- Dates: From May 31st to June 9th, 2024
- Tour participants: 10
- Number of species seen: 170
- Tour leader: Carles Oliver & Ramiro Aibar
All images in this trip report by Carles Oliver. All rights reserved.
Overview: Our 7th tour in Northern Finland & Finnmark was again a very successful adventure, despite some notorious absences. One of the most noticeable things during the trip was the almost total absence of Crossbills, with extremely few contacts and only a couple of proper sights. Parrot Crossbills seemed disappeared, with no records at all in the area. We got excellent views on all the Grouses during the trip, plus 5 species of Owls despite the low density of them both around Oulu and in Varanger. On the contrary, both Rustic & Little Buntings seemed to be everywhere in some parts of the trip, and Red-flanked Bluetail & Three-toed Woodpecker performed for our group in a very straightforward way.
Day 1. Part of group landed in Oulu with a small delay due to the heavy traffic at Barcelona Airport. We met some of the clients at Oulu Airport, where we got delayed again due to a problem with the delivery of one of the vans. We normally have a small window of birding in this first afternoon of the trip, but those delays smashed that window and the first birding of the tour was done after dinner.
We met the rest of the tour participants at the dinner, and taking advantage of the very late sunset, we had a small walk immediately around the hotel. Here we had a first contact with some common birds in this part of Finland, including Redwing, Pied & Spotted Flycatchers, Sedge Warbler, Red-breasted Merganser, Common & Arctic Terns, Common Redshank, Oystercatcher, Eurasian Teal, Gadwall, Northern Shoveler, Pintails but also other species a bit more scarce in this area such as Common Rosefinch, White-tailed Eagle, Black-tailed Godwits and the very first drake Garganeys of the tour.
Day 2. This day we went out for some owling. As always, a very early start is required so we left our accommodation ready to enjoy the first birding day of the trip, and our packed breakfasts! Small flocks of the distinctive Baltic race of the Western Jackdaw were everywhere, along with some Rooks. Our first stop was to check a nesting hole that was being used by Ural Owl, and we were lucky enough to be there when the female was on the nest. Even if the angle was not easy, everybody had good views on the bird including scope views on the face and the eyes of the bird. Walking in the boreal forest we heard the first Black Grouse of the trip as well as Common Redstart and the first of many Scandinavian Willow Tit.
A second stop in the boreal forest was to check a nesting area of Tengmalm’s Owl. Again, we were very lucky and even from the edge of the woods we saw a lovely chick of Tengmalm’s with its head blocking the aperture of the nest. The next ten minutes were simply magnificent. With the group sitting down on the boreal forest, we had excellent views on this chick while moving its head side to side, observing the trees around. At some point, it became clearly excited, almost about to jump from the nest! Suddenly, a call came from the forest but before we searched for the bird, Nick pointed out second chick of Tengmalm’s Owl that was perched only 3 metres away from us! The views on this 2nd bird were simply amazing, and after a couple of minutes we decided to step back. We found ourselves to be too close!
We still had some minutes to keep enjoying the Tengmalm’s Owls before moving to a different spot. In the way, we got 2 Red-backed Shrikes moving in the road, the only ones of the tour! Our next stop was close by in one of the several farming areas hosting Ortolan Buntings around Oulu. It didn’t take us long before finding the first male singing, followed by at least 2 other males and 2 more birds feeding on the ground. Other interesting birds here included Yellowhammer, Reed Bunting, some drake Whinchats singing in the edges of the fields and Common Whitethroat while Common Rosefinch was singing around.
Back to the forest, we explored a suitable spot for Three-toed Woodpecker. Here, we got nice views on Wood Warblers but also on Lesser Whitethroats and Pied Flycatchers. Still, all of this goes to a second frame, because the main character of the stop were the obliging pair of Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker attending its nest only a few metres away from us! It was a real privilege to see the often considered as the most difficult species of woodpecker in Europe so close and for so long!
