Iceland´s birdlife

One of the wonderful things about Iceland, particularly in the summer is the abundant birdlife that can be seen here. In the time I´ve been here I have become increasingly obsessed with watching and photographing birds - much to the amusement of my husband and work colleagues. I am now mercilessly mocked for being a ´twitcher´ - not that I care in the slightest. I love finding out about the various birds that make Iceland their home, or their summer home at least, and catching a decent shot of some of them in flight (the arctic tern springs to mind) is a real photographic challenge.

Of course for many tourists, the main avian draw of Iceland is the adorable Atlantic Puffin. You only have to walk along the main shopping street to see the gift shops full of puffin toys, puffin statues, puffin mugs - even puffin hats. However, there is much more to Icelandic birdlife than the puffin.

About 330 species of birds have been recorded in Iceland since humans settled here. Of these only about 85 species nest here, and about 12 are common winter visitors. The rest are accidentals and casual visitors. So, although the number of different types of birds is relatively low compared to other European countries, the huge number of birds that can be seen here in the summer months more than compensates for this, and many visitors come here to explore Iceland´s thriving birdlife. The best time for bird watching in Iceland is probably the latter half of May and the first three weeks in June, when many of the birds are nesting, but many many birds can be seen throughout the summer months.

I cannot hope to photograph and write about all the species of birds that can be seen here but I will cover some of the most popular and numerous birds that we have seen so far in our time here. And will no doubt add others in due course!

Puffin

Well I had to start with the puffin really didn´t I? Called Lundi in Icelandic, it’s easy to see why these iconic little arctic birds are so popular. With their little round bodies - a bit like a small penguin, their awkward waddling gait, and the colorful red, yellow, and black of their bills, the cute “clown of the sea” or “sea parrot” is adorably unusual.

The fact that Puffins are one of the few endangered species that mate for life and have virtually no fear of humans just makes them all the more endearing.

There are plenty of places to see Atlantic puffins in Iceland. If you’re looking for quantity, probably the two places that stand out are the cliffs at Látrabjarg in the Westfjords, or of course Vestmannæyjar (the Westman Islands) which has the proud boast of having the largest puffin colony in the world. Other good places for puffin sightings are the Dyrhólaey cliffs near Vík in the south, Borgarfjörður Eystri in the north-east and even on the whale-watching tours that go from Reykjavík, Húsavík, and Akureyri.

Though these beautiful birds can be seen in other parts of the world, approximately 60% of their total population of around 12 million can be found nesting in huge cliff-top colonies in Iceland from May to September each year.

Puffins spend most of the year out at sea bobbing around on the waves only returning to land during the summer months for the breeding season. Iceland has the perfect spots for puffin breeding grounds as they prefer to nest on rocky cliff sides along the ocean, something of which Iceland has plenty of. Puffins not only return to the same breeding grounds year after year, they are also monogamous, having life-long partners. And these are equal partnerships with both parents taking care of the egg, which takes around 36-45 days to hatch into a puffling. The parent puffins then spend the next 45 days taking care of feeding their puffling before it is time for all to head back out to sea.

Given their body shape and small wings, it would be easy to assume that puffins are not great flyers - watching them fly is quite amusing as they seem to have to flap their wings nineteen to the dozen just to stay airborne…. In fact, they fly as far as 40,000 kilometers (25,000 miles) during their yearly migration period and spend most of their lives flying above and hunting in the sea. They only come to Iceland for nesting, so despite the fact that they don´t look like natural flyers, they clearly are. For more on all things puffin, check out my earlier blog post, Up close and personal with puffins!

Golden Plover

Another of my favourite birds, the Golden Plover is much beloved of Icelanders. One of the reasons for this is that it is widely held that the arrival of the first Golden Plover (lóa in Icelandic) heralds the start of spring and every year Icelanders eagerly look out for the little birds, with the first sighting being reported in Iceland´s national news amidst much excitement. With the plover´s arrival, spring officially begins in Iceland. Every year a picture appears in the national newspapers of the first sighting of the 'lóa', indicating that winter is over, which normally happens between the 20th and 30th of March.

