Greg Roberts – friarbird.roberts@gmail.com
This was not primarily a birding trip so I will do no more here other than outline briefly the itinerary and a list of species see. More detailed notes are to be found in a series of posts on my blog
http://sunshinecoastbirds.blogspot.com.au/.
22/7 – Depart Brisbane.
23/7 – Arrive Rome, Italy.
23/7-28/7 – Rome, Vatican City. Picked up hire car to depart Rome.
28/7 – Drive to Laigueglia, Italy.
29/5 – Drive to Fitou, France, via Monaco.
29/5-1/6 – Fitou, including visits to Port Leucate & Park Naturel Regional de la Narbonnaise.
1/6 – Drive to Sitges, Spain.
1/6-4/6 – Sitges, including visit to Barcelona.
4/6 – Return drive to Fitou.
4/6-7/6 – Fitou, including visits to Leucate Lighthouse, Chateau Peyrepertuse, Tautavel Gorge.
7/7 – Drive to St Egreves, French Alps.
7/7-9/6 – French Alps: Chartreuse Mountains in Park Natural Regional De Chartreuse.
9/6 – Drive to Scherzingen, Switzerland, visiting Annecy (France) en route.
9/6-12/6 – Scherzingen by Lake Constance, visiting Konstanz (Germany), Kruezlingen, Mannenbach (on Rhine River cruise).
12/6 – Drive to Murnau, in Bavaria Germany, via Austria.
12/6-14/6 – Murnau area, visiting Murnauer Moos.
14/6 – Drive to Schleiz, Germany, visiting Munich (Nymphenburg) en route).
15/6 – Drive to Berlin, visiting old East Germany border at Modlareuth. Dropped off hire car.
15/6-18/6 – Berlin.
18/6 – Travel by bus to Copenhagen, Denmark.
18/6-21/6 – Copenhagen.
21/6 – Travel by bus to Oslo, Norway, via Sweden. Birding in Norway with Ketil Knudsen.
21/6-23/6 – Oslo, visiting Krysbmyra Forest in nearby mountains.
23/6-24/6 – Overnight stay at Tasken – Knudsen family cabin on southern Swedish coast by Oslo Fjord estuary.
24/6-26/6 – Oslo.
26/6 – Drive to Knudsen family cabin in Synnfjell Mountains, Nord-Torpa, visiting slopes above Lillehammer.
26/6-30/6 – Birded forest around cabin, visited Valdresflya Plateau & Hersjomyrin Nature Reserve (Storhosaestren).
30/6 – Flew to Amsterdam, The Netherlands, transfer to Haarlem.
30/6 – 4/7 – Haarlem, visiting Amsterdam & Zuid-Kennemerland National Park.
*Balearic Shearwater (1 off Leucate Lighthouse),
Little Grebe, Slavonian Grebe (pair nesting near Lillehammer), Great Crested Grebe,
European Shag (a few off Italy coast), Great Cormorant,
Grey Heron, Little Egret, White Stork (just 2 in Austria),
Mute Swan, Greylag Goose,
*Barnacle Goose (fairly common Oslo & Tasken),
Mallard, Common Pochard, Red-crested Pochard (common Lake Constance),
Common Shelduck (several near Port Leucate), Tufted Duck, Common Goldeneye,
Common Eider (common and breeding in Norway), Common Scoter (a few Tasken),
Velvet Scoter (common Tasken), Red-breasted Merganser (common Tasken),
Osprey (2 Tasken), White-tailed Eagle (1 Synnfjell Mtns), Black Kite,
Red Kite (a few Switzerland, Bavaria), Common Buzzard, Eurasian Kestrel,
Eurasian Sparrowhawk (1 Zuid-Kennemerland), European Honey-Buzzard (1 Fitou),
*Black Grouse (1 female flushed from forest road, Synnfjell Mtns),
Capercaillie (1 female with 2 chicks, Synnfjell Mtns),
Red Grouse [Willow Ptarmigan] (2 calling Storhosaestren),
Common Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge (2 Fitou),
Common Crane (a few Norway mountains),
Corn Crake (4 heard Murnauer Moos; responsive to Australian frog tape calls),
Common Moorhen, Eurasian Coot,
Eurasian Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover (2 Leucate),
Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Golden Plover (calling Storhosaestren),
*Eurasian Dotterel (1 adult with 2 chicks, Valdresflya),
