Sylvia curruca

No: Møller, Eng: Lesser whitethroat, It: Bigiarella, Sci: Sylvia curruca

Dear All,
A couple of weeks ago, Harald Totland said: “Wouldn’t it be cool to see a MØLLER in (our street) Møllevegen?”  This bird is not common, in average seen in Bergen about once every year. Then the morning on the 13. of May, Harald spotted it sitting in a tree in our garden! This destroyed my morning, trying to get a photo, unsuccessfully. Fortunately, it stayed in the area for at least a week.

The photo is from our neighbourhood on May 18.

Enjoy!
-Hans

Ardea alba

No: Egretthegre, En: Great egret, It: L’airone bianco maggiore

Dear All,
In this month of April 2015, the EGRETTHEGRE (Great Egret) has been observed both in Hordaland (Bømlo) and near Skien (Børsesjø). It is rarely seen in Norway.

My picture is from Iguazu Falls, Argentina, from christmas eve 2014.

Enjoy.

Best,
Hans

Iguazu falls, Argentina, Dec. 24, 2014.

Sturnus vulgaris

No: Stær, En: Starling, It: Storno

Dear All,

This photo of a starling from my garden was selected Bird photo of the year in Hordaland.

Hans.

Storetveit April 10, 2014

Otis tarda

No: Stortrappe, En: Great bustard, It: Otarda

Dear All,

I spent St. Valentines day 2015 alone in Extremadura, Spain watching the mating lek of the
Great Bustard! (How romantic …). All together there were more than 30 birds in the field. This is a very big bird. The male weighs up to 16 kg, wingspan up to 240cm. It can fly, see bottom picture. The great bustard is almost extinct in all of Europe, except Spain. In Norway it has only been seen once, in 1761, described in a letter from Bishop Gunnerus to Carl von Linné.

The males utter the most amazing sound during the mating game. Hear it in BBC Tweet of the Day.

If you want to visit Extremadura, I highly recommend Casa Rural el Recuerdo.

Hasta el próximo mes,

Hans.