Braving the wind at Falsterbo
Temperatures had plummeted during the night and we awoke to a thick frost on the ground and a bitter north-easterly wind. But undeterred we headed out with Lars to Falsterbo, not far from Malmo, to witness more migration.Huge numbers of Wood Pigeons and Jackdaws were heading out high towards Denmark. Amongst them were smaller numbers of Rooks and Stock Doves. At first it seemed that this was all that was moving, but we left Lars watching from near the car and we headed out to the point south of the bird observatory. Here the wind was biting cold but more birds could be seen. Finches, buntings and pipits were all struggling against the near-gale. Then we began to notice Common Buzzards overhead and a steady passage of these raptors continued throughout our time at Falsterbo. We saw some 200 individuals and amongst the Buzzards were good numbers of Sparrowhawks, at least 18 Red Kites, and a single Kestrel. Moving back to the shelter of the trees around the bird observatory, we saw migrating Goldcrests and gangs of Blue and Great Tits, and watched the ringers at work as they emptied the mist nets. We then returned to join Lars and his friend Rolf who were watching from the parking area. Here it was a lot more sheltered and we spent some time watching and chatting. Highlights here included 4 Wood Larks flying low overhead and a Great Grey Shrike that popped up on some adjacent pine trees.Our morning had flown by and it was time to head back to catch our train and onward flight home. We would like to thank Lars and Ingrid for their wonderful hospitality once again, and Anders and all the other members of the Club 300 for making our stay so much fun.We’re already looking forward to our next trip to this wonderful country – roll on next spring!