Sunday, november 20: SUNday

A strange but all in all rather good day of birding baring in mind that all the rest of this country was covered in mist throughout the whole day. When we (Sander and I) started our day, the circumstances were no less that spring-ish, while we ended up in mist by the end of the afternoon; we had expected it to be the other way around. The way the mist caught up with us, at around 15.00 was rather impressive

As far as birds were concerned, there were no true surprises to be noted. A juvenile Black-necked Grebe in one scope view with a male Scaup at Nieuwe Robbengat was nice, 2 Lapland Buntings and my first Smews of this autums at Kustweg were ok, and a/the juvenile Caspian Gull in the harbour of Lauwersoog was stunning as ever.

On the Wadden dike near Bantpolder, the first Rough-legged Buzzard of the day was a very showy one. It caught and swallowed a mice without paying too much attention to us, and showed even better shortly after, when it was digesting that meal sitting on the well-known but very ugly fence. Three more RLB would follow during the rest of the day.

The last hours before the mist abruptly ended our day of birding nothing much was seen except for a hunting Short-eared Owl at Paessens, a Merlin at Bantpolder, some more Lapland Buntings and 2 Grey Wagtails near Anjum and 2 Pink-footed Geese at Kollumerwaard.
To be honest, it weren't the birds that stole the show today, it was the weather.