After such a great moment we decided to change a bit of ambient and a fast stop in a small lake produced two nesting pairs of Slavonian Grebes. Unfortunately they were not as close as in previous trips, but offered us good views anyway. Our next stop was to check a proper spot for Eurasian Pygmy Owl. Back in spot with dense spruce forest, it didn’t take long before we got a bird calling deep in the woods, and a couple of minutes later we got the bird moving around us! It was late in the morning, and the Pygmy Owl was followed by a cohort of forest birds including several Siskins but also 2 Chaffinches, 1 Great Tit, 1 Common Redstart and 1 Yellowhammer. The Owl was constantly moving around, being disturbed and moved by the smaller birds and the best way to try to locate it was to follow the flock of small birds calling and moving in the canopy.
This was actually the last birding stop of the morning. It was time for an early lunch and a very well deserved break. Since we had some small problems with one of the vans, no serious birding was programmed until after dinner.
After dinner we covered the short distance to the very last spot for nesting Terek’s Sandpipers in Finland. After parking our vans, we had a small walk around enjoying Common Rosefinch, Eurasian Curlew, Common Ringed Plover and the only 2 Little Ringed Plovers of the trip. A Terek’s Sandpiper was singing around but we were unable to connect with the bird. Finally, it was Aonghus who found the bird singing from the top of a distant lamp post. We walked down to the bird, but still took us 10 or 15 minutes to finally enjoy wonderful views, with the bird displaying around us and stopping in the lamp posts around us. In the walk, I got Caspian Tern and Northern Wheatear but I was the only one to notice them. Unfortunately, that was the only Caspian Tern to show out in the whole tour..
Very happy after these great views on Terek’s Sandpipers, we went back to the accommodation to have a very well deserved rest after a wonderful first day of the trip!
Day 3. Before breakfast we visited a birding tower around Oulu. This is a really well known spot for general birding in the area, and in former trips we have got amazing lists here! This time the number of birds was more reduced but still we got good views on Common Snipe, distant Spotted Redshanks (6), but also Ruffs, White-tailed Eagles, the only 2 Mute Swans of the tour, singing Reed Buntings and Arctic Terns. Here we also listened the only Greater Bittern of the tour.
After checking out from our accommodation we started to transfer to Oulu. In the way, we had a stop in the forest to try to get other species of Woodpeckers. It was already late morning, and the temperature (believe or not) was close to 30ºC in the warmest ever day for me in Finland! We got signs of Grey-headed Woodpecker but our efforts were regarded with excellent views on Black Woodpecker superbly perched on the top of a spruce tree. Here we also got nice views on Eurasian Bullfinches (Scandinavian) and Great Spotted Woodpecker.
We had lunch in the way and arrived into Kuusamo in the early afternoon. The weather was clearly different than in the Baltic coast, with temperatures not exceeding the 20ºC and scattered rains in the area. Our first stop in Kuusamo was a very short trail to enjoy one of the most beautiful buntings in the country. Even from the car park it was possible to listen them singing. We were lucky so it was a question of not wasting time, and only a pair of minute after we were having excellent views on 2 Little Buntings singing really close to us and showing superbly for the whole group! We were not far away from a lake, and a number of Little Gulls were flying above us, most of them quite high up. Not a big deal, because from the Bunting place it only took us five minutes to arrive into a Little Gull colony. Here we enjoy these little gems but also got excellent views on two pairs of Red-necked Grebes, and the first drake Black-throated Divers of the trip. A few minutes from this watching point also produced a flying Short-eared Owl, and lovely views on Baltic Gulls (Larus fuscus fuscus). Other species here included Wigeon, Pintail, Eurasian Teal, Redwing and a wonderful Eurasian Woodcock singing in flight and crossing in the sky with a displaying Common Snipe!
After this great stop we just drove back to the accommodation for some dinner and rest.
Day 4. Very early start to check some interesting locations around our accommodation. This morning our goal was to connect with some of the very good birds living in the boreal forest. Only 300 metres away from the accommodation we had a first flock of Rustic Buntings, with three individuals showing nicely on the dart road despite the poor light. A bit of driving soon produced a nice male Western Capercaillie, that was only enjoyed by the second vehicle. Along the next hour we had some drive with little reward in terms on Grouses, and we only got a lovely male Black Grouse showing itself at the top of a spruce and a Willow Grouse that was only seen from the second vehicle. During the drive we also got very nice looks on a pair of Eurasian Woodcocks feeding in a meadow.