This year, the first plover was seen in the small coastal town of Garður, close to the airport on the Suðurnes peninsula on Friday 22nd March two days after the vernal equinox. Although many migrating birds appear in Iceland at around the same time, as the weather begins to get a little warmer, it is the golden plover who stands out as the herald of spring - perhaps due to the fact that a third of the world´s entire golden plover population nests in Iceland!!

No less iconic as a symbol for spring is the sound of their repeating chirp, familiar to any Icelander. Even I can immediately recognise if a plover is nearby and I love to hear its chirping song. Once the plovers arrive the sound can be heard all over the country, particularly whilst hiking in the natural countryside. Very often it is the only indication of the plover´s presence as quite often the little bird itself cannot be seen.

This colorful species of wading bird usually stays until late September, but individuals have been known to linger as long as the beginning of November. They can be found all around Iceland's freshwater lakes and rivers and, given Iceland's extensive network of river systems, this means that they can be found almost everywhere in the country. I´ve often even seen them wading on beaches at the edge of the sea as well, so clearly they are not limited to freshwater settings. Although their markings are very distinctive, they are surprisingly well camouflaged in the drier tufted grasslands that often surround lakes and rivers.

They only stay in Iceland throughout the summer months because their diet consists largely of worms, which they cannot reach when the ground is frozen in winter.

Icelanders´ love of the golden plover is reflected in their folklore as well. In Icelandic folklore, the golden plover was not created on the fifth day when God created birds but instead, was created much later by Jesus himself. Perhaps the most famous example of the bird´s place in Icelandic folklore is the poem “Lóan er komin” (“The plover has arrived”) by the Icelandic poet Páll Ólafsson, who penned this verse in around 1875:

The plover has arrived to bid the snow farewell
to bid boredom farewell, that she does.
She has told me that soon the whimbrel will come,
sunshine in valleys and blossoms in fields.
She has told me of my sins,
I sleep too much and I don’t work much.
She has told me to wake up and work
and with great hopefulness welcome the summer.

Raven

Having talked about the plover´s links with Icelandic folklore, it makes sense to move straight on to the Raven (hrafn in Icelandic) - probably the most significant bird in Iceland's history and culture. From ancient Norse mythology and Viking folklore to modern-day symbolism, the raven has always been revered in Iceland. The raven has a friendly nickname, 'krummi' a name more often used by Icelanders than the more formal 'hrafn'.

There are countless poems and stories dedicated to the raven or using its appearance as a motif. Folk songs about the raven, such as ‘Krummavísur’ and ‘Krummi krunkar úti’ are known by virtually every Icelander.

Ravens have a special place in Icelandic folklore, dating back to the Old Norse beliefs of the first settlers of Iceland. Odin, the god of wisdom, had two ravens, Huginn and Muninn ('Thought' and 'Memory'), who traveled the world to gather information and whispered what they had learned in his ears.

Additionally, the first voyager who set out to find Iceland, and gave it its name, was Hrafna-Floki (Raven-Floki), who used ravens for navigation to find the island.

Norse mythology and the Icelandic Sagas usually show the raven as a wise, all-knowing messenger and often a bird of prophecy, protector, and helper. Interestingly, this representation is not totally unwarranted, as ravens are considered among the most intelligent animals alive today (about as smart as a young child). They possess a significant amount of problem-solving intelligence and can seemingly even plan for the future.

Being such an adaptable creature, ravens can be found all around Iceland. These birds are monogamous, pairing for life and returning to nest in the same place each spring, producing between four and six eggs. The hatchlings then develop quite slowly, depending on their parents’ protection, until they are fully able to fly around the end of June, when they are about five weeks old, before finally becoming fully independent in July.

There are believed to be about 2,500 nesting pairs in Iceland. In the autumn, the raven population swells considerably. They are currently listed as a being a vulnerable species on the Icelandic Red List of Birds. Raven nesting areas extend throughout the northern hemisphere.

They are one of the few birds that remain in Iceland throughout the year and do not migrate in the winter. Particularly around autumn and winter, ravens enjoy human-inhabited areas where they find ample food sources. There are many ravens that have made their home in the area where our office is located and I often watch them on my lunchtime walk and attempt to mimic their sound, chatting to them as I go.

