Day 5 Purple Rain…. Raufarhorn and the Purple Sandpiper hunt continues
Day 5 Purple Rain….. Raufarhorn and the Purple Sandpiper hunt continues
Day 5 weather still overcast and chilly but we are full of hope as we head out to the Tundra again on the hunt for Purple Sandpipers. Wasn’t a to early start and we are nesting by 5.30am. First stop was the roadside Purple Sandpiper from last night. I wanted to try and get a picture of the bird incubating the eggs and to try and show how difficult these birds are to see when sat on the open tundra. The visit was brief to avoid further disturbance.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
Unsurprisingly the next few nest of the day are Eider Duck we must be well into the 50s now. Still they are a cracking nest to look at when the haven’t been raided for the down.
Eider Duck nest, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
Next up is another Ringed Plover which we nearly parked on top of. They seem to love the edge of the gravel tracks this one just happened to be where we turned the car around.
Ringed Plover nest Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
We walked another few miles across the tundra in an area we know had been successful for another person a few years ago. We walked as far as we could until we reached a large lake. The lake had 3 Great- northern Divers on and although distant and no good for photography it was good to sit and watch these bird interact and call to each other. We crossed back over the road and had a pair of Purple Sandpiper calling and another possible scrape.
Great-northern Diver, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022.
More Eider duck nest were found and again most unmarked we did come across the occasional nest marked up with red flags.
Eider Duck nest, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
It was now approaching 8am so it was time to return to base to pick Ricky up. Ricky had been up to the Arctic Henge for a look and whilst up there he had come across a Snipe nest which he had marked the location of for the scientists and us to have a look later. At our base we met one of the local research’s from the rif station based here who had gave us some great information about the Purple Sandpipers and a good place to check out. So that was the plan. It’s such a pleasure to meet these fellow birders in Iceland who are more than happy to share information with you. He was also happy to tell us about certain protected and very rare species in the area. You don’t get this kind of information back home. The area he mentioned for the Purple Sandpipers was the lighthouse at Hraunhafnartangi which is the most northerly point in mainland Iceland.
Hraunhafnartangi lighthouse, Most northern point of mainland Iceland, June 2022
When we arrived we watched a couple Eider down collecting. Shows there is big money in it as they drove a brand new Tesla. We avoided them and walked towards to the lighthouse it wasn’t long before we had Purple Sandpipers joy flighting over our heads and we had a colour rung bird close by on some rocks.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
We had a lovely Ptarmigan posing on a bird mound so walked over to take some pictures. It was just out of view and I was waiting for a better opportunity when we had another Purple Sandpiper nearby so I didn’t give the Ptarmigan as much attention as I should of.
Ptarmigan, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
A few quick snaps and we were back watching the Purple Sandpipers. Adrian had watched it going across the rocks were I managed a few pictures of it. They are such stunning birds and fast becoming one of my favourite waders.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022.
All of a sudden it vanished. We slowly walked across the ground looking on the rocks hoping it would pop back up. No joy. I continued to move forward and and out the corner of my eye I caught what looked like another rock bird but this time it wasn’t it was a bloody Purple Sandpiper sat on the deck and doing one thing and one thing only incubating eggs. Wow wow wow we had found what we were looking for and it was almost at the point Adrian had lost it to view. The bird aware of our presence but so sure of its camouflage just walked away from us and sat down on its nest. It was at this point I thought to myself how many of these had we walked pass already it was so well camouflaged up against a nearby rock and even though I was pretty much stood on it, it hadn’t budged an inch. Time was of the essence now as we didn’t want to disturb this bird to much so we all took a few photos of it sat on the nest. I managed to use my Macro set up to get within a few inches of the bird to capture the below images.
Purple Sandpiper on the nest, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
The below picture shows Ricky a few feet away from the incubating Purple Sandpiper. Trust me there is a Purple Sandpiper in that picture somewhere but it shows how difficult they are to see. This is why they are such a challenging bird to find. They are tiny, well camouflaged, sit tight and live in some harsh remote wilderness
Ricky and the Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
What we did next won’t please all birders and I do get the reasons why. But I was here with a very experienced and well respected bird nester who has volunteered for the BTO and RSPB. Without his knowledge and experience we would of left this bird alone. I am sure some people will react to this in a negative way but all information from this nest was passed on to the research team in the area. With his judgement we slowly ushered the bird of the nest. The bird did the most amazing display to try and attract us away from the eggs. It pretend to be injured which would hopefully deter a predator away from the eggs. It called as it moved away to a nearby rock. We quickly took some pictures of the nest and logged the location via what3words. We then moved away before we had even got 5 feet away the sandpiper was already on the move back to the nest. We watched it back on before moving a good distance away and celebrating our amazing find. This did mean however I couldn’t go back to tog the very showy Ptarmigan as it was close to the Sandpiper.
Purple Sandpiper nest, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022 (taken with macro lens and not iPhone)
Video of the Landscape of the nesting Purple Sandpiper, June 2022
We were now excited to find what else the area would offer up so we continued across the tundra towards the lighthouse. We found numerous more Eider Duck nests. Don’t worry I won’t bore you with any more pictures of them. If only we could turn ones of these Eiders into a Long-tailed Duck. Alongside a few more terns, terns are a good sign as Red Phalaropes often nest on the edge of Arctic Tern colonies, I guess from protection. When we stumbled across one it was also interesting to see how they would react. Me being the tallest often bore the brunt of their attacks. They wouldn’t stop attacking you until you were well clear. As I write this I wonder if we missed anything as I was so focused on not being hit that we could of walked past numerous sitting birds. Especially with what we had just witnessed. At one point we came across a male Eider Duck he was sat in the middle of nowhere, well to be fair that could be anywhere out here. He aloud a close approach and showed no sign of moving which is unusual for Eider Ducks. It did allow for a few pictures of these stunning birds. I did wonder as I photographed him if he may have been struggling with avian flu. There was no obvious signs apart from his lack of movement. We had already seen some evidence of this around Raufarhofn with numerous dead sea birds and a very poorly Fulmar on one of the local beaches, that I am certain with struggling with the effects of bird flu.
