. . Lintuharrastajan päiväkirja Birders diary . .

In the end of 2014 Sami Luoma sent me an email and asked me to join a competition where birders were going to count how many species they see every month. Of course I joined the competition where were participants around Finland but mostly close to the sea-shore.

After one year I asked if people would count species they will see in their home-region and county. But for some reason I was the only one to start counting them too. Some participants were counting only self-found birds, so I counted them too.

After every month Sami sent the results and after the year he had counted all the lists together. Of course those birders who were twitching most, were of course getting biggest lists every month. Jörgen Palmgren was winner the first 3 years and then Ari Vuorio won the last 2 years.

The winners year-results were from 1680 to 1755 (“Jösse´”s record) and my totals were 1331-1468. On every other year than 2019 when we did several longer trips abroad I got over 1400, so every year my results were pretty much the same. I also was 4th, 5th or 6th every year (about 12 to 15 participants).

The best month-result ever was Jösse’s May 2016 216 species. I got once 212 and once 211 species in May. In winter best was Jösse’s 110 in February 2015, in summer Ari’s 212 in June 2017 and in autumn Jösse’s 174 in September 2017.

In South Karelia my best year-result was 1348, in Parikkala 1273 and self-found birds 1563. The best January was 86, in South-Karelia 60 and in Parikkala 44 (58 self-found). February total 82, S-K 50, Pla 42 (self-found 71). March 89, 80 and 78 (84), April 150, 150 and 137 (147), May 212, 191 and 187 (205!), June 184, 145 and 132 (180), July 167, 142 and 132 (143), August 163, 140 and 137 (160), September 164, 146 and 139 (163), October 146, 111 and 110 (143), November 88, 80, 75 (73) and December 79, 63 and 51 (62).

To me the most interesting thing in this competition was to compare months between years in Parikkala. From six years results I can say that Parikkala is quite bad place to do birding in winter. Actually I have ever seen only 98 species here in winter. In spring it is possible to see really good selection of species – especially in May. Early summer is also very good but then autumn is very pretty poor comparing to sea-coats.

The competition lasted 5 full years and started again in January 2020 but then in February we got awful news, Sami had died. I immediately decided to continue the rest of the year just to finish the year as Sami would have liked. And now I decided to make this kind of article too just to make sure that this won’t be forgotten. I didn’t ask permits from other participants so that’s why I mentioned only some top-results as I am sure these birders won’t mind.

Thanks Sami (R.I.P) and other participants – J.A.

In December there weren’t many birds left in Parikkala. A flock of Common Gulls with some Herring Gulls were still in Kirkkoselkä and on the 3rd day I found a Bewick’s Swan that was with a couple of hundreds of Whooper Swans in Siikalahti.

On the 4th day I headed to Kouvola where with Teo Ylätalo we still did some birding with torches and found a Jack Snipe.

On the next morning we left birding with Teo and Antti Vänskä and found a Woodcock, Pheasants, Mute Swans, Velvet and Common Scoters, Cormorants, Canada Geese, Nuthatch and so on. Durng the whole day we found about 40 species which wasn’t very good.

On the 6th of December we participated Kymenlaakso Independence-day rally but stayed only in Kouvola. We found same Cormorants, Pheasants, Canada Geese, Mute Swans and Common Scoters but other prepared birds had disappeared. A White-backed Woodpecker, a Dipper and a Pygmy Owl were nice bonuses and then also a known Nutcracker was seen and after a long search we also got Waxwings and Fieldfares to our list. The best bird was seen while driving – a Hawfinch. Only gull we saw was a lonely Herring Gull and finally our last species was Velvet Scoter. Only 42 species were found but after all we were 3rd in a race and won the another Kouvola-team quite clearly.

On the 7th day I still saw the same Bewick’s Swan with about 100 Whooper Swans but Siikalahti was freezing fast.

On the 12th day we saw the last Whooper Swan that was wintering in Tyrjänjoki with 10 Mallards. On the next day we visited Siberian Jays and saw also a Goshawk, a Black Woodpecker and a flock of Long-tailed Tits.

Before Christmas I saw mostly tits and Goldcrests that were more numerous than ever in winter. Let’s see how they will survive…

On Christmas Eve we visited Simpele with Hanna and Miika but saw no Dipper at all. 60 Whooper Swans, 8 Goldeneyes and 9 Mallards were seen in river and in Kivijärvensalmi we heard a Grey-headed Woodpecker and in Kangaskoski we saw a Pygmy Owl. In the evening we saw another Pygmy Owl in Punkaharju Laakkee while visiting Hanna’s relatives.

On Cristmas Day I did winterbird-count and saw a Hazel Hen, 28 Black Grouses, a Goshawk, a Sparrowhawk, 3 Rock Pigeons, a Black and a Grey-headed Woodpecker, 6 Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 6 Goldcrests, 42 Blue, 70 Great, a Coal and 7 Willow Tits, a new europaea-Nuthatch, 4 Treecreepers, only one Jay, 65 Jackdaws, 19 Hooded Crows, 34 Tree Sparrows, 36 Greenfinches and 4 Yellowhammers.

On Boxing Day we found a flock of 31 Gold Finches in Tiviä and saw a Great Grey Shrike in Siikalahti. We also saw the oldest Nuthatch ever in Finland again as we saw rings of one familiar bird again.

On the 28th day I saw a White-tailed Eagle in Hernesaari and then on the last days I saw only Goldcrests, a Coal Tit, Treecreeper, Black Grouses, a Great Grey Shrike and still 12 Gold Finches. The weather was awful and it was raining and windy.

The year 2020 will be remembered because of Corona. It was also the reason why we couldn’t do any trips abroad. So we were birding even more than normally in Finland and especially in Parikkala. So after all I got 259 year-ticks which more than a long time. In Parikkala I saw 212 species and in Siikalahti 193. When Corona started I started to go jogging and after all I ran more than 1200 kilometers. I counted bird-species than I saw while running and altogether I saw 130 species, which 126 were seen on the runs that I made from home.

J.A.

Once we were back from Säppi I was sick. I had even corona-test so I had to keep away from work for a couple of days more. I had already been sick in Säppi as last days I had been extremely tired, but at home I was freezing all the time and totally powerless.

But I didn’t feel too bad, so I did some twitching and after seeing a couple of Starlings in Kangaskylä I headed to Lappeenranta to twitch a Hume’s Leaf Warbler as South-Karelia tick. After a couple of hours searching I heard it well but never managed to see it at all.

