. . Lintuharrastajan päiväkirja Birders diary . .

On the 19th of May while I was working I got a message that really hit hard – there was a Pied Stonechat in Utö. The species had been in Finland once before but then I had been in England and there was only a bit more than 10 records in WP, so I really had to start planning a big twitch. Utö is an island in south-western Finland so it is a long way from Parikkala. So I had to stop my work-day earlier and start driving towards Parainen.

I had planned to go to Utö by a ship that leaves at 6:15 p.m. and is there only late at night, then sleep in a tent and then try to twitch the bird early in the morning, but once I had been driving about 100km, I started to think that I had to try to see the bird already on the same evening! I knew there were already local birders going to Utö by a taxi-boat, so I called to a couple of twitchers to find out how long does it take to get to Utö by a boat and what it costs. Then I called to Ulf Nyström and organized a boat that was leaving from Parainen Nauvo at 17:45 p.m. Then I did put news out that there was room for 11 twitchers in my boat and almost immediately my phone started to ring. After 10 minutes the boat was full and then the cost was only 60€per person, which is not too much as it is 2 hours driving one way.

One couple of twitcher was coming from Virolahti so I met them in Hamina and we continued together in my car to save some fuel-money. Unfortunately I had to wait them for some 15 minutes so I really started to be afraid that we wouldn’t be in the harbor in time. I was sure there was lots of traffic in island-road as it was Friday evening and the weather was really beautiful – and there was even one ferry on the way.

Luckily after Helsinki we could drive pretty fast and when we still had an hour to go I got a message that the boat was a little bit late and we would leave only at 6:30 p.m. from Pärnäinen harbor. It was a little bit more to drive to Pärnäinen but also a shorter way by boat, so it was really good for us, at least we could be there in time. And luckily the Pied Stonechat was still there…

Luckily there were 3 ferries driving in Nauvo, so we made it in time to Pärnäinen and only after 15 minutes waiting our boat arrived with the first happy group of twitchers and soon our group Markku and Biti Ojala, Tom and Kaija Lindroos, Kari Laamanen and Tuula Suihko, Antti Vaalgamaa, Arto Laakso and Joonas Lainesalo, Erkki Valsta and Tapani Numminen and I were on the boat towards Utö.

The weather was perfect but anyway it was pretty cold on the boat. We had really a fun group so we were laughing most of the way but still saw some birds too – a couple of Arctic Skuas and Razorbills and several Arctic Skuas were seen. I had hoped to get Pied Stonechat as my 200th year-tick but those terns ruined my plans.

Finally we landed to Utö and on the harbor we met the grand old man of the island, Jorma Tenovuo, who told us to walk towards the cemetery where the bird was on a small pasture nearby. After a short walk we found a photographed who told that the bird was only 50 meters in front of him but hiding between some rocks. We slowly walked behind him and son the bird flew to the posts and we saw it extremely well! It was a beautiful bird! I had seen some Pied Stonechats in India but in this landscape it looked much more beautiful!

Pied Stonechat was pretty shy so we stayed pretty far while it was hunting insects from the posts and tops of bushes. It showed very well until it suddenly disappeared. While we were celebrating and planning what to do next, Markku Ojala shouted that he was watching a Subalpine Warbler through his scope! The bird had been seen on the island early in the morning by only one photographer but not since that even though about 20 birders had been searching for it. The notes weren’t very good so I saw the bird too late when it was disappearing behind one big juniper. But luckily we found the bird soon after we had walked closer. It was hiding extremely well but it was easy to identify even in flight. We did put the news out and soon there were every single birder that was on the island staring to one juniper were the bird had been seen the last. From this same bush we had flushed the Pied Stonechat too which had been missing for some time. But now there was nothing moving inside the bush. After some waiting Tenovuo and one another birder went to shake the bush but only one Common Whitethroat was flushed. When they had already given up, the Subalpine Warbler flushed still from the same bush and after that it was showing quite well.

I didn’t try to photograph the Subalpine Warbler as it looked as an eastern cantillans-subspecies anyway. But I still tried and managed to get some better pictures of the Pied Stonechat. Then it was time to start walking back to harbor as we had already been on the island a little bit more than 2 hours that we had agreed with our captain to stay there. Luckily there was still coffee for happy twitchers in the cafeteria so I had time to wear some more clothes as the way back would be even colder.

The way back went fast as we were all very happy after a very successful visit to Utö! We still saw a couple of Arctic Skuas but after a long drive we were finally back in Pärnäinen about at midnight. Luckily we had to wait only for 15 minutes for the ferry and soon we were driving back towards east.

I dropped Kari and Tuija to Hamina and continued towards Parikkala. Finally in Luumäki I was so tired that I had to sleep a couple of hours in my car. Then I did a brief stop in Imatra Kymälahti where a Garden Warbler was singing and then continued to Siikalahti to watch if there was any migration going on. I saw a Garganey, 2 White-tailed Eagles and 2 Honey Buzzards, but then I really had to go to get some sleep again.

In the afternoon we did a trip to Saari once again and saw 135 Yellow Wagtails in Akanvaara Tetrisuo, a Garganey, a Redshank and a flock of even 48 Ringed Plovers in Pohjanranta, 3 Ringed and 1 Little Ringed Plover in Suurenjärvenliete, 2 Stock Doves in Jyrkilä, 6 Ringed Plovers in Karinmäki and a Pink-footed Goose in Rautalahti.

On Sunday the 21st of May I did the duck-count again and there were fewer birds than ever in Siikalahti! But during the day I saw also a Temminck Stint, 2 Dunlins, a Heuglin’s Gull, 2 Golden Orioles, 2 Red-backed Shrikes, 2 Blackcaps and a Wood Warbler. In the afternoon we did a short trip to the fields with Miika Soikkeli and saw a Whimbrel, some flocks of Golden Plovers and Ruffs and heard a Grey-headed Woodpecker. At night I visited Siikalahti but there were almost nothing else than Water Rails and frogs calling, a couple of migrating Brent Geese flocks were heard from the dark sky.

On the 22nd of May the short trip was already like a boring summer-trip. After 9 p.m. once we had just finished sauna in Tarvaslampi, I got a message that Jarmo Pirhonen had found a female King Eider in Imatra Immalanjärvi. It was a new south-Karelia tick for me, so we had to go twitching. Luckily it is only 45 minutes driving to Rautio, where the bird was seen swimming with a flock od Long-tailed Ducks.

On the way back we stopped in Sammallampi where a Nightjar was singing and then in Kullinsuo where once again was a Great Snipe lekking already.

J.A.