Falsterbo - raptor heaven

As trailed in my last post, I spent a long weekend in Falsterbo with some friends from East Anglia. Mid-September is prime time at Falsterbo - arguably the best site in Europe for raptor migration. We hired a self-catering "cottage" (I would have called a hut) at the campsite, literally just across the road from the prime raptor watchpoint - Ljungen (The Heath). The normal routine is to go to Nabben (the southern point of the peninsula) for dawn for the passerine migration and then, as the thermals kick in mid-morning, relocate to Ljungen to sit back in the deckchairs, relax and watch as the raptors stream through overhead, some at very close range. When the raptor migration slows in the afternoon it's an opportunity to explore local sites for waders, woodland species etc

I have to say, we had a fab time. This is one top birding location and everything is so civilised (the Scandinavians really have got it all worked out).

Although raptors are on the move from first light (in particular Sparrowhawks, falcons, harriers, ospreys and a few Honey Buzzards), the real action normally starts around 1100 with the peak between 1200 and 1400. This is the time for the majority of the kites, buzzards and, if you are lucky, eagles.

The best overall viewing point is Ljungen but wind direction can influence the trajectory of the birds as they traverse the peninsula. Best winds are said to be south-westerlies but even on days of strong northerlies (as we had on sunday), birds do move through. Kanalen (the canal - the narrowest point) can be good as the birds usually come over here low (before they find the thermals on the heath) but, due to the surrounding trees, views are shorter. Nabben can be good for raptors, too, but they are generally very high at this point having circled on the thermals in preparation for the 45 minute soar to Denmark.

We opted to do Nabben early morning and then move to the heath with visits to local wader and woodland sites in the late afternoons. In between Nabben and Ljungen, we fitted in visits to the lighthouse shop or the local bakery (excellent!) to devour some pastries and coffee before beginning the 4 or 5 hour vigil at the Heath. Sitting there in a chair with a coffee in your cup holder and pastry in hand whilst watching birds of prey overhead was a very pleasant experience indeed...

Watching the various techniques of the Swedes was an education. Many had homemade 'sights' on their 'scopes to aid picking up the raptors using the angled eyepieces. Remarkably Rob was the only birder present with a 'straight-through' telescope - everyone else had angled scopes with the eyepieces at 45 degrees. The angled 'scopes are undoubtedly better for viewing raptors in the sky as you don't have to contort yourself into a ridiculous position to get a view of an eagle passing straight overhead. Rob's scope prompted banter about Rob being the 'only straight guy' at Falsterbo which was mildly amusing for about 2 and a half minutes.

Star bird was the Short-toed Eagle that came through on Saturday in the company of Honey and Common Buzzards. Also seen were 2 Black Kites, around 10 White-tailed Eagles, 100s of Red Kites, Buzzards and Honey Buzzards (mostly juveniles), 1000s of Sparrowhawks (they were everywhere), at least 2 Rough-legged Buzzards, Marsh Harriers, Hen Harriers, Peregrine, Hobby, Merlin and Kestrel. A Black Woodpecker at a local woodland was also a highlight, especially for Rob (the tart). But it was the raptors that we were there to see and the period between 1100 and 1300 on Saturday will stick in the memory for a very long time - the sky was full of raptors with Short-toed Eagle, Black Kite, White-tailed Eagle, 10s of Red Kites, Osprey and 100s of Buzzards on view at the same time. Absolutely stunning and an unforgettable sight. The locals said it was "an ok day"... (are they spoilt or what?) :-)

Phil 'Bastad' Benstead, our friendly local resident, joined us on Saturday night and Sunday but unfortunately the wind had swung to the north and the passage slowed significantly. We still saw a very confiding Rough-legged Buzzard, lots of Red Kites and White-tailed Eagles and what we lost in term of birds was made up for by the improved quality of the banter.. It was also very good to see the gang from the Copenhagen branch of the Dansk Ornitologisk Forening (DOF) including Sanne Busk, Stefan Stürup, Thomas Hellesen and David Collinge.

For any raptor fans, Falsterbo is a must - it is a real education to see the variability in Common and Honey Buzzard plus it is an opportunity to see scarce and rare raptors like eagles, black kites etc. Unfortunately we did miss a couple of biggies - a Lesser Spotted Eagle was reported briefly about the same time as the Short-toed Eagle and we missed Pallid Harrier and White Stork, too (the former seen from the bakery!). Missing a few is inevitable in a large area with several different routes that the birds can take and so it is important to just enjoy what you see and forget what you missed. Of course, missing good birds is also a good excuse to return! In the words of the California Governor - I'll be back.

Don was inexplicably staying on for a few days without a tent, 'Ray Mears style', apparently eating bugs and worms to survive, so I gave JP and Rob a lift back to Copenhagen airport. After making good time, I gave them a quick tour of my local patch before dropping them at the airport. We jammed a Caspian Tern and a Merlin before the light faded and check-in opened - a great end to a top trip.

STOP PRESS: news from Don - a juvenile Pallid Harrier from the Heath this morning and a Buff-breasted Sandpiper at Nabben

Photos: White-tailed Eagle; Common Buzzard; Rough-legged Buzzard; Red Kite; Honey Buzzard with Sparrowhawk; Sparrowhawk; Kestrel; Short-toed Eagle; raptor watching at Ljungen; and the team (from left to right: Don Petrie, representing Essex; Jonathan Price, Cambs; and Rob Holmes from Suffolk).