Next morning I went to Simpele to search for a Kingfisher and during the day I counted ducks in Siikalahti. A Teal, a Scaup, a Long-tailed Duck, a Velvet Scoter, 14 Smews and so on were seen. In the afternoon I felt very sick again and visited health center and got medicine for borreliosis!

After the firs pill I started to feel better already and when I got negative corona-results I decided to have only one more day free. I went to forests and checked some lakes but saw only an asiatica and an europaea Nuthatch, 11 Cormorants, 21 Scaups and a Starling again.

On the 29th day I went to work where I had new machines. During the lunch-hour I saw a couple of adult Cranes that were still in Siikalahti.

On the 30th day I twitched a skua that Harri Partanen found in Härskiinmutka and identified it as a Pomarine Skua. It was still around in the afternoon and also a Black and a Red-throated Diver, a few Velvet Scoters, 8 Cormorants, 16 Great Crested Grebes and in Rautalahti 19 grebes, 2 Common Scoters and in Siikalahti a late common Snipe were seen.

On the 31st day I did winter-bird count. Pomarine Skua was still around and other goodies were a Bewick’s Swan, 4 migrating Bean, 6 Greater White-fronted and ”only” 7 Barnacle Geese, 5 Wigeons, 7 Tufted Ducks, a Scaup, 13 Long-tailed ducks, 5 Goldeneyes, 7 Smews, a Black Grouse, a Great Crested Grebe, 9 Cormorants, 5 White-tailed Eagles, 2 Cranes, 2 Black-headed Gulls, 3 Grey Woodpeckers, a Black Woodpecker, a very late Meadow Pipit, 25 Long-tailed Tits, a Coal Tit, 6 Treecreepers, a hybrid sparrow, 6 Common Crossbills and of course some other more common birds.

Then November started and traditional November-competition. So in the first day I tried to see 50 species. We started with a surprise as we heard 2 Water Rails in Siikalahti! A Bewick’s Swan, 2 White-fronted Geese, a Scaup, a Long-tailed Duck, 3 Velvet Scoters, a Smew, a Black Grouse, a Black and a Red-throated Diver, a Great Crested Grebe, Cormorants, White-tailed Eagles, Cranes, Black-headed Gulls and so on were still around. Also a couple of Goshawks and a Crested Tit were seen and finally after a couple of hours trying a Pomarine Skua was seen again, but a bigger surprise was a Golden Eagle that was also seen in Härskiinmutka. Finally I got 51 species.

On the 2nd day I saw the skua in a second but then I never saw it again. Weather turned worse and for some reason most twitchers arrived too late. Only new November-species I got were a Willow and a Coal Tit.

On the 3rd day I saw 3 Canada Geese in Muikkulahti, 4 Scaups in Tarvaspohja and in a horrible weather a Pygmy Owl in Siikalahti. Next day twitchers found a Little Gull in Härskiinmutka and also a Black-throated Diver was still there. Siberian Jays were seen in their forest. On the 5th day only new bird was a Gold Finch.

On the 6th day a Little Gull was still as were the Cranes too. Finally I got a Nuthatch and in the evening I heard a late Common Snipe in Siikalahti.

On the 7th of November we headed to Saari with Harri and saw Common Crossbills in Rautalahti, some Teals and a Scaup in Pohjanranta, 2 Grey-headed Woodpeckers in Jyrkilä, a Sparrowhawk in Karinmäki and the best bird was a Shoveler in Kanavalampi.

On the 8th day 2 White-fronted Geese and a Bewick’s Sean were still with Whooper Swans in Tetrisuo. In forests 4 Siberian Jays were seen again but also at least 3 Pine Grosbeaks were heard.

Then a few days were too bad for birding and even though I visited some places, I saw nothing. White-fronted Geese were seen still on the 10th day and the Bewick’s Swan had got a friend on the 13th day. During the weekend only a couple of Nuthatches and a Siskin were seen.

On the 19th day I counted 340 Whooper Swans in Tetrisuo and saw also some Long-tailed Tits and a Crested Tit. Also some Goldcrests were seen and it seems that there are more of them and Treecreepers than ever trying to overwinter.

On the 20th of November a couple of Sparrowhawks were seen and a Grey-headed Woodpecker was still calling actively.

On the 21st day only a new asiatica Nuthatch and a couple of Common Scoters were seen on our morning-trip. Then we went to move one Ural Owl nestbox to Siikalahti and saw a Hawk Owl, a Pygmy Owl and still one more big owl that was either Great Grey or Ural Owl.

On the 22nd day we were in Rautalahti when we got a message that there was a Mute Swan in Saari Akonpohja. Of course we went to twitch this South-Karelia year-tick. We stopped also on the way back in Rautalahti and saw a Fieldfare and a Chaffinch.

during the week it was again dark and boring. A couple of Common and Velvet Scoters and a White-tailed Eagle were only birds to mention until on the 27th day there was a Starling in Siikalahti.

On Saturday the 28th day we started well as we found a Glaucous Gull in Hernesaari – it was a new Parikkala-tick for us! Only a couple of birders managed to twitch it before it flew towards north-east an disappeared. In Särkisalmi we found a Smew and in Härskiinmutka we saw a White-tailed Eagle.

On Sunday the 29th day I drove around Lake Simpele with Miika Soikkeli but we saw only some tits and Goldcrests. In Simpele we twitched a couple of Nuthatches and saw a Blackbird. In Kangaskoski I finally saw a Dipper which was my 77th species in November and all were seen in Parikkala and Rautjärvi which was the competition area.

On the last day of November I still saw a couple of Black-headed Gulls in Härskiinmutka and a Hazel Hen in Siikalahti. Then on the next day it was officially winter…

J.A.

Towards Pori

On the 9th of October we had packed our car and left driving toward Kouvola early in the morning. In Kouvola we met Teo in a place where I had been sleeping one day earlier. We left our car to the garden and packed everything in Teo’s car and started driving toward Pori.

Driving went quickly and finally we were in Pori where we still bought lots of food and I must say that our car was completely full when we were driving towards Kuuminainen.

In the harbor we met my brother Pirkka who had traveled from Kemijärvi to Helsinki by train, then picked up Arto Aaltonen from Kerava and also ”Jände” and Tom Nordblad had driven from Helsinki. Soon ”Fish-Tommi” arrived and we started to carry our stuff to the boat. And soon we were on the way to Säppi-island.

Finnish-tick right away

The ride was bumpy and we were soon wet and all our bags were wet too. After 30 minutes we finally arrived at harbor next to Prakala where we could see one birder, Jani Vastamäki, standing and watching to his feet. All birders were changing in the island so everyone else was on the harbor and Petteri Mäkelä told us that they can move all the stuff away and to the boat, so we can hurry to Prakala. So we were almost running towards Jani and there he had Asian Desert Warbler just two meters from him!