Wood Sandpiper, Common Redshank, Common Sandpiper, Eurasian Curlew,
Eurasian Woodpock (2 on road Synnfjell Mtns 2am),
Common Snipe (1 on road Synnfjell Mtns 2am, another displaying),
*Great Snipe (15+ performing well at Storhosaestren lek for 2 hours from 11pm),
Slender-billed Gull (a few off Leucate Lighthouse), Common Gull,
Great Black-backed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Black-headed Gull,
Yellow-legged Gull, European Herring Gull,
Common Tern (breeding commonly in Norway), Arctic Tern (2 Valdresflya),
Little Tern (a few near Leucate), Sandwich Tern (a few off Leucate Lighthouse),
Rock Dove, Stock Dove, Common Wood-Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove,
European Turtle-Dove, Common Cuckoo,
*Eurasian Pygmy-Owl (1 during day, Chartreuse Mtns),
Short-eared Owl (2 Storhosastren), Long-eared Owl (1 at cabin, Synnfjell Mtns),
European Nightjar (2 flushed during day, Krysbmyra),
Common Swift, Alpine Swift (a few Sitges),
Black Woodpecker (2 Chartreuse Mtns), Great Spotted Woodpecker,
Eurasian Wryneck (1 at nest Murnauer Moos),
Shore Lark (2 Valdresflya), Calandra Lark (1 near Leucate),
Wood Lark (a few Zuid-Kennemerland), Eurasian Skylark, Crested Lark (common Fitou),
Barn Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Craig Martin,
Tree Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Rock Pipit (1 Tasken),
Tawny Pipit ( a few Fitou), White Wagtail, Western Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail,
Woodchat Shrike (1 Chateau Peyrepertuse), Red-backed Shrike,
Dunnock, Eurasian Reed-Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Icterine Warbler,
Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Western Bonelli's Warbler (2 Murnauer Moos),
Greater Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Black-capped Warbler, Garden Warbler,
Western Orphean Warbler (2 Fitou), Sardinian Warbler (common Fitou),
Dartford Warbler (1 Fitou), Goldcrest,
Spotted Flycatcher, Pied Flycatcher, Whinchat, Northern Wheatear (common Norway),
Black-eared Wheatear (common Fitou), Common Redstart, Black Redstart,
European Robin, Bluethroat (several Valdreslfya race svecica),
Common Nightingale (common Fitou), Common Blackbird,
Fieldfare (common Norway, a few Bavaria), Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush,
*Redwing (common Norway),
Long-tailed Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Willow Tit, Eurasian Blue Tit, Crested Tit,
Marsh Tit, Eurasian Nuthatch, Short-toed Treecreeper (1 Chartreuse Mtns),
Eurasian Wren, Corn Bunting, Yellowhammer, Reed Bunting,
Brambling (a few Synnfjell Mtns), Chaffinch, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin,
European Greenfinch, Eurasian Bullfinch, Hawfinch (1 Synnfjell Mtns),
Common Redpoll, Lesser Redpoll, Eurasian Linnet, European Serin (common Fitou),
*Parrot Crossbill (2 seen others heard Krysbmyra),
Tree Sparrow, House Sparrow, Common Starling, Spotless Starling (a few Fitou),
Eurasian Jay,
*Siberian Jay (a few near cabin Synnfjell Mtns),
Eurasian Magpie, Northern Raven, Rook, Carrion Crow, Hooded Crow, Jackdaw.
145 species, 9 lifers.
Mammals
Short-beaked Common Dolphin (a few off Leucate Lighthouse),
*Chamois (1 Chartreuse Mtns),
*Roe Deer (a few Chartreuse Mtns, southern Norway),
Fallow Deer (several Zuid-Kennemerland),
*Wood Mouse Apedemus sylvaticus (common Chartreuse Mtns),
Eurasian Red Squirrel,
*Eurasian Beaver (1 very close, early morning Murnauer Moos),
Mountain Hare Lepus europaeus (a few Valdresflya),
*Field Vole Microtus agrestis (1 taken by harrier near Tasken).
9 species, 5 lifers.