In Reykjavík, they can often be seen at twilight flying back to Mount Esja, the imposing mountain just to the north, which overlooks the city, where many hundreds spend the night. In Iceland, a large group of ravens is referred to as a ‘Hrafnaþing,’ which translates into English as “an assembly of ravens.”

Common Snipe

The Common Snipe, (hrossagaukur in Icelandic) is a small, stocky wading bird that can be found in the lowland regions of the country.

The most recognizable characteristic of the Common Snipe in Iceland is not how it looks but the sound it makes. During courtship, the male performs a 'winnowing' display by flying high in circles and taking shallow dives. This produces a drumming sound through the bird’s tail feathers vibrating, which many Icelanders have come to identify with summer. Although the sound is loud, the snipe itself can be difficult to spot as its brown-coloured feathers blend seamlessly with the vegetation on the ground.

This drumming sound is quite unique and has been compared to the bleating of a farm animal. That's why in many languages, the snipe is known by names such as the ‘Flying Goat’. In Icelandic, the sound has been compared more to the neighing of a horse. In fact, its Icelandic name - Hrossagaukur - translates to ‘Horse Cuckoo’.

Iceland's wetlands are the main habitat for the common snipe, as they are filled with insects and worms for the birds to feast on. While the draining and agricultural development of these areas in places like the UK have depleted their numbers, the untouched nature of Iceland means they are still in great numbers here, throughout the lowland regions.

Arctic Tern

The Arctic Tern (kría in Icelandic) is the bird that Icelanders love to hate. To be fair, it is easy to see why as these feisty little birds do seem to hate everything and everybody! Fearsomely aggressive during breeding season they will think nothing of divebombing anyone who gets too close to their nests or young and attacking with their sharp beaks - they do draw blood! But they are incredibly beautiful, delicate and tiny, weighing only around 100g (3.5oz) and are easily recognised by their deep forked tail, black hoods and dark red beak and feet. The tern arrives in Iceland in April/May and, like the Golden Plover, it is a sign that spring is here. Arctic terns are found all around Iceland but their nests are mostly close to the sea.

A tern’s next is quite simple; a small dent in the ground where the bird lays 2-3 small eggs which are brown with dark spots. The eggs are incubated for 20-22 days and the adults feed the baby terns for 3-4 weeks until they can fly. Terns are exceptional flyers and you can watch them appear to hang suspended in the air before suddenly diving to catch food (or scare off anyone who has come too close). It is estimated that the tern flies a distance equal to about three times to the moon and back during its lifespan and flies on average 44,100 miles each year. For more on these fabulous birds see my earlier blog Arctic Terns… beautiful, graceful… and feared by many!

Oystercatcher

The Oystercatcher (tjaldur in Icelandic) is found all around Iceland but mostly in lowlands and close to the shore. It is easy to recognise with its plumage of black with a noticeable white strip, and the belly, sides and rump also being white, along with its orange/pink legs, orange beak and red eyes. It also has a very loud and recognisable ‘peep peep peep peep’ call and is very noisy, particularly when disturbed. Most of the estimated 13,000 breeding pairs are concentrated around southwest Iceland along the banks of large rivers and farmed fields. The oystercatcher is mostly migratory and leaves Iceland in late autumn, with most of the population overwintering in Great Britain and some in Galicia in northwest Spain. They arrive in Iceland in March and can be seen in large groups on the mudflats along the coast. They are monogamous and loyal to their companions, often pairing for life. They are also loyal to their nesting sites and often go back to nest in the same spot every year. They don’t nest in colonies - each pair has its own territory. The oystercatcher is the national bird of the nearby Faroe Islands. The average lifespan of an oystercatcher is around 12 year. The oldest known individual in Iceland was 29, but one in England was documented at 43 years old!

