleasant this day (although the temp hardly crept
past +4*C) that we decided to drive out to the coast, to our favourite walking
island of Hillesøy, where the snow was practically completely gone except in
very shady places, and where the peat underground gives always an extra spring
to our steps, so even little Marte walked by herself for long stretches. While
we were celebrating the coming spring with an ice outside the café on Sommarøy
(Norwegians eat ice all year round, in fact), no less than 4 adult White-Tailed
Sea Eagles circled overhead, and the first Ringed Plovers of the year tripped
on the sandy beaches. Also here there are small flocks of Snow Buntings, and a
raven carried out acrobatic display flights overhead.
On the shore we had a view of large lines of hundreds of Common Eiders, while
the skerries were festooned with Cormorants, and here and there a stark black
and white Black Guillemot gleamed in the beautiful backlit conditions. On the
shore the thin reels of the Rock Pipits also talked of spring, and on the walk
back we stumbled across a pair of Willow Grouse, the very cocky cock strutting
around all white still, but with a brown neck and very conspicuous red
'eye-brows', while the hen ducked down and played invisible, not so easy when
you are still white and most of the snow is gone.
The landscape itself is still brown and uninviting looking, and the only
flowers are the yellow stars of the Coltsfoot Tussilago farfara, locally
extremely common on road verges and other disturbed places, as the pioneers
they are. At Tisnes old Puffballs still 'smoke' and this time there was also
much evidence that Moose had been here recently, in addition to the more common
Reindeer. And at Hillesøy we glimpsed a few ¨springere' (jumpers), the
White-nosed Dolphin Lagenorhynchus, so-called because its proclivity to jump
right out of the water.
Not many songbirds as yet, but others have already noted the first Fieldfares
and Chaffinches, and when I retunr to tromsø after two weeks abroad, around 10
may, there will be much more to listen to and write about.
Wim Vader, Tromsø Museum
9037 Tromsø, Norway
(NB mark
change!)
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