Birding - 15/09/09

Two dunlin at Klarningen this morning were the first I have seen at the site.

Clear skies overnight and a chilly dawn greeted me this morning. Checked out Klarningen before breakfast and it was well worth the effort. Found not one but two red-throated pipits, feeding together at the north end. They were furtive and more difficult to flush than meadow pipits and gave reasonable views as they scurried about, usually feeding close to, or along the vegetated edge of, channels. Needless to say it was the call that drew my attention to them, they would be easy to miss in a casual scan I reckon. Other new birds for Klarningen were Canada goose (7 over) and two cracking 1K dunlin. Otherwise two reed warblers were nice and the river reeds were full of reed buntings. I texted out the red-throated pipits to Martin Åkesson and he almost immediately rained on my parade by texting back that he had just had a two-barred crossbill go over. I nipped back to the coast for fifteen minutes but I suspect it was long gone. Good bird here.

After sorting out the conveyancing on the in-laws new house in Ängelholm, Mrs B and I headed for a quick twitch to Farhult. Great spot this and one I do not get to enough. The easy highlight was the 1K broad-billed sandpiper that has been hanging about for a few days in a large flock of dunlin. Also in attendance during cursory scans elsewhere were grey plover (3 1K), greenshank (3), bar-tailed godwit (12) and curlew sandpiper (1 1K). A water rail squealed in the reeds. Offshore a 1K red-throated diver bobbed about and the large flock of barnacle geese (1000+) was terrorised by the arrival of a subadult white-tailed eagle.

Today's 1K broad-billed sandpiper was a little stunner. It was present in the flock of dunlin on arrival but then disappeared. I walked in over the flats and scanned for quite a while before I noticed it again - it had been hiding behind the only bit of cover for hundreds of metres.

Took the kids down to Eskilstorpstrand to enjoy the sun and sea in the afternoon. They splashed about happily for an hour and I got a bit of birding in. A few waders were present with ruff (2), dunlin (14) and bar-tailed godwit (1). Close inshore a raft of 54 Canada geese and separately a bit further out ten common scoter (mostly male).