Asian Desert Warbler that had been in Prakala for a few days already was showing extremely well so we got some pictures right away so soon we left the photographers with the bird and went back to harbor to say thanks and goodbye to everyone, especially to Jani and Petteri. Soon the boat left and we still walked back to watch the warbler.

After some more photographing the warbler and a Tundra Bean Goose that was standing next to us too, we started to carry our luggage towards the bird-station. We had booked the family-part of the station for ourselves with Hanna, Pirkka and Teo, so Arto, Jände and Tom went to the station-side.

New ringing-species to the station

It was already getting late while we were settling down to the station and then we still had to put daily observations to Tiira even though we had seen only the warble rand the goose. After the log Teo went out with a headlamp and a hand net as he wanted to try to catch some snipes. It didn’t take long when he came back carrying a Tundra Bean Goose! It was a new ringing-species to the station and even though it was extremely tame it seemed to be alright.

Routines begin – well

On the 10th of October we started to run the routines. Hanna and Pirkka were the ringers so they left early to Peräkulma to put up the mist-nets and then ringed as long as there were birds coming, or at least Hanna stayed there so long. Then when sun was rising migrating birds were counted in Prakala for two hours. On a couple of mornings it was quite busy with birds in Peräkulma, so I was also helping ringers but then walked to the station when migration-watching was over. After a couple of days it was getting more quiet with ringing, so I stayed in Peräkulma only for an hour or so and then in the end of the week Hanna and Pirkka didn’t need me at all anymore, so I could sleep a little bit later. Unfortunately also migration was very quiet almost every morning. On the first morning we had one of the best mornings as a couple of small flocks of Brent Geese, Eiders, Common and Velvet Scoters, Long-tailed Ducks, some Black and Red-throated Divers, a couple of Red-necked Grebes, 60 Razorbills, some Black Guillemots and one lucky had also a Common Guillemot. Also 4 Purple Sandpipers were seen, but in most mornings it was much more boring. Then after 2 hours we usually had so-called second breakfast and after that we left to walk around the whole island.

On the first morning Hanna was ringing alone as Pirkka wanted to join the island-walk too as he had never been in Säppi before. On the second year in a row there were almost no berries in sea-buckthorns which was the reason there were much less birds on the bushes. Also only one Skylark and 17 Meadow Pipits were seen and also thrushes and tits were only a few. But there were lots of Chiffchaffs and many of them were calling weirdly ”chiwy” calls and the rest were calling normally, this year there were no Siberian Chiffchaffs at all. 17 Chiffchaffs and 2 Willow Warblers were ringed on the first day. Mouflons were easier to see than ever – in best time we saw 19 in same time.

But the most common bird also here was Goldcrest. On the first morning 115 were ringed. Common Redpolls hadn’t arrived yet as only some were ringed and then of course Treecreepers, Robins, Wrens, Dunnocks, common tits and so on were ringed.

We had walked until Eteläkari when Hanna sent a Whats App message – picture of a Siberian Accentor hanging on the mist-net! BOOM! It is still an extremely rare bird at least if that one year (2016) is out of count. So we had to hurry to Peräkulma.

There had been tow boats full of twitchers because of the Asian Desert Warbler that was still in Prakala. Arto had been helping them to see the bird and even now there was one group in the island. So Tom sent a message to Lintutiedotus that the Siberian Accentor will be shown in the bird-station after ringing. It is 15 minutes walk from Peräkulma to the station and we weren’t even in Peräkulma yet, so there was plenty of time to every twitcher to get to the station.

Once we were in Peräkulma, Hanna had already ringed the bird and then we of course took lots of pictures. Then Teo and Hanna left towards the station with the bird, Pirkka stayed in Peräkulma and the rest of us kept on walking around the island. Siberian Accentor was freed next to the harbor where some twitchers still saw it very briefly. But only later we found out that one twitcher had probably panicked when the message about the accentor had been sent and she had got lost in a roundish island where sea can be heard everywhere and it is not long walk to the station which is in the middle of the island from anywhere. She had been walking around in the forest for a couple of hours and even the boat had to wait for 30 minutes before she was finally found. I never thought this to be possible in time when everyone has good maps in their phones.

Teo was waiting us already when we were getting to Kräveli and then we still walked around the rest of the island. The best birds we saw during the whole walk were a Barnacle Goose, a Peregrine, a Merlin, a couple of Golden Plovers, a Black Woodpecker, a few Great Grey Shrikes and some Parrot Crossbills. Hanna still had a possible Olive-backed Pipit calling in Peräkulma but it wasn’t seen at all.

In Prakala the Asian Desert Warbler was still around with the same Tundra Bean Goose and in the evening we heard a Pygmy Owl calling a couple of times with Arto, but it didn’t come to garden mist-net even though we played tape for it.

Hard work continues

On the 11th of October the weather was bad so ”standard” was shorter. Only migrants to mention were 18 Greylag Geese and a Merlin. Asian Desert Warbler was still around and again there were twitchers.

Surprisingly it was a busy morning in Peräkulma where 356 Goldcrests were ringed, also 34 Robins and a Lesser Redpoll was ringed.

Walk around the island produced a Grey Plover, 7 Common Ringed Plovers, a Dunlin and a couple of Short-eared Owls. Again Hanna and Pirkka had a possible Olive-backed Pipit and we went to search for it but when we found a good-looking pipit, it was a Tree Pipit. But while watching the Tree Pipit also another pipit was heard calling from the forest.

In the afternoon we walked half of the island again and in Lännennokka we had a good surprise when Pirkka found a Siberian Accentor! Unfortunately it had a bright ring so it was the same bird we had ringed on the previous day.

In the afternoon Tom and Jände left so there were only four of us left in the island. The Asian Desert Warbler wasn’t found in the afternoon even though we tried a couple of times. Luckily the last twitchers had still seen it, but after that either Great Grey Shrike or Short-eared Owl had probably found it too as they were moving also in Prakala. The bean goose was still around and we saw it flying a couple of times longer distances and it seemed to be shyer too.

On the 12th day Hanna and Pirkka headed to Peräkulma but the weather was so rainy and windy that the morning sea-watch wasn’t done at all. Anyway there seemed to be no birds either. It was very quiet also when we walked around the island, just a couple of Short-eared Owls, a Common Redstart and a Blackcap were seen. Anyway mist-nest were catching well between the rains and 190 Goldcrest and 30 Treecreepers and so on were caught. In the afternoon we opened the nets in the garden and so altogether 52 Great Tits were ringed. Siberian Accentor was still seen in the same place but Tundra Bean Goose had left.