Whooper Swan

The whooper swan (sometimes called the common swan - or álft in Icelandic) is the only type of swan found in Iceland. Unlike the more common (in Britain) mute swan which has a long s-shaped neck and orange bill, the whooper swan has a long thin neck which is normally held erect adn the bill is black with a large triangular patch of yellow. In addition the mute swan tends to be silent, whereas the whooper swan has a loud ‘whoop-whoop’ trumpet-like call. An adult whooper swan weighs 6-12kg (13-26lbs) and is one of the world’s largest flying birds. To take flight, such a massive body needs a good runway to flap its big wings. The wingspan of the whooper swan can exceed two and a half metres. Whoopers feed heavily on plants and herbs. During spring and summer they remain in wetlands and feed on all kinds of water plants. They are also often seen at the seashore, where they feed on common eelgrass and seaweed. We see them often in farmers’ grain and potato fields during spring and autumn, where they can cause great damage. Most of the Icelandic population (some 30-35 thousand birds in the autumn, with a breeding population of around 5-6 thousand pairs) migrate to Britain after autumn but arrive back here in the spring. However, there is a small group of swans that stays here in Iceland for the whole winter.

Whooper swans pair for life and the couples are mostly loyal to each other, although divorces and affairs do happen! Both male and female care from the cygnets and the family stays together until leaving the country in late autumn. The whooper swan can reach a good age and birds in their late thirties are commonly observed.

Black-tailed Godwit

The black-tailed godwit (jaðrakan in Icelandic) is a wader bird, closely related to the redshank and the whimbrel. They nest mainly in Iceland but have also been observed in a few destinations in mid-Europe and eastern Russia. The black-tailed godwit is a migratory bird and the Icelandic population spends its winters in Great Britain, France and on the Iberian peninsula.

The black-tailed godwit has long legs and large wings, compared to body size with a wingspan of 70-80cm. The head, neck and chest have a characteristic rusty brown colour but the back is greyish and the belly creamy. The dark wingtips and tail are noticeable during flight with white wing bars and rump. The birds were first found nesting in south and southeast Iceland but are now found all over the country. However south Iceland is still the most important habitat. It is most common in wetlands or farmland, always close to water.

They arrive in Iceland at the beginning of April when the birds wait at their nesting site for their companions to arrive, as the pairs do not necessarily migrate to the country together, or even spend winters in the same country. Most pairs arrive at the nesting site at the same time but if the male is late, it can result in a divorce. How the pairs plan their migration to the nesting site and arrive around the same time is a mystery. They choose a nesting site close to wetland where they lay 3-4 eggs. The black-tailed godwit is a social bird and often nests. In colonies in wetlands.

Whimbrel

The whimbrel (spói in Icelandic) is a rather large wader , brownish/greyish in colour with a light belly and underwings. The main characteristics of the whimbrel are its long bluish-grey feet and the long curved bill, both of which are extremely useful when feeding in wetlands and shores. The sexes look alike but the female is a little bit larger than the male.

The whimbrel is a migratory bird and spends a short summer period in Iceland ans it has a long journey to its wintering grounds in West Africa. The breeding population in Iceland is strong, with some 250 thousand birds, about 40% of the world’s population. It is estimated that 70% of the subspecies islandicus breed in Iceland.

Whimbrels are not very social, except when they migrate to and from Iceland in groups. They nest scarcely and the pairs do not socialise with other whimbrels during the nesting season. Couples are monogamous, and their relationship is solid. The pair owns its territory, which it defends against predators.

The whimbrel has one of the Icelandic summer’s characteristic sounds. Its song, called ‘vell’ in Icelandic has been an inspiration to many poets and the whimbrel is believed to be able to predict different weather with different sounds (or vell). A continuous sequence of sounds, resembling a violin, is called ‘round-vell’ and means that winters is finally over. A rhythmic sequence, with a pause between sounds is called ‘long-vell’ and means that rainy days can be expected.

Rock Ptarmigan

The rock ptarmigan (rjúpa in Icelandic) is a common and widespread breeding bird in Iceland. It is sedentary within Iceland but moves extensively between its breeding and wintering grounds. The ptarmigan’s favoured breeding habitat is grassland and heathland.

The population varies widely within the year. By the end of the summer, Iceland’s ptarmigan population is typically three to four times larger than in the spring.

The rock ptarmigan is the only upland game bird in Iceland and has been hunted since the time of the island’s human settlement more than 1100 years ago. For many people in Iceland, the ptarmigan is a traditional Christmas dish and up to one in four households serves ptarmigan at this time of year. From 2005 onwards, ptarmigan hunting has been permitted only for personal consumption and must take place within a set hunting period. All sale of ptarmigan and derived products is banned.