It’s 6 days to Christmas and the Goosanders on the river stay relaxed despite the snowstorms that seem to haunt us these days. The Goosander is one of the birds that stays in Iceland the whole year round. – Can you see the Polar Bear ?
The Long-Tailed Duck is a threatened species
The Long-Tailed Duck is a noticable duck because of its beautiful colours and long tail. Global warming is probably a threat to its existence. It is on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with the status vulnerable. In the wintertime it stays in the ocean around Iceland but in the summer it is a breeding bird in the interior where the climate is colder, more arctic.
This picture is taken in Veiðivötn, Fishing Lakes, in the interior of Iceland. The male bird is at the front, the female behind.
Gets its name from stealing food
The Parasitic Jaeger (Stercorarius parasiticus) gets its name from stealing food from other birds. Doesn’t sound nice, does it? It is a seabird and also goes by the name of Arctic Skua. We think that is a better name.
The Arctic Skua is a migratory bird in Iceland and arrives here in early May. It can be found throughout the country. It makes its nest in sandy soil even in the interior although it is a seabird that stays mostly near the sea .
7 days to Christmas
It seem that the Blackbird quite likes Iceland. Some years a ago they were vagrants but that has changed. We have more than 10 in the garden most days.
8 days to Christmas
Today when it’s only 8 days to Christmas we bring you this little wood mouse that we have seen several times this year. The beautiful little thing has some different colour variations than the ordinary ones. – Here it is in the snow in the food set out for the birds at the family summerhouse, and the birds are glad to share 🙂
9 days to Christmas
It’s 9 days to Christmas and we bring you this snowy Redpoll. It’s not only cold for humans, it’s cold for everyone, including birds. It’s been exceptionally cold for this time of year and blizzards day after day, something that one is not used to until January. – But it looks a lot like Christmas 🙂
The roles of the sexes is reversed
The Red-Necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus) is a wader and can often be seen on ponds, lakes and streams. With the Red-Necked Phalarope the roles of the sexes is reversed. After the female has laid the eggs she goes her way leaving the male with the responsibility of the nest and the upbringing of the chicks. They are migratory birds and leave for the winter. Some probably go all the way to the Pacific, West of Peru.
10 days to Christmas
The European Robin is a vagrant in Iceland. It’s a long time since we had them in our garden, 20 years actually. This winter we have had two and one is still in the garden. We really like having the Robin and take care to leave food in its favourite place. Hopefully it will manage to survive the winter <3
The Wood Mouse is a funny little creature
There are a lot of Wood Mice in Iceland. They are well adapted to the cold and live in underground holes which they dig. They gather all kinds of seeds and stuff in their holes for the winter.
If it gets really cold they might try and get into your house or preferably your summerhouse and you will see their droppings next time you’re there.
11 days to Christmas
It’s 11 days to Christmas and there is snow everywhere. It’s been snowing all morning and I think my car will not make it through our driveway. We walked to the baker this morning and got some bread from yesterday which they birds have been busy at all day. When it’s cold you need to eat more to keep warm 🙂