. . Lintuharrastajan päiväkirja Birders diary . .

On the 31st of March we had a traditional Wilderness rally again. We woke up at 1:45 a.m. and a half an hour later we picked up Matti Lötjönen and started to drive north towards out area in the most northern part of Parikkala in Uukuniemi. At 3 a.m. we crossed the border of out area and started to try to find some owls. We were driving a lot and stopping many times in a freezing -15 degrees weather but it was a perfect weather otherwise, no wind at all. But maybe it was too cold, we heard only one distant Eagle Owl.

The first bird of the morning was a singing Treecreeper and it was really early – it was still almost dark. In Jyrkilä area we found a Black Woodpecker and a couple of Black Grouses and soon we heard a couple of lekking Black Grouses more. After some more common species we continued to a bird-lake where we had never been before and found a couple of White-backed Woodpeckers and a Winter Wren. A couple of Whooper Swans flew over us and another Treecreeper was found too. Soon also a Goldcrest and a Crested Tit were found.

We continued towards northern parts of our area and in Niukkala we saw 14 Lapwings, 3 Starlings and only House Sparrows on our area, in Kirkonkylä we saw 2 Blackbirds, in Sirkee we found an Arctic Redpoll in a small flock of Redpolls and in Värtsi we found a Snow Bunting which was in a snowy field together with a Linnet. Then we had another surprise when we found another couple of White-backed Woodpeckers, which we later heard was a completely new place! And soon we had one more surprise when we found a Dipper from a small ditch.

It was quiet in Lammitaus but a Grey-headed Woodpecker was nice anyway. Then Hanna and Matti dropped me to Kumpu view-tower where I tried for more than an hour to see migrating raptors, but the weather had changed – it was now a freezing north-western wind! So I saw only Ravens and a Sparrowhawk and 3 migrating Chaffinches. Matti and Hanna weren’t lucky either so after all we spent the rest of the rally by driving roads around without any good birds.

At 4 p.m. we were already in Mikkolanniemi where all teams came soon. After a dinner we counted the results and the winner team was Juha-Matti and Arttu Valonen and Ari Parviainen. They had been skiing 4 hours in Melkoniemi forests and they had seen a lot – for example 5 Siberian Jays and 5 Three-toed Woodpeckers. The rest of the evening was fun but at midnight we left to sleep at home.

The first days of April were freezing so no birds were seen. On the 3rd day we left to Sicilia… So more soon…

- J.A.

A couple of dry summershad done their job and along the wood-path to Siikalahti the wetland was changing to a forest. The thickest birches and alders were already as thick as a wrist. Some years ago there had been a colony of Little Gulls breeding with Water Rails and Spotted Crakes. Also ducks had been breeding on the area where gulls protected them from crows and harriers. But now the area was getting very poor for any birds so we had to start doing something. Before cutting the bushes the area looked like this:

Three persons were cutting the bushes and quite a big area was cleaned. There was still lots of snow so the work was very hard. And there is still a lot to do but this was a good beginnig. Hopefulle the gulls will find the place good for breeding again.

A Forest and Park Service had built a nice camping kitchen. Crows had already been checking the place.

Some first Migrants are coming

There are only a couple of places where the water moves a little so they open from the ice early. Every year the Whooper Swans are coming earlier and earlier becouse they have to fight for their territories.

In the end of March the spring was coming but slowly. After one warmer day it always came several cold days and the birds were gone again.

On the 21st of March I saw a Pygmy Owl in Lepomäki. It was checking small nest-boxes, maybe it had some food in the freezer? On the 22nd day it was the first spring-day with 6 Whooper Swans, 4 Lapwings, 5 Starlings and a White-backed Woodpecker, a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, a Great spotted woodpecker and a Long-tailed Tit in Siikalahti and 3 more Lapwings in Särkisalmi.

Then it came again a couple of cold days with snow and northern wind. On the 25th of March in Siikalahti I saw a White-tailed Eagle, a Common Buzzard and 2 Snow Buntings and in Tyrjä 9 more snow Buntings. But then it came cold again.