After a nice coffee stop we drove to one of the many hills in the area, and only arriving to the spot we had a stop to enjoy a pair of Hazel Grouses that were moving along the road. We walked around as the grouses were very active. A male was chasing a female and both were doing flights all around the place. After some fight, everyone in thegroup had good views on the birds moving on the ground. At the same spot, we also got one Rustic Bunting and a couple of Siberian Jays moving in the canopy. A bit further in the road, we also had our first attempt for Northern Hawk Owl, but the stop “only” produced a couple of Rustic Buntings, Willow Tit, Tree Pipit and even a Three-toed Woodpecker that was only seen by me..
Finally, we arrived to the Livaara, one of the most typical places for boreal species in Finland. The sun was already well high, and unfortunately was a bit warm. We walked up to the top, and it didn’t take long before we got our first Red-flanked Bluetail singing from the top of one of the spruces. A second male (2nd year old birds in both cases) were seen further beyond, but the area was quiet and we only got Tree Pipit and Spotted Flycatcher as other species of interest.
Our short afternoon was free so the group could explore the very nice habitat around our accommodation. Wood Sandpiper, Common Cuckoo, Greenshank and Black-throated Diver were some of the species seen by the group.
Day 5. A new day and a new early start. The first stop of the morning was to explore a nice spot for Willow Grouses. In previous trips we have always had very nice looks on them here, but this time we only got flight views as one male was singing around the area. Here we also got two of the very few Common Crossbills of the trip (no records of Parrot Crossbill this spring at all in the whole Northern Finland) and very nice views on Eurasian Treecreeper. When coming back to the vans, we also got 2 Elks (a female and young animal) crossing the road 200 metres away from us. It was a rather foggy morning in the hills so we decided to do some grouse drive, again with very little reward and the only species of interest were some Bohemian Waxwings in flight. Our last stop of the morning was at a well known spot for Siberian Jay. Here we got excellent views on this gorgeous bird as well as nice Scandinavian Willow Tit, Scandinavian Bullfinch and Goldcrest. At least 3 Red-flanked Bluetails were singing around but we never tried to connect with them after the nice views from the day before.
We started our transfer North, and our typical coffee stop was a bit ruined by a plain tire that made us spend one hour and so. After buying a new tire, we kept moving North, enjoying some nice creps as en route lunch. Here, from the lovely cabin by a large lake that serves crep house, we also got the only one Osprey of the trip and 2 Black-throated Divers, surprisingly still in winter plomage.
Arrived to Ivalo, we still had time for some birding in a great boreal forest location. At our very first stop in the forest, we got excellent and long views on Siberian Tits plus the first proper views on Common Redpolls of the trip. A tiny walk around also produced nice views on a pair of Bohemian Waxwings that were feeding in the spruce, and our second contact with a Three-toed Woodpecker feeding in the forest and showing very well for the whole group! Other good birds here included Common Redstart and Pied Flycatcher. A wonderful reward for one hour of birdwatching. Unfortunately, this spot, normally great for Crossbills, was surprisingly low on them..
Back to the vehicles, we had a small drive around and in only 45 minutes we discovered that this area was having more activity of Grouses that down in Kuusamo. It was a pleasant afternoon with only 15ºC, and we were surprised by a nice fock of 8 Black Grouses moving in the forest and 2 amazing female Western Capercaillies, one of them feeding around and a second one lying on the undergrowth, a fantastic find by Alba!
Day 6. After enjoying a nice breakfast in our accommodation we had a short walk around. Here we enjoy nice views on Pine Grosbeaks, but in the lake beside we also got 3 Smews including 2 drake males and a lovely pair of Velvet Scoters that were nesting close by.
From here we drove North to the Norwegian border with several stops in the nice lakes and the many marshes around. Red-breasted Merganser was common here along with Whooper Swan and Goldeneye. Wood Sandpiper and Common Redpoll were also noted but the first Bluethroat of the trip was probably the most appreciated bird along these stops. Further North, our last stop before the border produced the first Rough-legged Buzzards of the trip (4) and the only one White-throated Dipper of the trip.
