May The Fourth Be With You

Four Red Breasted Geese in Viiki over the past few days proved too much of a temptation for us, and seemed suitable substrate to inspire a family walk around the area.

The birds were on show the second we arrived at the edge of the bay. The light was beautiful and we spent quite a bit of time taking them in.

I like geese. Always have, ever since my first winter trip to Wexford's North Slob. Now, living in Finland, they've become an even bigger feature of my birding. Not restricted to one or two small areas of the country, geese in their thousands can show up in any suitable area of fields, Spring and Autumn.

Species I considered mega in Ireland, Tundra and Taiga Bean Geese, I now see in numbers. Barnacle Goose, where once you had to travel to Ireland's north west for a once a Winter re-familiarization, now wander around any park or spare bit of grass like feral pigeons.

Subsequently, I am occasionally inspired to move for something a little more exotic again. Whilst the odd Lesser White Fronted goose may be the rarer beast, there is no competing with the sheer dazzling, "pimp my ride"-ness of Red Breasted Goose.

Easily the best Goose there is, in my humble opinion. 

The majority of Red Breasted Geese in Finland are recorded in flight as they move with flocks of Barnacle or Brent Geese. Stop overs in striking distance are unusual enough an event, with poor weather late in the week preventing these guys pushing onwards. That said, the superb habitat that is Viiki also plays it's part in holding them.

That stunning Red colour, similar to that of Red-Necked Grebe.

They are more than that bright red center, however, with that beautiful mix of pure black and flowing white.

Red-Breasted Goose was one of my first dips in Ireland, back in the days when I had an old opticron scope and bins, for them to go from a once in a lifetime bird to annual rare migrant is something I may never get used to.

We also enjoyed other fresh migrants over the course of our walk.

The first Wood Warblers had arrived, in good numbers, singing every few meters on the trail to the tower, and my first Tree pipit of the year was present near the fields.

Back at home, my first Little Gulls of the year, a flock of some 30, were hawking over the lake with a flock of both Common and Arctic tern ( with the odd Caspian Tern of course), whilst my first Whinchat was mooching through the fields at Saltfjarden.

Raptors still on the quiet side, hopefully to change soon.