Birds

Picking mussels

kraekl

April is a good month to go mussel picking but next month it is the mussels’ breeding time and also it will be too warm. There are a lot of things to take into consideration when picking, cleaning and cooking mussels. Here is some info from an American blog; The Solo Cook.

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Today we took part in an event organised by The Icelandic University and The Iceland Touring Association. More than 100 people joined in a trip to pick mussels. It was a wonderful day and everyone seemed to enjoy the beach and the weather which was much better than expected.

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In Iceland you do not need to get a license but in some places the beach is private property.

kraekl-3These were steam-cooked and eaten straight from the pot. It is difficult to describe the taste of mussels but to say they taste like the sea is the best I can do.

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Birds, Garden

Three species of Thrushes

In the last few days there have been three species of Thrushes in the garden. We have had up to 25 Redwings, 5 Blackbirds and a Fieldfare. The photoes are taken in the garden in the last few days.

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Gráþröstur – Fieldfare – Turdus pilaris
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Skógarþröstur – Redwing – Turdus iliacus
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Svartþröstur – Blackbird – Turdus merula
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Birds

Geese in big groups

Geese are now in big groups in meadows and fields in the south of Iceland. They come from their winter grounds in the British Isles.

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Most of the geese are  Pinkfoot  (Anser brachyrhynchus) and Greylag  (Anser anser) which are breeding birds in Iceland. Groups of Greenlandic Whitefront (Anser albifronssem) come and stopover in Iceland on their way to and from their breeding grounds on the West coast of Greenland.

The photo is taken this morning of a group of Whitefronts, along with one Greylag and one Pinkfoot. Click on the photo to and see if you can spot them.

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Birds

The Goldcrest endured the winter

Today I saw a Goldcrest in a grove in Hellisskógur in Selfoss. This is the first Goldcrest I spot since December. I was beginning to think they had all died in the blizzards and cold this winter. But here at least is one that endured throughout the winter and I am amazed at its resilience.

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Glókollur – Goldcrest – Regulus regulus

This winter has been the toughest in the south of Iceland in 15 years and therefore quite a feat for a small bird like the Goldcrest to survive. The Goldcrest is the smallest bird in Europe, weighing only 5-7 grammes. In 1996 the first known breeding in Iceland was confirmed and since then their numbers have been increasing.

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