Before getting into Norway, we got the most pintoresc lunch of the trip. Hey there, how many of you have tasted Elk stew in the Sami way?
Well, once inside Norway we drove North along the coast. A first proper stop produced the typical gulls in the area along with some summer plomaged Ruffs but also Eurasian Oystercatchers, Dunlins and 1 Little Stint. Escorted all the way by Rough-legged Buzzards, Parasitic Skuas and White-tailed Eagles, but also nice views on our first flocks of Tundra Bean Geese, we did our way North to arrive into a first lovely bay close by Vadso. Here we started scanning the many Common Eiders, and found the firsts Bar-tailed Godwits of the trip along with Common Redshanks and Dunlins. But the best surprise was to find 4 King Eiders, including two bizarre 1st summer males, that gave nice scope views despite the long way.
Nearby, a lovely pond was hosting 87 Red-necked Phalaropes that were feeding and displaying in a lovely afternoon light. There is simply no words to describe the beauty of these tiny waders in full summer plumage spinning in the water or simply chasing each other in the quiet and pristine ambient of that small Arctic pond. And that day we were even luckier! Along with the Phalaropes, the pond was hosting a minimum of 40 Ruffs, with some of the males in full display, battling, jumping and fighting in a scene that gave us excellent memories for the years to come!
A last walk around that pond still produced more species including Eurasian Curlew and Turnstones, and we had a short scan on the sea. Here, as the afternoon was passing by, thousands of Kittiwakes were moving back to their colonies after some hours of fish, closely followed by Parasitic Skuas and Great Black-backed Gulls. A detailed scan in the water produced another pair of Red-throated Divers feeding in the sea. In our way to the vans, we still had time to enjoy the first Red-throated Pipit of the trip.
Back to the cars we went for a comfort stop, but behind the petrol station is always a typical place for waders to be feeding in the afternoon, so I was directly to check and I was very pleased and surprised to find a Terek’s Sandpiper feeding along with a flock of Dunlins!!! This is quite a rarity for Norway and a great self found species for the group!
Day 7. After enjoying a very nice breakfast based on the fish specialties of the Arctic Ocean, we walked the short distance to Vardo harbour. There, several Kittiwakes were moving in and out from the many colonies in buildings and along the docks. Along with them, there were also Arctic & Common Terns. The boat to Hornoya is only a 10 minutes ride but it was enough to give us a nice surprise, as 4 Northern Fulmars flew over the boat. These are the wonderful Arctic variety of the species, famous because of its bluish coloration. Unfortunately not everybody caught them in flight!
One of the most impressive views of Hornoya happens even before your arrive to the island. The last hundreds metres of sea before arriving are literally carpeted with hundreds, thousands of Guillemots and Razorbills. It is simply amazing to see that sea of Guillemots, something that I have never seen in any other seabird colony, not at least in the Northern Atlantic.
Hornoya hosts about 50,000 pairs of Guillemots, about a 15% of them are of the delicate “Bridled” variety. Along with them, 30,000 pairs of Kittiwakes, thousands of Razorbills, about 3,000 Atlantic Puffins, hundreds of Shags and smaller numbers of Northern Fulmars that combines with scattered colonies of Brünnich’s Guillemots (>300 pairs).
After a small walk in the island, we all enjoyed wonderful views not only in all the sea birds, but also on other wonderful side dishes including Red-throated & Scandinavian Rock Pipits, Barnacle Geese, a lovely although distant couple of Temminck’s Stints and Bluethroat. Our path up to the lighthouse also produced a very nice Twite, a very nice pick up by Roser and Joan.
Back to the continent we headed North through a dense fog. Where the fog allowed, we did some stops along the bays, enjoying several flocks of Goosanders, Long-tailed Ducks and Black Scoters along with some Divers and Velvet Scoters. The fog was still intense, and wherever we had an open window, we had a stop to enjoy some birds, normally producing ruff views on Arctic Redpolls, Bluethroats and Redwings. In our way back to our accommodation we had a stop to check some Common Eiders and we were surprised to find a very nice White-billed Diver out in the sea. After leaving the cars out of the lane, we got to the beach to have closer views and everyone in the group got excellent views on this very sought-after species!
