no please don't stop sending your stories, Wim! how else are we going to
remember how different the frozen north is. Plus you have northern ducks and
loons, all of which my northern husband misses (quietly).
Helen
<')/////==<
________________________________
From: Vader Willem Jan Marinus <>
To: birding-aus <>; "Ebn "
<>; "Sabirdnet ( "
<>
Sent: Monday, 10 June 2013, 16:58
Subject: [Birding-Aus] FW: Full spring in Tromsø
From: Vader Willem Jan Marinus
Sent: 9. juni 2013 17:12
To: birdchat
Cc:
Subject: Full spring in Tromsø
A WONDERFUL MAY IN TROMSØ, N. NORWAY IN 2013
After the dismal summer of 2012 here in Tromsø (if you overslept one day, you
might have missed that summer) the winter 2012-2013 was also a bit peculiar (as
seems to become the norm these days): for a long time we had frost without much
snow, and then in March-April 2013 we suddenly got a whole load of snow, up to
1.5m on the ground in mid April. But from then on our luck turned, as first
much of the snow melted slowly and regularly, thus avoiding severe flooding
(Contrary to S. Norway, and now also Central Europe), and then May became
wonderfully warm and dry, the best May I can remember in the 40 years I have
lived in Tromsø. So in the end the trees became green at the normal time after
all (around 20 May) and although the first migrant birds were 2 weeks late, the
later ones arrived more or less 'on time'. 'Hot May weather' in Tromsø is
19-21*C in the afternoon, and I know this won't impress you much, but together
with calm weather and sun 24 hrs
a day (21 May to 21 July) I can assure you that there is no better place to be
than in N. Norway in spring. Now of course this could not last for ever, and
just now we have one of those changes that are so typical for our area.
Yesterday sun and 22*C, today partly cloudy and 12*C, and tomorrow rain,
northerly winds and a maximum of 6*C.
I had my elder sister (80) and her daughter on a visit just when the weather
was nicest, and we profited by sitting in the garden till late in the evening
(there were not even midges as yet!) and visiting several of my old haunts,
that I have written so often about. Here I'll write a little about two of these
areas, both wetlands of sorts, and both ca 35 km from Tromsø town by road. One,
the Rakfjord area, is situated on the northern part of the large and
mountainous island of Kvaløya, which is situated between Tromsø and the open
ocean. The rocks there are hard and acidic, so the vegetation is much less
luxuriant than further south, where there is much chalk in the ground. The
hills are covered with heath, often with small birch and willow scrubs here and
there; the ground vegetation is of a variety of berry-bearing dwarf scrubs, as
well as heather Calluna vulgaris. A few weeks ago the only flowers here were
the white Cloudberry flowers, that later
hopefully will develop in the yellow berries, that Norwegians are so fond of.
There are also quite early the small pink stars of Loiseleuria , the creeping
Azalea, and now the white-pink globes of another heath, Andromeda
serpyllifolia. This is the favourite area of the Whimbrels and one now hears
everywhere their stuttering alarm calls, and their beautiful 'song', ending in
a characteristic trill. The other day, a pair of these Whimbrels saw off a
hunting Short-eared Owl, a bird which I don't see many years, but this year
already 5 times. Also Golden Plovers are common here in the beginning of the
season, but by now many have moved to higher ground. The common smaller birds
here are Meadow Pipits and Northern Wheatears, while also here the ubiquitous
Common Gulls nest; they really live up to their name in the Tromsø area,
nesting from downtown Tromsø to the most remote valleys. As soon as there are
some scrubs, one hears the beautiful, but somewhat
melancholy song-strophes of the Willow Warbler, the most numerous bird in
Norway.
The Rakfjord elva (elv=river) runs out here, through a series of marshes and
lakes and into a very shallow, mostly tidal bay (tidal amplitude here is ca
3m). Here there are always ducks and geese: the geese are Greylags, of which we
seem to get more and more, while the most common duck here is probably the
fish-eating Red-throated Merganser. But also Mallards (One with pulli today),
Wigeons and Tufted Ducks are common here, and two of the lakes hold a pair of
loons, Red-throated loons in one, Arctic Loons in the other (What I call the
swan lake, as a pair of Whooping Swans has nested there for years. They
returned also this spring, but must have moved to one of the more remote
lakes.) Also here there are lots of Common Gulls, and this year also Arctic
Terns, as well as a few Parasitic Jaegers (Only 2 pairs this year, normally
there are more). Close to the road there is a shallow round small lake, now
fringed with a broad belt of the beautiful white
chandelier flower-stands of the Bogbean Menyanthes trifoliata. These, and the
sedges and Equisetum belts, provide excellent cover for the two pairs of
phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus that nest here, and try as I might, half of the
time I can't find them at all, even if they are not at all shy. Also the Ruffs
usually disappear completely as soon as they alight, while the Redshanks are so
nervous and loud that one can't overlook them. Snipe there are here too, but as
the area is protected so one cannot walk into the marsh, one only notes the
snipes when they 'bleat' overhead, or sit somewhere calling their monotonous
ground display call. On the shores of the sound here there are lots of Eider
ducks and Oystercatchers, also Curlews and the larger gulls, Herring and Great
Black-backed.
The other wetland, Tisnes, is on the south coast of Kvaløya, in the chalk rich
area, and it is a low-lying moraine sticking out into the fjord. It is fully
agricultural, with several farms, and all the ground is in use as grassland;
one farm has been taken in use for horses, and that has ruined a wonderful
chalk meadow, but also provided two new ponds, that are very popular with the
birds and also close to the road, so that one can watch using the car as a
blind. Several of the fields here are extremely marshy, and now yellow with
Marsh Marigold Caltha palustris, a very common spring flower in the Tromsø
area, later several species of Cotton Grass Eriophorum will dominate the
scenery here. Tisnes traditionally is famous for its Ruffs, their numbers have
been decreasing steadily these last decades, but this year there are quite
many, with maybe 10 spectacular males, and almost as many females around.
Otherwise Tisnes is a place for ducks, and we often
have rare ducks (for us) here; as these are species that are much more common
further south, other birders are not always much impressed by our Shovelers,
Gadwalls, and Garganeys; they rather come for the wintering King Eiders and
Yellow-billed Loons (now long gone). But last year we also had a few Avocets,
and this spring no less than 3 Pectoral Sandpipers, and later a Lesser
Yellowlegs, so it is always worth to check Tisnes. Today there were no
specialties, just Mallards, Wigeons, Teal and a single male Pintail. Also
Lapwings nest here still, another species in steady decrease in our area.
On the way back I stopped for a while at a bight close to Kvaløysletta, where
the bridge from Kvaløya to Tromsøya is. No special birds here today, but when I
sat for a while reading the Sunday paper, I was suddenly surrounded by no less
than 14 Reindeer, not noticing me at all. What a pity then, that I have stopped
taking pictures!
I have the feeling that I have written roughly similar stories several times
before over the years. Let me know if you are still interested in the
occasional story from Tromsø.
Wim Vader, Tromsø Museum
9037 Tromsø, Norway
<>
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