Finland And Estonia - Spring 2025
With my parents in situ here for a couple of weeks, I took some time off to enjoy a bit of birding with the old man and see if we could get him a tick or two whilst he was over. We started out on day one with an attempt at my Capercaillie site, but sadly getting a bit late in the spring, and the bird appears to have moved on. A couple of Red-Breasted Geese popped up nearby early on the visit, so we made the effort for these to ensure a lifer for Don. Red-Breasted Goose - one of two birds present. The best goose in Europe, and a fantastic lifer for Don. We then moved on to Laajalahti, to get year tick Caspian Terns and other wetland birds for Don, best of which was this exceptionally tame Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker - always cute little stunners. It was then time to head for a few days in Estonia. The boat over was productive as usual, finding a first year male King Eider and seeing various other sea duck species, including several Velvet Scoter and B...