The hunt for the Trush Nightingale ends in Triberga

We heard the Trush Nightingale everywhere on Öland but it was first on the last morning when we were leaving Öland that I struck luck and managed to take a good picture of the bird.

The morning begun with saying good-bye to our hosts after spending three nights there, packing the car and then heading southwards. I wanted to make a stop at Ottenby, the most southern point of Öland, and Maria wanted to check a place along the way where the produced Sea-Buckthorn products. The only downside was that the place opened at 11:00 and we left the B&B around 9:30. That meant we had to either drive down to Ottenby and then back up or do some stops along the way.

So we took it slow and stopped at Sandbybadet, a camping at the eastern coast of Öland. I had seen reports of Firecrest here and wanted to check it out. Sadly the stop didn´t produce anything even if we could hear the small bird from time to time. Still it was a productive stop as Maria got her chance to get out and handle three horses that stood on the road out to the camping.

The stop took some time of the clock and we were just 20 minutes early when we arrived in Triberga. There is a small lake just outside Triberga with a resting place and the place was full of birdwatchers as we passed by, all of them looking out over the lake. Maria told me she saw one, or two, birds of prey. This was of course not an opportunity to miss so I parked the car just in front of the Sea-Buckthorn shop and walked back along the road.

I soon saw two Marsh Harriers with claws locked, just a brief sighting, but soon I got the chance to take some photos when one of the Harriers appeared over the roof tops.

I chatted a little with the bird watchers at the resting place, when we got there, and one fellow told me it was Montagu’s Harrier that we had seen. I wasn´t convinced and when I looked at the photos I could clearly see it was a Marsh Harrier.

What made the stop for me wasn´t the Marsh Harrier, but a much smaller bird, the Trush Nightingale.

I decided to move the car when we got back to where it was parked, in front of the store, as I discovered their parking sign. Maria went to look at the products in the store as I moved the car.

This was quickly done, but when I opened the car door I heard the characteristic song from the Trush Nightingale and it was really close. I decided to test to lure it out of the bush in hope of getting a photo or two, something I had tried more than once during the vacation.

I must say that this small bird was really cooperative. It appeared straight away and continued to sing to fend of the intruder, me. I had difficulty getting a good angle too photo from as I knew that it would fly away if it saw me out of the car. I managed two good photos, before it flew off, and this is clearly the better one. I like this picture and I am proud that I nailed it, not the easiest thing to do. I like the plain colors and how the Nightingale is singing for full, and that must be why it has bent the tail.

The stop at Ottenby didn’t present any spectacular picture but it was nice to see a Water Snake, also called Grass snake.

Water Snake nightingale — Water Snake 130512

This isn´t something I see regularly even if I know where I can find them in Gothenburg.

We ended the vacation eating lunch at the restaurant in Ottenby before the long journey back to reality began. It turned out to be a nice and productive vacation as we meet spring in the southern parts of Sweden.