A little holiday update

I eventually found up to 9 breeding pairs of Red-backed Shrikes (5 pairs plus single birds at 4 sites) plus Wrynecks at 2 sites so these two species may well have an OK year after all. One of the pairs of Wrynecks had 3 young already out of the nest and I heard their begging call for the first time – a call which can be confused with the song of Firecrest!

One of the pairs of Red-backed Shrikes also had young which had just flown out of the nest and which were much shyer than their parents and kept in the depth of bushes most of the time. Raptors were very scarce with just local breeding Common Buzzard and Sparrowhawk – I had expected to find Honey Buzzards.

Butterflies continued to be my main focus. I added eight new species: Grayling / kystringvinge; Holly Blue / vårblåvinge – a very rare second generation adult; Small White / liten kålsommerfugl; Common Blue / tiriltungeblåvinge; Small Copper / ildgullvinge; Comma / hivt C; Heath Fritillary / marimjellerutevinge; Swallowtail / svalestjert – Sara found a caterpillar which we looked after for a few days.

A little holiday update — Dark Green Fritillary /aglajperlemorvinge

I also managed my first ever picture of the Pearly Heath and managed to see from a picture the spine on the front leg of the male Silver-studded Blue which confirmed my suspicion that the smaller blue butterflies I were seeing were this species and not Idas Blue although as these two species can fly together I could well have seen both.

aglajaperlemorvinge%2BIMG 1569%2Bcopy — Dark Green Fritillary /aglajperlemorvinge

marimjellerutevinge%2BIMG 1638%2Bcopy — Heath Fritillary /marimjellerutevinge

marimjellerutevinge%2BIMG 4691%2Bcopy — Heath Fritillary /marimjellerutevinge

s%25C3%25B8lvk%25C3%25A5pe%2BIMG 4537%2Bcopy — Queen of Spain Fritillary / sølvkåpe

kaiserk%25C3%25A5pe%2BIMG 4554%2Bcopy — Silver washed fritillary / keiserkåpe

keiserk%25C3%25A5pe%2BIMG 1753%2Bcopy — Silver washed fritillary / keiserkåpe

adippeperlemorvinge%2BIMG 1755%2Bcopy — High Brown Fritillary /adippeperlemorvinge

adippeperlemorvinge%2BIMG 1767%2Bcopy — High Brown Fritillary /adippeperlemorvinge

adippeperlemorvinge%2BIMG 1780%2Bcopy — High Brown Fritillary /adippeperlemorvinge

argusbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2BIMG 4460%2Bcopy — Silver-studded Blue/argusblåvinge This shows, I believe the spur on the front leg

argusbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2Bpigg%2BIMG 4470%2Bcopy — same butterfly and the spur can be seen!

argusbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2BIMG 4558%2Bcopy — another assumed Silver-studded Blue/argusblåvinge

argusbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2BIMG 4591%2Bcopy — same individual. Here a forward pointing spur can be seen on the middle leg but this is apparantly also seen in Idas

argusbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2BIMG 4638%2Bcopy — same individual

common%2Bblue%2BIMG 4443%2Bcopy — Common Blue / tiriltungeblåvinge

v%25C3%25A5rbl%25C3%25A5vinge%2BIMG 1721%2Bcopy — Holly Blue / vårblåvinge – a very rare second generation adult

kystringvinge%2BIMG 4530%2Bcopy — Grayling / kystringvinge

swallowtail%2BIMG 4792%2Bcopy — Swallowtail caterpillar

swallowtail%2BIMG 4672%2Bcopy — it sticks this out as a defense mechanism and it emits a foul smell (although we didn’t detect the smell)

buzzard%2BIMG 1710%2Bcopy — Common Buzzard (musvåk)

pink%2Bfooted%2Bgoose%2BIMG 4761%2Bcopy — a very unexpected mid summer Pink-footed Goose (kortneggbås)

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1676%2Bcopy — a very well marked old female Red-backed Shrike (tornskate)

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1684%2Bcopy — a more normally marked female

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1590%2Bcopy — another more normally marked female

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1735%2Bcopy — and another boldly marked old female who I also saw with a bird in her beak

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1692%2Bcopy — who was mother to this youngster

red%2Bbacked%2Bshrike%2BIMG 1695%2Bcopy — and paired with this male

wryneck%2BIMG 1621%2Bcopy — Wryneck (vendehals) with a beak full of ant larvae which it was taking to fledged youngsters

smooth%2Bworm%2BIMG 4783%2Bcopy — Slow worm (stålorm)

swallow%2BIMG 1689%2Bcopy — this year seems to have been very god for breeding Swallows and there are many youngsters on the wing

kongeskipet%2BIMG 1804%2Bcopy — Norways royal yacht

Simon Rix

Simon Rix is an English Birder who has lived in Oslo, Norway since 2001. Birding has been his passion since primary school and after an education as an economist and career within oil and gas and then drinks industry he turned his attention full time to birds as middle age approached. He is particularly interested in patch birding and migration and is an active guide, blogger and photographer. He is a member of the Norwegian Rarities Committee (NSKF).

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Simon Rix

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