On the 28th day a Goosander and a Coot had arrived at Särkisalmi and in Siikalahti I saw 15 Whooper Swans, 2 Common Buzzards, 4 Lapwings, a Stock Dove, 17 skylarks, 3 Starlings and so on. It really felt like spring – swans were having big fights on their territories. On the next day the first couple of Goldeneyes was found in Särkisalmi and in Siikalahti I saw a White-tailed Eagle, 2 Common Buzzards, 33 Lapwings which were all going towards south (it was coming a back-winter again), a Stock Dove, 4 Wood Pigeons, a Snow Bunting and so on.

But then it came a back-winter again. On the 30th of March “potu” Suojarinne came to do some birding with me and in Siikalahti we saw a White-backed Woodpecker and a Great Grey Shrike and from our back-yard we saw a flock of 18 Herring Gulls with 2 Great Black-backed Gulls!

Our local birding club organized clearance of nesting islets in Siikalahti. These islets were built ten years a go, but after that trees and bushes had taken over the surface. Last year three islets were cleared and right away birds used these islets more for resting and breeding. These islets were originally built for terns, gulls and ducks, but waders like to roost on them too.

Seven eager volunteers arrived with saws and garden shears. Ice was still strong enough even there was a bit of water over it. In a couple of hours we managed to clear eight islets of trees and bushes. Largest trees were already several meters high and quite thick.

There was still nearly half a meter of snow. Luckily snow was soft, so digging stems out from it was easy. You have to cut all saplings as near the ground as possible for good results.

On the 17th and 16th of March we were in Joensuu where was a BirdLife weekend. Local bird-association PKLTY had their 40th birthday too.

On Tuesday the 20th of March we were again in Siikalahti and cleaning breeding islets. In an hour we managed to cut trees from 3 islets.

H.A. & J.A.

I wasn’t birding much in the beginning of March. On the 6th day I visited Siikalahti and saw a male White-backed Woodpecker. On the evening of 8th dau we did a couple of hours owl-listening trip where we also hoped to see some Aurora borealis, but all we saw were a full moon, Mercurius, Mars, Saturnus, Jupiter and Venus and on tiny Aurora borealis.

On the 9th day we went to Imatra Vuoksi together with Rolf Mortensen and Harri Partanen. We hoped to see at least the first migrants – Herring Gulls but also some other birds. On the way we stopped in Simpele Kokkolanjoki where we saw 2 Whooper Swans, 2 Goldeneyes, 2 Goosanders and a Dipper. Somewhere in Ruokolahti I saw a Great Grey Shrike and once in Imatra we started to check the River Vuoksi. Surprisingly there werne’t that many birds: we saw 14 Whopper Swans, 490 Mallards, 45 Goldeneyes, 15 Goosanders, a male Smew and only one Cormorant. There was also a flock of 150 Herring Gulls with 2 Great Black-backed Gulls but I kew there would be more later in the evening. Only other better bird we saw was a lonely Long-tailed Tit. So we decided to drive to Salo-Issakka where we managed to find a Hawk Owl. It was perched on the dead tree even though the wind was blowing very hard. At 6 p.m. we were back in Imatrankoski where we counted 385 Herring Gulls and the same 2 Great Black-backs.

On the 13th of March I saw 2 Whooper Swans in Särkisalmi and on the 14th day Matti Lötjönen found a Rook in the railway-station. So there was already spring in the air!

J.A.

On the 25th of February we were skiing around Siikalahti with Hanna. The weather was nice but there were almost no birds at all – only 3 Black Grouses and a Great Grey Shrike were birds to mention. When we were back at home I realized that the next day was the only possible day that I could do a winterbird count. It meant that I had to ski 17 kilometres and the weather forecast wasn’t promising at all.

On the 26th of February I woke up early and already before 8 a.m. I was walking in Kangaskylä and counting the few birds I could find. The wind was blowing pretty hard and it was snowing so that was maybe part of the reason why there were so few birds but the main reason is that there are not enough feeders in the village. Only one bigger flock of tits were found before I crossed the main road 6 and started skiing towards Siikalahti. A flock of 12 Bullfinches were seen and a Crested Tit was heard before I was on the dam-road. On one farm there were Magpies, Jackdaws, Hooded Crows, Tree Sparrows and Yellowhammers, but then the next 7 kilometres were same that I had been skiing on the previous day so I took it as sport more than bird-count. Only a Black Grouse, a Jay, a couple of tits and a nice flock of 6 Siskins were found.

