The Mallard is the biggest of the dabbling ducks and widely distributed across both hemispheres. It is the most common and widely spread duck in Iceland. It breeds in a wide range of habitats and lays 8 to 13 eggs. This summer breeding has been very successful on River Ölfusá where this duck was with her 9 chicks.
Most Mallards overwinter in Iceland, staying by the seaside or in the sea around the islands. Some probably go to the British Isles for winter.
A Wood Sandpiper has been in Garður, Reykjanes Peninsula, since the end of July. It is a common breeding bird in the subarctic wetlands of Europe and Asia and will probably become native to Iceland in the coming years. Instances of breeding are known and most of the birds have been spotted by Lake Mývatn.
The Wood Sandpiper is a common bird in freshwater wetlands. It migrates south to Africa, Southern Asia, mostly India, and Australia.
This Wood Sandpiper was in the company of a Red Shank and a Dunlin, all of them in search of food in a shallow pond. We saw it catch some sticklebacks which is probably its favourite food.
This summer a Wood Pigeon has been the most prominent bird in our garden. It has taken a liking to our garden, or more precisely the sunflower seeds. Usually there is just one but every once in a while two of them show up. They feel at home and come to the window sills to remind us to keep filling the feeding trays.
Wood Pigeons are vagrants in Iceland but with increased cereal cultivation, Iceland will become more viable for them. They are beautiful birds and a nice addition to our usual guests but in many countries they are considered agricultural pests.
The Ringed Plover is a small shorebirds, delicate and beautifully proportioned. In Iceland they breed all over the country, from the coast and lowlands, up to the highlands. Its favourite habitat are open sandy areas where there is little vegetation and it lays its eggs in sand or gravel.
The Ringed Plovers are migratory birds that fly south to South West Europe in the autumn and arrive back in Iceland in April. It is estimated that the breeding population counts around 50,000 pairs.
The Great Blackbacks are the biggest of the seagulls. They are seldom grouped with the beautiful birds of this planet, however, up close they are not so bad, are they? Beautifully coloured beak, the breast and underpart the whitest of white and the black back must count for something.
The Great Black-backed Gulls mostly eat small fish but many dislike them because they are scavengers and opportunist that eat almost everything they can get and they are notorious for stealing eggs and chicks from nests. In Iceland there are even stories of Great Blackbacks killing lambs.
The Great Black-backed Gulls’ habitat is spreading southwards from the North Atlantic, from Iceland and as far south as France, and from the Atlantic coast of Canada as far south as North Carolina, USA.
The Ptarmigan is in its summer plumage and blends well in with nature in its favourite habitat. This female was busy feeding but plants are its main food source. A few years ago there was concern that their numbers were dropping but now they are on the rise again.
Ptarmigans can now be seen with chicks, often 10 – 12 of them but the eggs can be from 3 up to 13. They breed in the Arctic and are common all over Iceland although the northeast moors are the most densely populated.
The Great Northern Diver is the king of Icelandic mountain lakes and Veiðivötn in the South Highlands is a perfect place for breeding. The big clear mountain lakes of Veiðivötn provide all it needs. Trout is the Great Northern Diver’s favourite food and the lakes are full of fish.
There is just one pair on each lake and the lake is their territory – no visitors allowed in breeding time. They make their nests on islands or islets, often in moss or grass, and the eggs are two.
Iceland is the only breeding place of the Great Northern Diver in Europe. In winter they stay on the sea mostly around Iceland and they lose their distinctive black and white pattern and become grey.
In May a male Brambling was in the garden. He visited the feeding trays and could be heard singing here and in neighbouring gardens. The Brambling is a vagrant over most of Northern Europe and Asia, migrating southwards in winter.
Bramblings are annual vagrants in Iceland and there are several recordings of breedings but the Icelandic winter is probably not favourable since they have not become residents.
This is the first year that we have had pigeons in the garden, both Rock Doves and Wood Pigeons. We have no idea why this is happening now but with cereal farming on the increase Iceland is probably becoming more attractive to them.
At first they were quite shy but now they have got used to us and are not afraid to come to the feeding trays just outside our living room window, as can be seen on the pictures.
Rock Pigeons have breed in cliffs in a few places in East Iceland for some time but breeding pairs are believed to be about 300 – 500. The Wood Pigeon is mainly a vagrant but breeding has been recorded in a few places in recent years. Many years ago Domestic Pigeons used to come by the garden but they are not as common as they used to be.
The Tufted Duck is a small diving duck and a common breeding bird in Iceland. In winter some choose to stay on lakes and ponds that do not freeze but others migrate to the British Isles and South Europe. In spring they can usually be seen on River Ölfusá and in the last few years some have stayed by the river winter long. They breed by shallow lowland lakes where feed is abundant.
The male is black and white but the female is less decorative in its dark brownish plumage. They get their name from the obvious tuft on their head. The Tufted Duck is probably one the most common ducks in Iceland after the Eider and the Mallard.
