I spent an absolutely lovely week in Finland with Ingrid and her family. Based on the island of Vessö in the Baltic near Helsinki, we fished, birded, boated and cycled our way around this serene landscape, as well as birding whenever I could fit it in. Apart from one visit to a nature reserve on the edge of Porvoo (where there were many
Wood Sandpipers and
Ruff) and a trip to the Central Park (a failed quest to see Flying Squirrels, but producing several
Wood Warblers), all of the birding was done on our island and 88 species were totted up. Among the birds easily encountered were
Red-backed Shrikes,
Cranes,
Caspian Terns,
Woodcocks,
Crested Tits,
Willow Tits,
Pied Flycatchers,
Spotted Flycatchers,
Fieldfares,
Redwings,
crossbills,
Lesser Whitethroats,
Yellowhammers and
Tree Sparrows.
More isolated sightings included a
White-tailed Eagle, a summer-plumaged
Black-throated Diver, a
Red-breasted Flycatcher, a
Green Sandpiper and a magical evening encounter with a
Long-eared Owl. Oh, and I finally saw my first
Black Woodpecker!
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| ♂ Red-backed Shrike |
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| a tranquil Baltic island |
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| ♀ Red-breasted Flycatcher |
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| adult and young Crane |
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| Baltic boating |
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| Privet Hawkmoth |
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| Barnacle Geese blocking our boat landing |
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| Mealy Redpoll |
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| adult Caspian Tern |
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| juvenile Wheatear |
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| the Baltic |
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| Arran Brown? |
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| the daily cycle |
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| a bit of fishing |
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| we nearly ran over two Grass Snakes on our bikes in one morning |
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| Dark Green Fritillary? |
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| Wood Warbler |
