Owl nest-boxes
On Monday 7th of May I was working again. On my lunch-hour I went to count ducks to Vartialahti, Tiviänlampi and Pyöriälahti but nothing better was found. After work I went to check owl nest-boxes again. It was hard work again as a couple of nest-box trees had fallen and Ihad to remove the nest-boxes. A Pine Marten had been living one of the nest-boxes and I really started to feel sick when I was cleaning it. Maybe the eighth nest-box was also in the middle of cut forest but luckily the tree was still standing. I was going to remove it but when I was climbing the ladders and touching the nest-box a Tengmalm’s Owl flew away from it.
I continued to the furthest nest-boxes which were empty and then drove back to catch the Tengmam’s Owl. I ringed this very aggressive bird and counted 5 eggs and continued to Melkoniemi forests. I checked several nest-boxes on Siberian Jay forests but only in last one there was a Pygmy Owl with 7 eggs. I ringed this very bird and after I had seen a tame Hazel Hen I continued to count ducks in Tarvaspohja.
I still decided to frive to Saari Pohjanranta to see and photograph the American Wigeon. On the previous day all my photographs had been really bad becouse of the camera’s adjustents. At 8 p.m. I clinbed to the bird-tower and soon found the bird feeding on the field with more than 100 Wigeons. I walked a little bit closer and managed to get pretty good pictures. The sun was already setting when I drove back home.
On the 8th of May on my lunch-hour I counted ducks in Kukkarolahti and checked a couple of empty Tawny Owl nest-boxes, in Härskiinmutka I saw 51 Long-tailed Ducks and 20 Common Scoters. After a long day at work we left to check the rest of the nest-boxes in Melkoniemi-Tarvaslampi forests. Harri Partanen came to help me and we dropped Hanna to check Siberian Jay forests where she tried to find anything good for the dutch group that is coming in the end of May.
With Harri we checked about 20 nest-boxes but they were all empty. Other birds weren’t found either, just a Black Grouse, some Cuckoos, a Sparrowhawk and a Wren. Hanna wasn’t too lucky either but she heard a Three-toed Woodpecker drumming, Grey-headed Woodpecker calling, saw a female Capercaillie and heard a couple of Wrens. When we were picking up Hanna we heard a possible Three-toed Woodpecker but it disappeared too soon.
On the 9th of May in the morning I saw 74 Long-tailed Ducks, a Common and a Velvet Scoter from Härskiinmutka. In the morning I saw 79 Long-tailed Ducks, a Common and a Velvet Scoter in Härskiinmutka and on my lunch-hour 74 Bean, 20 White-fronted and 51 Barnacle Goose. After wor we went to check all the nnest-boxes in Punkaharju. Unfortunately they were all empty. We have only some nest-boxes to check in Rautjärvi. So far we have found 2 Tengmalm’s, 2 Pygmy and 1 Ural Owl nesting. There was foot prints of large male bear under one of our nest boxes.
At night between 10th and 11th of May I visited Siikalahti and heard Sedge Warblers, 2 Thrush Nightingales, 2 Water Rails and 6 Spotted Crakes.
J.A.