It’s 12 days to Christmas and this little bird is so beautiful and tranquil in the snow. It seems that Redpolls are just made for these surroundings. –Remember to take time to relax and enjoy the little things in life.
12 days to Christmas
The Redshank in its orange stockings
With its bright orange feet the Redshank stands out and makes it easy to spot. It is usually a migratory bird in Iceland but a few stay for the winter. The Redshank is a wader and can be seen throughout the country, mostly near lakes and streams, and of course by the seaside. – We have to wait until April to hear the shrill call of the Redshank again.
13 days to Christmas
It’s 13 days to Christmas and this Common Crossbill in its yellow colours is so beautiful in the snow. The Common Crossbill is well adapted to the cold winter and you can almost say that it is nesting time all year round for them. This is probably a female bird rather than a yellow male. Males are more often in orange-red colours.
14 days to Christmas
It’s 14 days to Christmas and here we have three Bohemian Waxwings in the winter snow. They like apples and fight to get to them if neccessary. We wouldn’t say no to have these beautiful vagrants here at Christmas time this year. They are so decorative and would go well with the Christmas lights.
15 days to Christmas
It’s fifteen days to Christmas and we bring you a photo of this beautiful Icelandic Ptarmigan (Lagopus mutus). The Ptarmigan used to be the classical Icelandic Christmas dinner but lately there are not as many of them as there used to be. So hunters often come home with no prey at all. This does not make us sad because we are happy for each and every bird that survives the hunting season.
It’s fifteen days because Icelanders celebrate Christmas Eve, the evening before Christmas Day. That is when we have our Christmas dinner and open the presents.
Winter wonderland
Lots of snow and the Northern Lights light up the night sky. This looks a lot like Christmas. Another photo from last night.
Quirky birds
Outside it’s snowing and the wind is blowing. A blizzard has started and a warning has been issued. Roads are expected to close and everyone should just stay inside.
So this is the perfect time to sit down with a warm cup of tea and a drawing pad. Here is an example from my drawing pad 😉
Geothermal and solar energy
Northern lights and Hellisheiði Geothermal Plant in full Moon, 7 December 2014
Aggressive Arctic Tern
The Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea) is mainly a seabird, they say. These pictures are taken in Veiðivötn in the Interior of Iceland, far from the sea, in July this year. Here you can see how aggressive it is during the breeding season, –very protective of its young ones.
The Arctic Tern flies South for the wintertime. It is a long lived bird, reaching the age of 30 even.
Black-Tailed Godwit
Black-Tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) is a common breeding bird in the low lands around most of Iceland. It lays its eggs in grown wetlands. In winter it is mostly in Ireland or by the coasts of West Europe all the way south to Portugal.
The population is around 10.000 pairs in Iceland. A lot of Black-Tailed Godwits have been marked in the last few years. Many in the Nature Reserve in Flói, not far from Selfoss. These marked birds have been around. Below are pictures of two marked ones and their recovery stories.
YN-YLflag07.07.06Friðland, Flói, Árnessýsla, S Iceland