After a couple of kilometres in deep snow I finally I crossed the main road 6 again but there were less birds than ever in the village!

The final numbers were: Black Grouse 1, Rock Dove 8, Great Spotted Woodpecker 3, Willow Tit 7, Crested Tit 1, Blue Tit 10, Great Tit 45, Jay 4, Magpie 17, Jackdaw 87, Hooded Crow 16, Raven 2, House Sparrow 4, Tree Sparrow 10, siskin 7, Bullfinch 12 and Yellowhammer 30.

On the leap day I was working but because of this 29th of February is only on every 4th year I had to try to get sopme leap day ticks! So before the work I twitched a flock of 21 Goldfinches in Kangaskylä and a Nuthatch in Likolampi. On my lunch-hour I went to see Siberian Jays to Melkoniemi and fouf the birds easily! Then after the work I still drove to Simpele River Kokkola where I first saw a Dipper and a couple of Golden eyes (which werent leap day ticks) and after some searching found a Little Grebe too which was my leap day tick number 44. 4 years earlier I had seen all the other 40 species on my tour around South Karelia.

J.A.

On the 18th of February I was birding a couple of hours as it was the first day of the year when the sun was shining and even warming a little bit. In Siikalahti I saw a Great Grey Shrike and in Tyrjänkoski I walked in half meter snow to the rapid where a Dipper was found. The second Great Grey Shrike of the day was seen when I was driving back home.

On the 19th of February I woke up at 9 and soon I was driving towards Lappeenranta. I had planned to continue to Taipalsaari to twitch a Grey Partridge which I still had never seen in South Karelia. I was already in Joutseno when I got a call from Pekka Punnonen who told that Martti Riikonen had just seen a Green Sandpiper in Toikansuo! It had been the first ever Green Sandpiper in Finland in February! So I continued straight there.

After 20 minutes I parked to Toikansuo where already were some local birders but the sandpiper had been missing for 30 minutus already. It had disappeared to a ditch so we waited it to show up but after an hour we decided that we had to try something else. We walked along the ditch and nothing was found. So we continued along the ditch for several kilometres but only one another bird was found – a Jack Snipe.

After a long walk in a deep snow I Luckily managed to get a lift from Jarmo Pirhonen back to the original place. We were just turning towards Toikansuo when I noticed some movement on the ditch and there it was, a Green Sandpiper was jumping from a rock to another. We stopped the car a also “jamppa” saw the bird soon. Also Sampsa Cairenius, Seppo Korpela and Matti Vanhapelto were there soon but the rest of birders were still waiting for a lift or walking back along the ditch. Soon the bird flew along the ditch behind a corner and as wh knew there were many twitchers coming soon from Helsinki too we decided not to try to walk after it but wait it to come back.

After some waiting nothing was seen, so we decided to drive to a sewage water pools nearby to check if it was there. Only 300 Mallards and 2 Teals were found so we were sure that the bird had to be just behind the corner. The twitchers hadn’t arrived yet so we decided to continue to Taipalsaari to try to twitch a Grey Partridge with Sampsa Cairenius.

After 30 minutes driving we parked in Saikkola and started to search for a partridge from a garden and spruce-fences around it. We had walked around the whole garden once when a owner of the house came to shout us that the bird was just in front of the feeder! But we coulnd’t see it! We walked closer and closer and he told that he could see it all the time. Then suddenly Grey Partridge flushed just in front of us! The owner of the house had been standing a little bit higher so he had seen the head of the bird all the time, but it had been in so deep snow that we couldn’t see it at all. But after all we were very happy – we had got a new South Karelia tick.

We still stopped in Tirilä but the weather was turning very bad so Hawfinched weren’t seen. We also got a message that a Green Sandpiper had been found in the place where we had thought it was and finally everyone had seen it!

On the way back home I still stopped along Vuoksi river where I saw 2 Whooper Swans and a Cormorant before I continued to Parikkala.

J.A.