Eider Duck, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022.
After moving on for the Eider Duck we headed back towards the coast. We came across a pair of Dunlin who seemed to be on territory but not much else. We left them to it. Also came across a showy Ringed Plover that posed lovely in the drizzle.
Dunlin, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022.
Ringed Plover, Raufarhofn, June 2022
Later we came across another pair of Purple Sandpipers. We watched then for a while unsure of what they were up to. Adrian was adamant they were bound to be nesting somewhere nearby. Eventually we lost both birds and continued across the Tundra fairly confident one was nearby. I think we had gone about 20 foot further on when I stopped dead in my tracks as a Purple Sandpiper came up at my feet and did the same behaviour as the last one leaving the nest. It was clearly trying to draw me away from the area by pretending to have an injured wing. Such a clever way of protecting their eggs from predators. We weren’t to be drawn away and quickly located the nest. It contained another beautiful set of 4 eggs. I don’t think I had seen Adrian as happy as this since England had stuffed Wales at the millennium stadium a few years ago. What a day we were having 2 Purple Sandpipers in just a few hours. We quickly took some pictures and then tagged the nest to pass on to the team of researchers.
Purple Sandpiper nest, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022.
Happy chappies, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
Below is a Video of the territory we found this Purple Sandpiper in. If you listen carefully you can hear inbetween the noise Arctic Terns the beautiful sound of a Purple Sandpiper. Something we don’t hear very often on our shores. The 2nd video is the Purple Sandpiper trying to deflect us away by pretending to be injured.
Purple Sandpiper Territory, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
For the next few hours we walked around the area have multiple interactions with individuals and pairs of Purple Sandpipers. This was definitely a hot spot for them. It was amazing to watch these birds in their habitat go about their business with a gentle approach I managed to get some pictures I was very pleased with the ones that showed their display behaviour. It was such a joy to observe them interacting with each other. I love their little calls and to see them joy flighting is awesome. Just wish it would stop raining.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, June 2022
After taking far to many pictures we headed back to the car and we came across another pair of Purple Sandpipers like the last few they gave us the round around but we didn’t locate any more nests it did offer up a few more photo opportunities though. One of the pair was rung again. I m guessing there had been a colouring ringing project in the area.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, June 2022
It was now approaching 5pm and we had put in some decent hours in the area with some great rewards. We headed back to the car watching 2 singing male Snow Buntings. One was very territorial and kept seeing of the other male. Adrian was watching a female that disappeared but sadly drew a blank on any nest. Was great to see so many snow buntings in such a small area. Was also strange to see these much like the Purple Sandpipers and Ptarmigan breeding at sea level. We are use to seeing these birds breeding on the highest peaks in Scotland. After my previous attempts of a Ptarmigan were trumped by a Purple Sandpiper it was good to see another one, probably the same male nearby.
Snow Bunting, Raufarhofn, June 2022
Ptarmigan, Raufarhofn, Iceland, June 2022
I know your probably bored of Purple Sandpiper pictures but as we went back to the car we came across a social gathering of these little waders. There we at least 6 in the same area resting on a large boulder next to a small lake. One took some time to bathe and was pretty cool to watch.
Purple Sandpiper, Raufarhofn, June 2022
The last bird before we headed back to our final stop was a rare one. I ran back to the car to alert Adrian and Ricky of the rare duck I had come across and produced the below picture. Made me chuckle even if they didn’t. Sadly though all across this remote coastline was lots of waste plastics and other rubbish. There was also a lot of large ropes I guess from fishing vessels. Really sad to see but seeming to be the norm nowadays.
Toilet Duck, Raufarhofn, June 2022
Final stop was the Dunlin Ricky had found yesterday. The Arctic Skuas were still on territory which was good to see and even better the Dunlin had completed the set.
Dunlin Nest, Iceland, June 2022
We headed back to the hotel and passed on all our findings to Jose and co who were very excited to follow up on what we had located. We then headed out for some tea. I nailed another superb Pizza. Cost a small fortune but was well needed. After tea we jumped back in the car to head out to check Ricky’s Snipe nest as we went to drive off Adrian said stop. He had seen a Ringed Plover acting for suss. We watched it back on to its nest from the car just a few meters from where we were parked on a piece of rough ground in the car park. Amazing what you can find sat in your car. Ricky also relocated the snipe nest in the car park of the Arctic Henge again. Pictures of both below.
Ringed Plover nest, Raufarhofn, June 2022
Snipe nest, Raufarhofn, June 2022
After another stunning meal at the Hotel Nordurljos I headed back out alone on to the tundra. Others had an early night and so should of I as I don’t think anything else would top what a day we had already had. The weather was now really shite and that early night was calling loudly. You’re only here for such a limited time that I went for it anyway. Saw a pair of Ptarmigan on the track towards the lighthouse and a pair of Oystercatchers had chicks on one of the beaches. I had stopped at the beach to try and tog a lone Red Knot but the light was so bad I gave up and headed for home.
Oystercatcher chicks, Raufarhofn, June 2022
Greenland Sea, Iceland, June 2022