On the 13th of October the morning sea-watch was done again but still it was very quiet. I was helping in Peräkulma because of the weather was perfect and we had expected to have a busy morning but after a couple of hours it was already very quiet. Altogether 175 Goldcrests were ringed.

During the walk we saw the same Siberian Accentor still in Lännennokka and once we reached Eteläkari we noticed that there were lots of Cranes migrating over the mainland. We counted altogether 1365 Cranes and also saw some flocks of Barnacle Geese. I also saw a Golden Eagle flying very distant somewhere over Pori but it had turned and started to glide when others found it. Also a distant Rough-legged Buzzard and pretty good crow-migration was seen – including a couple of Rooks. But nothing else to mention was found.

A little price

On the 14th day I was in Peräkulma again but it was very quiet. But while checking the nets I heard a promising ”tic” call and as I had already a Little Bunting playing next to one of the nets, I just kept on checking the mist-nets. So it wasn’t a big surprise that on the next round there was a Little Bunting hanging on one of the nets. When also an Arctic Redpoll was caught on the same round it meant that Teo and Arto also came to twitch these birds and once again the morning-watch was short.

We left to walk around the island only when we got new people as Anti Peuna, Nico Ordax and Miia Mannerla arrived. After we had carried their stuff to the station we left to twitch Siberian Accentor. But unfortunately it wasn’t found anymore. In Eteläkari we heard a Hume’s Leaf Warbler calling shortly but quite distant. Antti managed to started recording the call but a little bit too late as only the last call was recorded. And of course that call wasn’t very typical as it had probably been called in flight. Soon we found a Jack Snipe and then finally a Rock Pipit which was finally a year-tick. Also a couple of Short-eared Owls were seen again and then we found the same Little Bunting with a ring. It was about 500 meters from Peräkulma, so it tells something that we found the ringed birds later from the field too. It was good that everyone saw this Little Bunting.

And again something better

On the 15th day morning-watch was boring again – it was tough to stay awake. Also walk around the island was quiet but again Hanna stroke as she sent a message of a Pallas’s Leaf Warbler in hand! Of course we all went to see and photograph this one of the cutest birds. Anyway for me the observation of the day was when I finally flushed a Woodcock! I had somehow missed this bird in my every trip to Säppi even though it had been seen at least twenty times while I had been there – sometimes very close… Well of course Pallas’s Leaf Warbler was better…

But while walking we still found anything new – except a couple of Woodpigeons and Arctic Redpolls. The same Little Bunting was still there.

More people, better parties – but still not many birds

On the 16th of October it was still very quiet. Some tits had arrived to the island and we hoped that something better had come with them but nothing was found. The first Snow Bunting was heard which usually means that autumn is over – but we know that the rarest birds are coming very late… 150 Barnacle Geese, 10 Scaups, a Grey Plover, 8 Purple Sandpipers, 3 Woodcocks, 3 Rooks, a Goldfinch and a ringed Waxwing were birds to mention.

In the evening Petteri Mäkelä, Sebastian Andrejeff, Markus Lampinen, Pasi Alanko, Jan Lundgren and Elissa Soikkeli arrived and Pirkka, Arto and Miia had to leave. Elissa came to our side where Antti had also stayed and Petteri, ”Sepi” and Markus went to station-side with Nico while Pasi and ”Lunkka” had arranged a room from Säppi-foundation building where they stayed in small radio-room. Pasi is a radio-amateur and soon he had put up long antennas to the light-house and carried several boxes full of radio-equipment to their room.

On the 17th of October morning was as boring as ever even though there were more pairs of eyes watching. A few Wood Larks were flying around which one of them seemed to stay in the garden. At midday Matti and Mimosa Mäkelä and Mika Bruun arrived and it was Antti’s tour to leave. All newcomers stayed in station-side which was now very full. The island was walked around again but only better bird was the same Grey Plover.

After quiet days a nice hand-tick

The 18th of October was one more quiet day. The best bird in the morning was a young Lesser Black-backed Gull that was flying around the island. Anyway the most memorable happening was done in the garden. Hanna had put up a low mist-net next to a seed-trap that had been on the ground for Wood Lark. Once we came back from an empty walk around the island, we noticed that one Wood Lark was right next to the net. After some time I decided to make a run and managed to push the bird to the net! It was only the second ever ringed Wood Lark in Säppi!

On the 19th day there wasn’t much to mention: A Short-eared Owl was seen and the same Lesser Black-backed Gull again. Weather was bad so in morning sea-watch we were only with Teo. Quite a few better birds were seen during the day by others, the most interesting was seen in the garden where a possible Siberian Accentor was seen and heard briefly. Also a Purple Sandpiper, a Grey-headed Woodpecker, a Wood Lark, a Blackcap, a ”tic” bunting and a Twite was seen but I saw none of them… But the next day looked really promising, so it was going to be The day.

The day – or at least pretty good

On the 20th of October morning started in hurry as we found out that everyone from the station-side were going to do morning-watch to Eteläkari. And they were already leaving. It is quite far, so we were a bit late with Teo and so we had already missed a Rock Pipit. Migration wasn’t too good but the weather was excellent! The first better bird for us was a Twite the was flying over us. Soon Teo found a lonely diver flying high on the sky and it was very difficult to find with telescope. When I finally found it, it was a Great Northern Diver! I lost it again to blue sky but luckily after some searching everyone found it. Even Mika, who was walking towards us along the shore managed to see it.

Just a little bit later we heard a tit calling and I thought that it is the first Willow Tit of the trip but others were already hearing it better – a Siberian Tit! We played a little bit tape and soon it was flying around us and landing too close to photographers. It stayed so long that also Pasi and ”Lunkka” managed to come to see the bird. Hanna and ”Elli” put a tape to play for it in Peräkulma, but unfortunately it was never seen again.

When we still had a Grey-headed Woodpecker calling visible – another Säppi-tick, a flock of Parrot Crossbills and a Merlin, it is easy to say that the morning had been really good!

During the day Matti and Mimosa left and Tomas Swahn arrived and only then we left to walk around the island. It had been quiet on the mist-nets, so also Hanna and Elli were with us. We didn’t get far when Petteri found a Firecrest in Lännennokka! It was with a couple of tits and Goldcrests and they were very mobile. So not everyone saw it right away but luckily I relocated it a couple of hundreds of meters further and there it stayed in small area almost on the ground for so long that everyone managed to see it.

