Back in the cold

Copenhagen has been cold while we were away with temperatures below minus 10 at times. The sea is now frozen in places, especially where it is shallow (eg off southern Amager) and Nyhavn has frozen over (see photo below), the first time this has happened since we arrived in 2007. The cold is a bit of a shock to the system after enjoying temperatures of 35 degs C in South Africa (with one day hitting 42 degs!). Nevertheless, I braved it out at lunchtime to visit the local gulls. The one-legged Black-headed Gull is surviving ok and the young colour-ringed Herring Gull (blue ring V478) is still hanging around. Nothing unusual was seen but it was notable that there were several Little Grebes and a single Great-crested Grebe feeding offshore along Langelinie - a sight I don't usually see and clearly a result of their usual inland feeding areas being frozen. The freeze is predicted to continue for some time yet so hopefully it will bring in an unusual arctic visitor or two... in Sweden, just across the bridge there is a female Steller's Eider near Falsterbo and a very unseasonal Red-flanked Bluetail at Osby.

Photos: frozen Nyhavn; and a 1st winter Black-headed Gull at Langelinie.