. . Lintuharrastajan päiväkirja Birders diary . .

We started July with a proper checking that Baillon’s Crake was really not present anymore. While staying several hours in the place, we found a family of Long-eared Owls and a Quail that was calling close to Kuposenmäki. We also saw 6 migrating Whimbrels and a Coot that was flying around the lake and probably left to the night-sky.

On the next night we headed to Saari with Veikka Kosonen and Oskari Saunisto. The Eagle Owl wasn’t heard anymore and we found nothing else either before midnight. So all birds we found were on the 3rd of July. In Kuposenmäki the same Quail was still calling and near Suurenjärvenliete we saw a Short-eared Owl and in Jyrkilä we heard altogether 8 young Long-eared Owls and saw one adult briefly.

Of course we heard plenty of Corn Crakes and Blyth’s Reed Warblers and even tried to catch one Corn Crake without luck. But at least we managed to spend some time and when we continued a Golden Oriole was already singing. After we had seen a family of Northern Wheatears and a Stock Dove we headed towards Akonpohja.

In the end of Selkäsaarentie we heard a Common Grasshopper Warbler already through open windows. We decided to try to ring it. While we were getting our equipment from the trunk, Hanna heard another “locustella” singing behind the very loud Grasshopper Warbler. She thought it was a Lanceolated Warbler! I left to listen to it with my microphone and also to sound-record it, but it was now quiet. So we decided to try to catch both birds. Soon we had the mist-net up and we started to play Lanceolated Warbler and soon the bird was showing well! We managed to get some good pictures before it flew close to the net. It went under the net like a mouse a couple of times but finally we caught it. And soon we had ringed, measured and photographed this first Lanceolated Warbler in Finland this year and the first in Parikkala for 15 years and the bird was released to the same meadow.

We tried to catch the Grasshopper Warbler too but it was too sneaky and only hit the net once and then was singing perched on the net. So after all we left it singing. While catching the birds, we had also heard an Icterine and a Marsh Warbler and seen 3 young Gold Finches and a Whimbrel.

It was already morning when we continued to Melkoniemi forests where our goal was to find Red-flanked Bluetail and hopefully them breeding. In Siberian Jay forests we weren’t lucky even though there had been 2 males singing earlier. So we continued to check that a Red-throated Diver was still on its nest on one pool nearby.

Then we continued near Oronmylly where we had found a female-looking Red-flanked Bluetail earlier. We first heard a Greenish Warbler calling a couple of times but soon found a Bluetail alarm-calling. We also heard a male singing, so there was a couple! We followed the female and soon it started to call intensive “krak-krak” calls. We moved a little bit backwards and waited and finally we saw both male and female carrying food under some branches. Unfortunately boys train was soon leaving so we decided to come back soon.

On the 4th of July we came back to try to find the nest of Red-flanked Bluetails. After all Hanna stayed near the nest for a couple of hours but saw nothing at all! But when we started walking in the forest nearby, we found the female and soon it carried food under one tree-trunk and we found a young bird! Surprisingly this tiny bird was already flying but I still managed to catch it. And of course we ringed it. Then we followed the female and found another fledling that was ringed too. But even though we really tried, we couldn’t find more fledglings, but sure there were more. We even came back in the evening too but saw only the female and heard a male singing further. In the morning Hanna had heard 2 singing birds.

In the evening we headed to Saari and first tried to catch the Quail but it wasn’t interested our tape at all. We did see a couple of Tundra Bean Geese and a couple of Barnacle Geese. Before midnight we headed to try to listen to Lanceolate Warbler but it was already gone. The Grasshopper Warbler was still singing all the time and also a Savi’s Warbler was heard from the lake. It was the same bird that we had heard in spring but now it was closer and it could be heard again after a long time.

On the 5th day the only birds to mention were a family of Nutcrackers that were in Kangaskylä. It would be great to know where they are breeding? The youngsters weren’t very old.

On the 7th day a couple of Red-backed Shrikes were seen in Tetrisuo and the first Great White Egret in Siikalahti. On the 10th day we had SSP-ringing again and we caught 2 Robins, 1 control Sedge Warbler, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 10 r + 1 c Common Whitethroats, 2 Garden Warblers, 2 Pied Flycatchers and 1 Common Rosefinch.

From the 12th day there were 2 or 3 Great White Egrets every day in Siikalahti and usually on evening visit it was possible to see also Great Bitterns and Grey Herons. In mid July we worked again in Saari Pohjanranta and tried to make a small area good for waders but summer had been so dry that the area didn’t look as good as we had hoped.

On the 15th day we went to ring Barnacle Geese to Joukio and caught amazing 38 ad and 22 pull geese. We also caught 6 birds that we had ringed in earlier years. With us there were Matti Lötjönen, Miika ja Elissa Soikkeli, Juho Saukkonen sekä Merja Laari.

On the 17th day we had SSP again and we caught a Common Snipe, a Blackbird, a Song Thrush, 1r + 1c Sedge Warblers, 2 Blyth’s Reed Warblers, a Lesser Whitethroat, 4r + 1c Common Whitethroats, 4r + 2c Garden Warblers, 2r +1c Willow Warblers, a Pied Flycatcher, a Blu Tit, a Great Tit, 3 Greenfinches and a Common Rosefinch. We also saw a Bar-tailed Godwit flying over us.

On the 18th of July there were nothing interesting on the muddy area that we had made to Pohjanranta but a couple of Dunlins were seen on a tiny sandy area on the shore and 3 Spotted Redshanks flew over us. A couple of Black Kites were flying around so they are probably breeding nearby. On the next day only birds to mention were a couple of Stock Doves in Tetrisuo and again Great White Egrets, Grey Herons and Great Bittern were seen in Siikalahti.

J.A.