Other birds seen were a couple of Grey-headed Woodpeckers more, several Great Grey Shrikes, a Goshawk, at least a couple of Twites that were calling in a flock of Common Redpolls, a few Arctic Redpolls and more Snow Buntings, Waxwings. So colder weather had started to bring new birds but for some reason it didn’t show on the mist-nets.

The weather forecast was awful for the next days so The day was celebrated in station-side. Even the log was long and frustrating as some were already so drunk. It was really good that we had own side for us who wanted to sleep.

Rain and misery

On the 21st day we could all sleep longer and relax. It was good as with Teo we had been working hard for several weeks every day! Part of the island was checked by some of us but some were sleeping almost whole day. Luckiest birders had seen a late Greenshank and a Purple Sandpiper but I saw only 3 Jack Snipes. Garden mist-nets were opened a couple of times so some Great Tits were ringed between the rains.

On the 22nd of October the weather was even worse. I decided to walk around the island anyway. There was no wind at all and visibility was great even though it was raining almost all the time. So I managed to see more grebes including a Slavonian Grebe too, 4 Purple Sandpipers and 2 Jack Snipes. The biggest surprise of the day was that when a boat visited the island for some other reason, Petteri, Mika and Lunkka decided to leave.

In the evening Teo cheered us up and managed to finally catch a Woodcock that he had been trying in several evenings. I finally got a hand-tick of this species.

Hanna strikes again

On the 23rd of October the weather was finally better but still we were on the sea-watch with Teo and Pasi only. The same Lesser Black-backed Gull was seen again after a couple of days. In the end we were just waiting for the 2 hours to end as we wanted to hit the bushes. But only a migration Short-eared Owl that landed to the island was seen. About at 11 a.m. Hanna sent a message about a silent Hume’s or Yellow-browed Warbler that had been seen briefly in Peräkulma. We of course messaged back that: “Catch it!”.

And after an hour or so Hanna sent a message that she had a Hume’s Warbler in her hand! We hurried again to Peräkulma and almost ran through Hanhisto, but of course later walked back to check it well. Hume’s Leaf Warbler was one more price for our patient ringing-team that always stayed in Peräkulma late even though it was quiet. Every rare bird we have ever caught in Säppi has been in the afternoon. It was great to have another cute rarity in hand and of course lots of pictures were taken. When we released the bird it stayed on the top of the closest tree for some time and we could see it well but it wasn’t calling.

One more day

The 24th day was quiet in the ground, on the sea and in the air. I managed to dip one more Rock Pipit, which seems to be a habit. Nothing else to mention happened even though we were really trying…

Last day’s hurry”

On the 25th of October we had the last day of our long trip. Luckily winter-time had stated at night so we had an extra hour for us. Hanna ja Elissa still left to Peräkulma and the rest of us to morning-watch. It was quiet but good selection of species were seen, but anyway after an hour we decided to leave and walk around the island with Teo.

In Lännennokka Teo flushed a warbler that he thought was a Chiffchaff. There had been a Chiffchaff in the same bush on the previous day. I saw the bird in flight but I saw some color on its vent. It landed to a tree straight against the sun where it of course looked dark, before it dropped inside the bushes. Soon we heard a Chiffchaff calling and we thought that it had been the same bird again. Anyway I played Radde’s Warbler tape for some time and tried to see the bird again but it had disappered into the junipers. I even said that: ”Maybe there were two birds and something will be found here after we had left”. But soon we continued walking as we didn’t have too much time.

Later we saw a Chiffchaff and we had a feeling that there were quite a few new birds on the island. Nothing better was found anyway and finally we were back on the station about an hour before our boat. Luckily we had packed and cleaned our side on the previous evening as a half an hour before our boat we got a message that Tomas and Sebastian had found a Dusky Warbler – in Lännennokka! Immediately I was sure that it was the same bird we had seen…

We ran to Lännennokka and luckily heard the Dusky Warbler ”tacking” immediately! The bird was also seen briefly before also Hanna and Elissa managed to get there. After some waiting we heard the bird again and then it flew to the Siberian Accentor bush where we saw it extremely well! Luckily the bird had been found early enough for us! It was a WP-tick for Hanna, so after all it was the best bird of the whole trip!

Soon we had to hurry back to the station, carry our stuff to the harbor where Tommi’s boat had just arrived. Soon we were on the way back to Kuuminainen and luckily the ride wasn’t wet this time. In the harbor Petteri was picking up Nico to the railway-station and soon we had packed our cars and left towards Kouvola, Elissa was following us.

Our car stopped once to eat on the way but after a long drive we were in Kouvola where we moved our stuff to our car, said goodbye to Teo and continued to Parikkala.

A long, more than 5 weeks, holiday was finally over. Altogether 175 species had been observed but it seemed that all the best birds had been in Säppi. An Asian Desert Warbler, a Siberian Accentor, a Pallas Leaf, a Hume’s Leaf and a Dusky Warbler had made our trip! Many good birds had been seen also in Oulu-area and Jurmo too, but I think if World is still the same next year, other destinations will change but Säppi stays in program.

J.A.

On the 28th of September we woke up early in the middle of a forest-cut. A local store opened already a t 6 a.m. and we had decided to get there at 7 so we hoped that fresh bread was available. Everything else was bought but the bread was a bit oldish. But soon we were ready to drive to Pärnäinen harbor.

We carried our stuff to M/S Baldur which left at 8:30 a.m. towards Jurmo. We stayed on the deck for some time and met some birders that were going to Utö and also 3 gentlemen that were coming to Jurmo for the same time with us. We hadn’t met Juhani and Pekka Virtanen (not relatives) and Kari Tuominen before but soon it was clear that we would get along well. Pretty soon we went to eat to the restaurant and food was extremely good!

It was a long way but finally we arrived at Jurmo where “Jussi”, Pekka and Kari got a ride from a local man so we got both carts for ourselves to get our stuff towards the station. While walking towards the station we already saw a Hobby.

On the station we met Kim Kuntze and Meri Öhman the were soon leaving to the ferry. Also Timo K. Palomäki was of course there and young birder Pyry Laurikka too. After some talking we went to check the mist-nets where Jussi, Pekka and Kari were already working and there were already quite a lot of Goldcrests.

After some time we went to eat something to the station and then left to do counts to western side of the island where is the better route where birds are being counted every day. It was a long way to the beginning of the route and it is very long walk if a visit to Heinäsaari is included. But we were ready to walk a lot!

Like almost always the best birds were found in Heinäsaari where 2 Oystercatchers, a Curlew, a Bar-tailed Godwit, a Ruff, a couple of Dunlins, 12 Purple Sandpipers and a Greenshank were seen. On the route we saw Spotted Redshank, a Long-tailed Duck, one of three Peregrines that we saw during the day and altogether we saw quite a few Grey and Golden Plovers and of course lots of ducks.