Very happy after this great spot, we drove back to the accommodation. Still, right before arriving we had a last stop. A White-billed Diver had been seen in inner bay in Vardo so we stop to check. The bird was still there, but it was sleeping and the fog was very thick so it was difficult to see anything.. Along with the Diver, we also had 3 Black Guillemots and some Purple Sandpipers feeding in the shore.
Day 8. This day we moved back North, to explore the uplands in Varanger. But before hitting to road we had a new stop in the bay inside Vardo. Here, without fog, we had amazing views on a wonderful drake White-billed Diver. The bird was just waking up and we could enjoy the bird only 40 metres away from us. The views on this amazing bird were again complemented with 3 Purple Sandpipers, again at very close range.
Back to the continent, we took advantage of the pristine ambient to enjoy the tundra. There we got excellent views on Lapland Buntings & Bluethroats but also lekking Ruffs, several Parasitic Skuas, White-tailed Eagles, Dunlins and European Golden Plovers. Moving North we were caught by the fog, and when crossing the uplands we were surprised by 2 wonderful and very close Willow Grouses that allowed very close views. En route, we had a flock of 6 Pink-footed Geese, the only sight of this species during the trip.
Arrived to the uplands, we had a first stop to enjoy our packed lunches. Here, we found a nest of Arctic Redpolls in the bushy willows around a pond. The same pond was hosting a wonderful pair of Long-tailed Duck and Wood Sandpiper and Meadow Pipit were coming to feed in. Far away, some Long-tailed Skuas were flying here and there.
Driving throught the tundra, we had several Willow Grouses and a second pond produced great views on a nesting pair of Red-throated Divers but also on Ruffs, Red-necked Phalaropes, Teals, Pintails, the only 2 Scaups of the tour, Red-throated Pipits, Bar-tailed Godwit (very scarce nesting bird in the area) and several more.
Back to the coast, we visited a proper place for Gyrfalcon, but we had no luck with them this time. Instead, we got good views on White-tailed Eagles, Rough-legged Buzzards and a nesting colony of Great Cormorants. It was already late in the afternoon, a proper moment to go back to the tundra. In the way up we had a couple of stops to enjoy Willow Grouse and the only one Merlin of the tour, a lovely male perched for us in a small rock!
A few minutes later we were already in the proper habitat for the alpine species living in Varanger. It didn’t take long to find the first of a good number of Rock Ptarmigan nicely showing in the rocky landscapes. After long views despite the strong wind, we also located a couple of females feeding around. The very last of the Grouses to show out in the tour lead us also to contact with the first Horned Larks of the trip! This bird is getting scarcer and scarcer in the area, and becoming a treat to find them. A few more miles in the road produced more Temminck’s Stints but also lovely views on Horned Larks, even closer views on Ptarmigans and the cherry on cake; a wonderful pair of Snow Buntings singing and showing out for the group! In a memorable moment, we had Ptarmigan, Horned Lark and Snow Bunting all of them displaying for us at the same time in the same gorge!
From this wonderful scenery we just drove back to our accommodation to enjoy some nice meal and some rest in one of the very few hotels in the area.
Day 9. Another sunny day in the Arctic tundra, and our group was out of the hotel very early in the morning. The breakfast was quite not as good as the rest of the days, but we had a good lunch to compensate the rather simple breakfast.
Back to the tundra, we had a stop in the way to enjoy close views on Long-tailed Skuas. Some walk was required, but we got excellent views on a pair of this always amazing birds! This year, the number of LT Skuas was reduced if comparing with previous trips. After checking the ponds we headed to the Northern coast, where we had some quality time on a wonderful seawatching point.
