A singing Goldcrest

Glókollur – Goldcrest – Regulus regulus

Despite the cold northern gale this week the Goldcrest sang loudly in Hellisskógur forest by Selfoss. But you need a good hearing to notice its high pitched voice. Spring is the time for mating and breeding. Singing loudly attracts others of its kind and hopefully this one has bred by now.  The weather this winter and spring has not been favourable to these little birds who mostly depend on spiders and the eggs of insects for survival.

The Goldcrest, which is the smallest bird in Europe, was a vagrant in Iceland until 1995 when a flock of them got blown of course and they started breeding here. Now they are counted among Icelandic inhabitants. The Goldcrest can be found in most pine and spruce forests in Iceland.

Feeding the young ones

Krossnefur – Common Crossbill / Red Crossbill – Loxia curvirostra

A Common Crossbill has bred in Hellisskógur forest by Selfoss this spring. In March they could be seen in the forest eating seeds from the Contorta Pines. In the beginning of April the male started coming to our garden on the south side of the river for feed.  From then on he came here several times daily and could be seen going back to the forest on the northern side.

Feeding time

In the end of April a female bird sometimes came with him but then the male started coming alone sometimes accompanied by a hatchling. As time passed the hatchlings became three.

A Common Crossbill baby

Watching the male feed the young ones is amazing. He vomits sunflower seeds into the hatchlings’ beaks. However, lately he has let them feed on their own. So perhaps he is breeding again.

Unusual spring weather

Hrossagaukur – Snipe – Gallinago gallinago in the snow.

Spring this year was been quite snowy and May has been wetter than we can remember, the month which is usually dry and windy. So many of our Icelandic migrators were welcomed by snow and frost and now in the last week of May you can still see birds in towns looking for shelter and food. Hopefully they will return to their summer habitat soon to prepare for nesting and breeding.

Whooper Swans by their territory waiting for the snow to melt. In Flói, South Iceland.
In the end of April in our garden

Black-tailed Godwits in the hundreds

Jaðrakan – Black-tailed Godwit – Limosa limosa

Black-tailed Godwits are arriving in the thousands to their summergrounds. They are welcomed by snow and frost here in South Iceland. When the ground is covered in snow they stay by rivers in estuaries and mudflats where they can easily find feed.

The Black-tailed Godwit is one of the most beautiful waders that breeds in Iceland and their arrival in spring is awaited with anticipation.

In spring birds frequent mudflats in Nautavakir in Grímsnes, South Iceland

The Black-tailed Godwit overwinters on the west coast of Europe from Holland to the shores of Portugal. The Icelandic subspecies mostly breeds in Iceland but also in the Faroe Islands, the Shetlands and in Lofoten. This subspecies is more colourful, has shorter legs and a shorter bill. The Black-tailed Godwit breeds in lowlands all over Iceland and the population has been growing in recent years.

A visiting Siskin

Barrfinka – Siskin – Carduelis spinus

Siskins have been spotted all over the country this spring. This bird does not go unnoticed in its bright yellow plummage. A beautiful male has been in our garden for a few days now mingling with the Redpolls and eating sunflower seeds.

The Siskin is a common bird in European forests and a frequent vagrant in Iceland in spring and autumn. In recent years they  have also started breeding in South Iceland but information is limited. We hope that this male will survive the cold spell and go on to find a mate to breed with here in Iceland. The Siskin is a nice addition to the scarce birdlife in the fast growing Icelandic forests.

Redwings arriving

Skógarþröstur – Redwing – Turdus iliacus

Flocks of Redwings could be seen in Selfoss yesterday. These are migrants arriving in Iceland from their wintergrounds in Europe. Yesterday afternoon there were 35 of them here in the garden eating sunflower seeds and apples. Also groups of them  flying to the Northwest.

A few Redwings (2-6) stayed behind and were here in the garden this winter. They came here daily to feed but last week there were around 15 and yesterday their numbers had grown much more.

Engulfed in cold Arctic air

Clear skies and dry cold air comes with air mass from the Arctic.

After a fairly mild February it has in the last ten days  become freezing cold again. We are now in the middle of March so we have already started looking forward to spring. But no such thing in the forecasts. The cold air that engulfs us now comes straight from the North Pole, flooding down the Atlantic between Greenland and Norway, with Iceland in the middle. An air mass like this contains very cold and dry air. In the South of Iceland we have beautiful clear skies with considerable wind and temperatures well below zero. Because of the cold there is hardly a cloud to be seen and the sky is bright and blue. The frost has been between -2°C to -13°C most days. Here in Selfoss it has gone down to -15°C but in the North -25°C. And with the wind it feels much colder.

There has been quite a lot of solar activity lately with the Northern Lights dancing in the sky every night here in the south of Iceland. Since the sky is clear and no clouds conditions for experiencing and enjoying Aurora Borealis have been excellent, not to mention photographing. It is quite a challenge to capture the Northern Lights on camera in -10°C like yesterday evening when it was also windy. After 30 minutes outside your nose and fingers are frozen to the bone but of course it was worth it.

Similar weather is predicted in the coming weeks.

Northern Lights set the sky afire

Northern Lights January 15, 2023

Seldom has the sky been so brightly lit up with Northern Lights than last night. It was ablaze and just like we remember it from when we were children. There has been a lot of Northern Lights activity this winter which will continue for the next two years according to forecasts.

Solar activity increased last year and will be at a peak in two years time.

And again the pictures say more than words although they can never convey the feelings you experience seeing the Norhern Lights dancing in the night sky with your own eyes.

Pictures taken in the garden last night, – 15°C.

 

It sure is cold outside!

Christmas lights in Selfoss

Since the beginning of December we have had temperatures well below zero, more than – 20° C some days. Last night it was -16° C. Circumstances have been compared to the winter of 1918, but temperatures this low for such an extended period have not been recorded here in Iceland since then. Talking about extremes, November also broke a record for being the warmest November since the beginning of the century. 

Here we are in the middle of January and although forecasts predict temperatures above zero it is only for a day or two and then again frosty weather.

Here in Selfoss there are heaps of snow and with this continuing we do not foresee it melting until spring. Also, it will be interesting to see the heating bills once they arrive. Thanks to hot geothermal water our houses are mostly warm and only big users like swimming pools that have had to close down temporarily.

Not only has the weather been compared to 1918 but also the health of the nation. That year the Spanish flu, also known as the Great Influenza, is believed to have infected  around 500 million people all over the world.  Now cases of influenza, COVID, RS virus and other respiratory diseases have surged in Iceland and medical centres and hospitals are overcrowded with patients. Thanks to advances in medical science we are nowhere near what happened in 1918.

Now we should just try to enjoy the snow and the Northern Lights that are at a peak at this time of year.
We hope you enjoy these pictures from Selfoss, taken in December and January.

Enjoy nature with us