It was already getting late when we were walking back towards the station. On the way we saw a Nightjar which was very late record. But there had been quite a few of them around the country, so we hoped to see it later again.

While keeping the daily log we found out that most of the birds we had seen in Heinäsaari, had already been there for some time. Well we didn’t know about them so they had felt much better this way.

Island-competition

On the 29th day we had an island-competition and the main opponent was of course Lågskär. We woke up early and went to watch morning-migration with Timo. It was pretty quiet on the sea but we saw quite a good selection of species like Brent Geese and sea-ducks.

Then we went to walk the eastern route and surprisingly found quite good birds like a Hobby, a Merlin, a Peregrine, 4 Slavonian Grebes, a Jack Snipe and very early young Red-backed Shrike. In west we walked of course to Heinäsaari too and we found again the same waders, the first Pochard of the year for Jurmo and a very late young Cuckoo. Other birds seen on the field and caught from the nets were Blackcaps, Willow Warblers, Parrot Crossbills and so on. Pyry saw a Yellow-browed Warbler in Sorgen and when it was already dark we went to try to find the Nightjar which was found pretty easily but we also saw a couple of Long-eared Owls that Pyry had found and also a Short-eared Owl. Altogether we got 96 species which was the best number in the competition.

Easy day

On the 30th of September we had an easy day between the competition day and the first of October. We did only the eastern route with Teo and saw next to nothing during the day – only new bird was a Common Redstart. Also a couple of Slavonian Grebes, a Hobby, Parrot Crossbills and the same Nightjar was seen again. From the mist-nets we got a few Sparrowhawks but the best observation was maybe a few Queen of Spain Fritillaries that were flying in Sorgen.

October begins

On the first of October we were full of energy as there were some possible month-ticks around. Morning-migration was quite bad maybe because of the misty and windy weather. For the first time ringers had opened mist-nets also on the bog. While sea-watching we could see a couple of nets and there were lots of birds! I called to one of the ringers and asked if they needed help and I got an answer that they were OK. But I left to help them anyway and soon it was clear that all help was needed! Goldcrests were really on the move and nets were full of them! So next few hours we were all helping with the Goldcrests. When we managed to get any mist-net empty, we closed them. And after all only a couple of nets were kept open per ringer. I remember loosing a Lesser Whitethroat and a Tree Pipit from the net too.

Finally the chaos was over so we could go to count the routes. We first walked the eastern route where a Slavonian Grebe and a couple of Jack Snipes were seen, Then we continued west where all the same waders were still around and Curlew was a month-tick. In the evening a Nightjar was seen again and was another tick.

During the day ringers had ringed more than 1200 birds which 938 were Goldcrests!

Something little better

We kept on working hard on the next days too. On the 2nd of October I went again very early to put a Red-flanked Bluetail tape to the mist-net but nothing was there before the routinely ringing started. On the seawatch we saw some flocks of geese and one flock was Greylag Geese. A few Wood Larks were also seen and after 2 hours we went to have “second breakfast” to the station. Then we heard a call from Pyry’s walkie-talkie that a Red-flanked Bluetail had been caught. It was already the second bluetail in hand during this trip but it was again a month-tick! Ringers were very happy as they had never caught a bluetail before – it was good that they got some quality in the middle of thousands of Goldcrest.

In the east we saw a Common Redstart but other birds were just the same. In harbor we saw plenty of Moon Jellyfish that were interesting to see.

Hard work

Every day we walked from 12 to 21 kilometers with Teo depending on if we visited west and Heinäsaari or not. On some days we walked less but anyway we worked very hard to find anything better on the field but nothing better was to be found. On the 3rd day we saw a big raptor migrating over the sea and of course a Red Kite was seen migrating in Uto a half an hour later. It felt bad, but we were sure that we had seen a different bird as we thought our bird had looked most likely a Honey Buzzard. Anyway this Red Kite hadn’t been far either…

White counting in west Crane migration started and we counted 1621 birds. Also a couple of flocks of Scaups were seen and in the evening a Nightjar and a Short-eared Owl were seen.

On the 4th of October early in the morning we saw a Hobby finally as a month-tick but the rest of the day was boring. Only thing to mention was that Pyry left and Tapani Veistola arrived. Then on the 5th day we walked like crazy around the island again and still saw 2 Oystercatchers, a Curlew, a Red Knot, 5 Purple Sandpipers, a Greenshank, a Wood Lark, a Razorbill, a Peregrine, a couple of Willow Warblers and so on. So quite a few nice birds but nothing really good.

On the 6th of October the weather was really bad so we were keeping rain under trees while trying to make eastern route. We flushed a good-looking pipit that flew up to the sky and never landed. On the next morning an Olive-backed Pipit was found on Utö. Soon we flushed another pipit that landed to trees but our binoculars were absolutely wet, so we couldn’t see it well enough for a long time. But somehow I managed to clear my lenses and identify it as a Tree Pipit…

In west all the waders except Bar-tailed Godwit were still around. In Sorgen we saw a Lesser Whitethroat briefly and mist-nets produced a Blackcap and lots of Chiffchaffs that seemed to be everywhere so maybe there was still something rare to be found?

The last day

But the 7th of October was our last day. The weather was perfect so we decided to leave all routes to other birders and just went to search rarities. In Sorgen we heard “tac” -calls and saw a brown bird flying briefly – it was really good Dusky Warbler candidate, but even though we searched it for a couple of hours, it was never seen again. Just before we had seen the bird a Dusky Warbler had been found in Utö and when we had just stopped searching for our bird, we got a message that another Dusky Warbler had just arrived from somewhere to the same place. We had an idea from where it had probably arrived…

When ringers reported that they had seen a Blackstart near the station, we decided to go to twitch it. It was a stunning adult male bird, but anyway it wasn’t exactly what we had hoped to see. And it was one more bird to the list that we hadn’t found by ourselves. We still found a Tree Pipit and a Common Redstart but really nothing…

A visit at home

Finally we had to start walking towards the harbor where we had already carried our stuff in the morning. In M/S Baldur we ate well again and somehow the ferry-trip went fast. Then we had a very long driving to Kouvola where I went to sleep to an apartment that Teo’s family had empty. Next morning Teo dropped me to the railway-station and I took a train to Parikkala where I had to go to count ducks in the afternoon.