Here, we were delighted to see hundreds of “Blue” Fulmars feeding around a trawler. The ambient was grey and cold but the birding was excellent. Flocks and flocks of Goosanders were moving East. Here, migration still goes on for thousands of birds that will keep moving North East, going to nest in Siberia. A large flock of Long-tailed Ducks was feeding in the sea, and Mark found a magnificent drake King Eider feeding along with them. Out in the sea, we had some Divers moving East. they were mainly Red-throated, but we also got nice views on at least one White-billed Diver; the third for the trip! Other interesting species here included Black Guillemots along with Red-breasted Merganser, Common Eider and Atlantic Puffin. But the very best bird from this very advantage place was a wonderful Gyrfalcon that crossed right in front of our group, moving West. A great spot by Aonghus that almost everybody in the group could see even if it was moving really fast!
Before lunch, we made a stop in a pair of bays. There, along with the typical gulls and ducks for the area, we got a nice juvenile Little Gull. Checking flocks of Common Eiders, we counted a minimum of 4 King Eiders, all of them females-type birds. This time, despite the foggy ambient, everybody had excellent views on the birds.
After enjoying some very nice pizzas from a local pub, we just drove South, back into Finland with no remarkable birding stops during the afternoon.
Day 10. Basically a transfer morning. With the group divided due to the different plane timetables, most of the group started the transfer South including an early stop for a very last go on Northern Hawk Owl. Soon after living the van, we heard a Northern Hawk Owl calling inside the forest, and during the next minutes we got excellent views into a pair of this very iconic species of the boreal forest, including the male coming with a mole to feed the female!
Seen the bird, we contacted with the tour participants that stayed longer at the accommodation (they had a flight later in the day) and they also could come to the place and see the bird!
Along with the Owl, a pair of Siberian Tits was moving also in the area. We even got lucky enough to contact with the Wilson’s Snipe that had been courtship in the boj nearby. Not great views anyway but the bird past by twice while singing. Besides, the very last stop of the trip only produced Eurasian Whimbrel.
Back to the van, we had a final transfer including a fight for a morning coffee. It was Sunday morning, and a early morning coffee in Lapland proved to be more difficult to find that most of the boreal specialties! Finally, we got our very well deserved coffee and we arrived to the airport with nice views on a Short-eared Owl as a bonus!
And to here arrives the chronicle of our 7th tour in Northern Finland and Finnmark. Really looking forward to our 2025 issue. Pretty sure that it will be as good as always is!
List of birds seen during the tour
- Whooper Swan (Cygnus cygnus)
- Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)
- Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
- Greylag Goose (Anser anser)
- Tundra Bean Goose (Anser serrirostris)
- Pink-footed Goose (Anser brachyrhynchus)
- Barnacle Goose (Branta leucopsis)
- Eurasian Wigeon (Marecca penelope)
- Gadwall (Marecca strepera)
- Eurasial Teal (Anas crecca)
- Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
- Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)
- Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)
- Garganey (Spatula querquedula)
- Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)
- Scaup (Aythya marila)
- Common Eider (Somateria mollissima)
- King Eider (Somateria spectabilis)
- Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis)
- Common Scoter (Melanitta nigra)
- Velvet Scoter (Melanitta fusca)
- Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)
- Smew (Mergellus albellus)
- Goosander (Mergus merganser)
- Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serratus)
- Common Pheasant (Phaisanus colchinus)
- Hazel Grouse (Bonasa bonasia)
- Willow Grouse (Lagopus lagopus)
- Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus mutus)
- Black Grouse (Lyrurus tetrix)
- Western Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus)
- Common Swift (Apus apus)
- Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus)
- Feral Pigeon (Columba livia)
- Common Woodpigeon (Columba palumbus)
- Common Crane (Grus grus)
- Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus)
- Red-necked Grebe (Podiceps grisegena)
- Slavonian Grebe (Podiceps auritus)
- Corncrake (Crex crex) ———————————– heard only
- Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)
- Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula)
- Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius)
- European Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria)
- Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
- Temminck’s Stint (Calidris temminckii)
- Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
- Little Stint (Calidris minuta)
- Purple Sandpiper (Calidris maritima)
- Ruff (Calidris pugnax)
- Eurasian Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola)
- Common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago)
- Wilson’s Snipe (Gallinago delicata) —————— heard only
- Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica)
- Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)
- Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata)
- Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)
- Spotted Redshank (Tringa erythropus)
- Common Redshank (Tringa totanus)
- Greenshank (Tringa nebularia)
- Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola)
- Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)
- Terek’s Sandpiper (Xenus cinereus)
- Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)
- Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
- Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus)
- Little Gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus)
- Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
- Common Gull (Larus canus)
- Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus)
- Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
- Kittiwake (Rissa trydactyla)
- Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)
- Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea)
- Arctic Skua (Stercorarius parasiticus)
- Long-tailed Skua (Stercorarius longicaudus)
- Guillemot (Uria aalge)
- Brünnich’s Guillemot (Uria lomvia)
- Razorbill (Alca torda)
- Black Guillemot (Cepphus grylie)
- Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica)
- Red-throated Diver (Gavia stellata)
- Black-throated Diver (Gavia arctica)
- White-billed Diver (Gavia adamsii)
- Northern Fulmar (Fulmarus glaciallis)
- Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
- Shag (Gulosus aristotelis)
- Greater Bittern (Botaurus stellaris) ————- heard only
- Osprey (Pandion haliaetos)
- Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)
- Rough-legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus)
- European Honey Buzzard (Pernis apivorus)
- White-tailed Eagle (Haliaetus albicilla)
- Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus)
- Tengmalm’s Owl (Aegolius funereus)
- Ural Owl (Strix uralensis)
- Northern Hawk Owl (Surnia ulula)
- Eurasian Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium passerinum)
- Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
- Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor)
- Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides tridactylus)
- Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius)
- Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
- Merlin (Falco columbarius)
- Gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus)
- Red-backed Shrike (Lanius excubitor)
- Siberian Jay (Perisoreus infaustus)
- Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica)
- Western Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
- Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix)
- Common Raven (Corvus corax)
- Bohemian Waxbill (Bombycilla garrulus)
- Willow Tit (Poecile montanus)
- Siberian Tit (Poecile cinctus)
- Eurasian Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)
- Great Tit (Parus major)
- Eurasian Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
- Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris)
- Sand Martin (Riparia riparia)
- Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
- Western House Martin (Delichon urbicum)
- Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)
- Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus)
- Wood Warbler (Phylloscopus sibilatrix)
- Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus)
- Garden Warbler (Sylvia borin)
- Common Whitethroat (Curruca communis)
- Lesser Whitethroat (Curruca curruca)
- Goldcrest (Regulus regulus)
- Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)
- Eurasian Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris)
- Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
- Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris)
- Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
- Eurasian Redwing (Turdus iliacus)
- Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
- Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula)
- Eurasian Robin (Erithacus rubecula) —————- heard only
- Bluethroat (Luscinia svecica)
- Red-flanked Bluetail (Tarsiger cyanurus)
- Common Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus)
- Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra)
- Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe)
- Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata)
- Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca)
- Black-bellied Dipper (Cinclus cinclus)
- House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
- Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus)
- Dunnock (Prunella modularis)
- Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
- Tree Pipit (Anthus trivialis)
- Red-throated Pipit (Anthus cervinus)
- Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus)
- White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
- Yellow Wagtail (Motacilla flava)
- Common Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)
- Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla)
- Eurasian Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
- Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus)
- Linnet (Carduelis cannabina)
- Common Redpoll (Carduelis flammea)
- Arctic Redpoll (Carduelis hornemanni)
- Twite (Carduelis flavirostris)
- Common Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
- Common Rosefinch (Carpodacus erythrinus)
- Eurasian Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)
- Pine Grosbeak (Pinicola enucleator)
- Lapland Bunting (Calcarius lapponicus)
- Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis)
- Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)
- Ortolan Bunting (Emberiza hortulana)
- Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus)
- Rustic Bunting (Emberiza rustica)
- Little Bunting (Emberiza pusilla)
List of mammals seen during the tour
- European Hare (Leppus leppus)
- Mountain Hare (Leppus timidus)
- Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
- Stout (Mustela arminea)
- Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
- Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus)
- Moose (Alces alces)
- Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)*
- Fin Whale (Balaenoptera phisalus)
- Northern Minke Whale (Balaenoptera acurostrata)
*Feral
Barcelona Birding Point Blog 