During the count I saw a family of Bewick’s Swans, even 6 Gadwalls, 4 Scaups, a male Pochard and a Long-tailed Duck in Siikalahti. Then I had to do shopping, laundering and packing – our autumn-trip wasnt over yet – not even close! We still had a long trip to Säppi to go!

J.A.

Because of corona every holiday-plans had been moved to the future. We had planned to go to Luvia Säppi with Hanna during autumn-holidays for two weeks and I had also took one extra week free from work, but only 3 weeks before my holiday I got news that my working equipment will get changed and it will take 2 weeks. So I decided to get 2 more weeks free and I had only one week left to plan what to do. I had plans to go to Oulu anyway on the second weekend of my holiday, so it was easy to decide to start in Oulu-area. Teo Ylätalo from Kouvola had been with us in Säppi on the previous autumn and was again coming with us and I knew that he was also free earlier, so I sent my plans to him and soon I got an answer that he would like to join me. So we were first going to Oulu-area for 8 days, then to Jurmo island for 9 days before getting to Säppi for 2 weeks.

On the 18th of September after work I still had to go shopping and pack but soon Teo arrived from Kouvola and of course we had to go birding soon. We headed to Siikalahti where we put up a few mist-nets too. While counting Cranes (670), we saw also 90 Whooper Swans, a Bewick’s Swan, a Peregrine Falcon, 2 Bitterns, 16 Great White Egrets, a flock of 60 migrating Pintails, a Rough-legged Buzzard, 3 Golden Plovers and 5 Gold Finches. Only a Dunnock, a couple of Robins, a Redwing, 2 Willow Tits and a Chaffinch were caught and ringed.

On the 19th day we headed to Siikalahti before the sun was rising and put up mist-nets again. A Black Grouse, a couple of White-tailed Eagles, 2 Hen Harriers, an Osprey, a Golden Plover, a Grey Plover, 3 Ruffs, a Black Woodpecker, a Great Grey Shrike and a flock of 25 migrating Lapland Buntings were seen and a Water Rail and a Common Crossbill were heard. From mist-nets we caught quite a few Bramblings and Chaffinches but also a Goldcrest, a Song Thrush, a Yellowhammer and some Great Tits. Finally we packed everything to Teo’s Volvo and started driving towards Oulu.

Liminka

We stopped only once on the way and finally arrived at Liminka. We knew there had been a flock of Lesser White-fronted Geese for the first time in decades in autumn in Liminka-bay and when we still had some kilometers to Virkkula we saw a flock of geese flying above the road. I counted the birds and there were 23 of them and I remembered that it was exactly the number of Lesser White-fronted Geese that had been reported. We stopped the car and indeed they were Lesser White-fronted Geese! 22 adult and 1 young bird were flying around for some 10 minutes and then left toward inland and never came back – they were seen 3 days later in Kerkini, Greece! Only then we saw plenty of other flocks of geese flying over Liminka-bay, we had been very lucky to find this flock first!

In Rantakylä fields we saw 5 Pink-footed Geese with numerous Taiga Bean Geese and also a Merlin, a flock of 300 Starlings and 3 Linnets. And from Virkkula bird-tower we saw a Greater White-fronted Goose, a Greylag Goose, 29 Pink-footed Geese with hundreds of Taiga Bean Geese, but also 2 Hen Harriers and Peregrines and a Hobby. Finally we had to hurry towards Oulunsalo and Hailuoto-ferry and while driving we still saw a Nutcracker in Liminka-city.

To Hailuoto

Finally we were in Riuttu and soon our ferry left towards Hailuoto. It was almost dark when we arrived to Hailuoto and we decided to drive straight to Koninnokka which we had chosen to be our camping place. Soon I had my tent up and Teo went to sleep into his car where he had a comfortable bed.

On the 20th of September we saw a Sparrowhawk in Koninnokka before we packed our car and continued to Rautaletto parking place. Soon we were walking towards Riisinnokka. After we had seen only a few birds we finally got to Riisinnokka where we saw 20 migrating Bean Geese, 2 Grey Herons, a Hen Harrier, a Peregrine, 10 Grey Plovers, a Bar-tailed Godwit, 4 Spotted Redshanks, 3 Chiffchaffs, a Coal Tit and 4 Dunnocks. After we had walked back to our car, we continued towards north-eastern corner of the island. We met Juha “Jurtsi” Markkola on the way but soon continued to Keskiniemi where we met also some old friends as Meski-family was there. There we saw 5 Grey Plovers, a Sanderling and a Northern Wheatear. In Mäntyniemi we saw 2 Grey Plovers, a Red Knot and 2 Sanderlings and in Virpiniemi 3 Grey Plovers, 2 Golden Plovers and a Little Stint. Then while walking back to car we found a Yellow-browed Warbler. And while driving again we saw a Waxwing.

In Marjaniemi the wind was already too strong so we saw only a couple of Velvet Scoters. Near village-fields we saw a Woodcock and in Patelanselkä at least 10 Gadwalls. Kirkkosalmi was almost completely empty as only bird to mention was a Grey Heron. In Ulkokarvo Petsamo we saw a Peregrine, a Marsh Harrier and a Blackbird and then a Great Grey Shrike from the car. The last place to visit was Pökönnokka where water was high but still we found 10 Golden Plovers, 4 Jack Snipes and also saw a young Arctic Skua, which was the third year-tick of the day.

Again Liminka-bay and Siikajoki

Soon we were in a ferry again and then in Liminka where we saw again about 1000 Taiga Bean Geese. We continued to Lumijoki Sannanlahti to put up a camp and we still heard a couple of migrating Grey Plovers from the sky before we started to sleep.

On the 21st day morning there was a noisy flock of about 800 Starlings in the reeds in Sannanlahti. But only other birds we saw from the tower were a few White-tailed Eagles. So soon we continued to Varjakka where only a Woodcock and some Common Crossbills were seen. The weather was turning to very bad but still we continued to Säärenranta where a few Ringed Plovers and Dunlins and a ringed Chiffchaffs were seen. The weather seemed to be better in Liminka so we turned back and went to try to twitch 2 Bar-headed Geese that had been seen there in Haaransilta. But only a small flock of Taiga Bean Geese were present. Rooks were seen while we tried to find Collared Doves in Vanha Liminka but we had no luck. We again visited Virkkula too but saw nothing new there. So finally we went to eat and shopping before we continued to Siikajoki Tauvo.

Tauvo

It had been raining for quite a long time but luckily it stopped when we parked to Hietapakka from where we carried our stuff to Tauvo ringing station. There we met Matti Tynjälä who was my old friend and the main ringer of the station. We also found out that Matti had arrived to the station already on the previous day when a big group from Jyväskylä had left. I had somehow thought that the change was today – so we were one day late… Well at least we hadn’t missed anything as the weather had been mostly very poor and we had been able to visit many good birding places which had been just almost empty…

Teo got a bed in the station but I decided to go to another building as I prefer sleep in quite cold. In the evening while checking the mist-nets, we saw a flock of 40 Bean Geese, a Black Grouse and caught some Redpolls, Fieldfares, a Redwing, a Brambling and a couple of Willow Tits.

On the 22nd day we were checking the nets with Teo but caught only 39r+17c Redpolls, 1+3c Bramblings, 14 Fieldfares, 3 Redwings, 1+4c Great, 4+3c Blue and 2+4c Willow Tits, a Treecreeper and 3+1c Reed Buntings. Other birds seen were 15 Parrot and a couple of Common Crossbills, Black Woodpecker, 2 White-tailed Eagles and a flock of 20 Ruffs that was seen from the tower. In the evening I went jogging and run around Tauvo which was exactly 10 kilometers. Then it was good to have sauna.

On the 23rd day the morning started great as on the first round we caught 1, on the second 2 and on the 3rd round 3 Yellow-browed Warblers! We were estimating already how many big record we will make, but then we caught none during the rest of the day.

We also caught 3 Chiffchaffs, Redpolls that weren’t seen in the field at all but somehow they were all hanging on the nets 71+22c, one Lesser Redpoll, 3 Siskins, 4+1c Bramblings, 2+1c Chaffinches, 3+3c Robins, 4 Dunnocks, 3 Meadow Pipits, 12+2c Reed Buntings, a Blackbird, always as nice Great Grey Shrike and of course three common species of tits. A couple of Coal Tits were seen and some flocks of Parrot Crossbills were seen and heard, but almost nothing else was seen while checking the nets.

In the evening we walked around Ulkonokka which was a hard job! We saw 12 Mute and 88 Whooper Swans, 22 Great Crested Grebes, 6 Cormorants, 2 White-tailed Eagles, a Merlin, 3 Grey, 19 Golden and 5 Ringed Plovers, 2 Spotted Redshanks, 25 Dunlins, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits, 8 Snipes, 900 Teals, 300 Mallards, 120 Wigeons and 40 Pintails and so on.

On the 24th day we had put a Reed Bunting song to one of the mist-nets and it was very productive – almost too productive. We caught lots of Reed Buntings and Redpolls in the same time so all bird-bags were soon full. Luckily the panic was soon over when the birds stopped moving so strong. Altogether we ringed 61+4c Reed Buntings, 40+4c Redpolls, 9+1c Bramblings, 9 Fieldfares, 7 Redwings, a Song Thrush, 3+3c Robins, again 4 Yellow-browed Warblers, 7 Chiffchaffs, a Willow Warbler, a Yellowhammer, same tits again but also 17 Long-tailed Tits, 2 Dunnocks, a Goldcrest and a Treecreeper. In the evening I did a short run again before sauna. And finally also a Tengmalm’s Owl was caught before we went to sleep.

The morning of the 25th of September was warm, it was almost 15 degrees and even at night it had been 12,5 degrees. Even a Mourning Cloak butterfly was seen flying. But during the day it started to rain. Reed Bunting and Redpoll were still the most numerous birds in mist-nets but there weren’t many of them. But like so often the quality is many times more interesting than quantity. I had woken up very early in a couple of mornings to clean the mist-nets and put some bird-songs to the mist-nets. And one song had been a Red-flanked Bluetail. So on the first round the first bird on the first mist-net and right next to the tape was a beautiful young Red-flanked Bluetail! It had been a record year in Finland for Red-flanked Bluetail so it wasn’t a huge surprise to catch one but anyway it was my first ever autumn record. Also a couple of Chiffchaffs, a Goldcrest, same tits, some Bramblings and Fieldfares, a Yellowhammer, a Dunnock and a nice Pygmy Owl and a stunning Black Woodpecker were caught, so our visit to Tauvo had got perfect ending.

Oulu

In the afternoon we put everything ready for the winter as there was nobody coming to the station anymore which was a pity as the best time of the year was just beginning. Then we drove to Liminka where we did some shopping again and after checking Haaransilta and a Pheasant in Vihiluoto we met my brother Pirkka in Kempeleenlahti. From the tower we saw a couple of Slavonian Grebes but then Teo left towards Virkkula where he had booked night from the hostel and we left with Pirkka to Oulu.

We stayed with my brother Riku’s caravan and in the evening we ate well and had sauna.

On the 26th of September we woke up quite early and had a good breakfast and then we soon were ready for a big test! When corona had started in March I had sent a message to my brothers that it’s time to start training, after 6 months there is a half-marathon in Oulu. Riku had problems with his feet, but Pirkka was ready to join the test. He hand’t been running almost at all ever, but now after 6 months training we were both ready. About at midday we drove to Tuira, walked to Raatti, warmed up a little but and at 1 p.m. the running started!

It was nice to run in familiar places and quite soon running started to feel easy even though my last week preparing hadn’t been very good – I had walked quite a lot with wellingtons in a deep mud and water. Anyway I managed to break my record and managed to get under 1 hour and 50 minutes. But Pirkka did something amazing as his goal was first just to pass the half-marathon, but then we had been talking about something like 2 hours and 15 minutes – but he needed only 1 hour and 56 minutes!

After the run it started to rain heavily so soon we had walked to our car and drove back to Riku’s house where we just relaxed the rest of the day.

On the 27th day we said goodbye to Riku’s family, drove to Liminka where we saw 20 Pink-footed and 40 Barnacle Geese in Haaransilta before in Virkkula we met Teo who had been birding around Liminka. Teo had managed to finally see the Bar-headed Geese in the morning but as the weather was pretty bad, we decided to say goodbye to Pirkka and started driving towards south. Pirkka went to Tyrnävä and of course found the Bar-headed Geese there.

Via Kalajoki towards south

With Teo we drove until Kalajoki Letto where we walked to the beach and after some searching we found some waders. First we saw just Ringed Plovers and Dunlins but then found a Grey Plover, a Little Stint and the bird we had been searching for – the latest ever Terek Sandipiper. There were also a couple of thousands of gulls but we found nothing interesting. So soon we continued to Kalajoki to eat.

After some more driving we surprisingly saw 3 Collared Doves in Vöyri Oravainen and also stopped to check one good-looking bay there but saw nothing special. It was already getting dark when we stopped to do shopping in Pori and then continued until Raisio where we ate well again. We still continued until Parainen Nauvo where we camped in a forest-cut. Long after midnight we finally got to sleep.

J.A.