2022 Winter Bird Count Completed
The annual winter bird count in the Westfjords has now been completed. The goal of this project is to collect information about the number and distribution of birds during the winter season. The counts started in 1952 and therefore this is one of the longest continuous monitoring projects that has been carried out in Iceland. The Icelandic Institute of Natural History is in charge of the project throughout the country in collaboration with volunteers and Iceland’s Nature Centers. The Icelandic Institute of Natural History publishes the results of counts for the whole country on its website: https://www.ni.is/greinar/vetrarfuglatalningar-nidurstodur
The staff of the Natural Science Institute of the Westfjords counted birds in Patreksfjörður, Tálknafjörður, Bíldudal, Dýrafjörður, Önundarfjörður, Súgandafjörður, Skutulsfjörður, Álftafjörður, Hestfjörður, Skátufjörður, and in Bolungarvík. In Steingrímsfjörður, Matthías Sævar Lýðsson and Hafdís Sturlaugsdóttir counted. Tómas Sigurgeirsson, Jón Atli Játvarðsson and Eiríkur Kristjánsson counted in Reykhólum and the surrounding area.
This year, almost 20,000 birds of 43 species were recorded in the Westfjords. The largest number of birds was in Steingrímsfjörður and in Skutulsfjörður, where over 3 thousand birds were seen. As before, the common eider (Somateria mollissima) was by far the most common, followed by the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) and then the Iceland gull (Larus glaucoides).
Most of the birds were considered common species in Iceland during the winter. Of the less common winter species that were seen this year, we can first mention one turnstone (Arenaria interpres) that was seen at Höfða in Dýrafjörður and a king eider (Somateria spectabilis) at Arnardalsá in Skutulsfjörður. One common shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) and one common goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) were at Holt in Önundarfjörður and two black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) were at Gálmaströnd in Steingrímsfjörður. Two merlins (Falco columbarius) were seen, one at Kokkálsvík in Drangsnes and the other at Reykhóla, where one graylag goose (Anser anser) was also seen. Two bohemian waxwings (Bombycilla garrulus) were seen (Photo 1), one near Kirkjuból in Önundarfjörður and one in Patreksfjörður. There were three fieldfares (Turdus pilaris) also sighted (Photo 2), one at Tálknafjörður, another at Reykhólar and the third at Súðavík, where nine black headed gulls (Larus ridibundus) were also seen.
Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and common mergansers (Mergus merganser) increased proportionally the most this year compared to the previous. Starlings were seen in all the villages of the Westfjords except in Suðureyri and Súðavík. Most were sighted in Tálknafjörður and Þingeyri. The starlings were often accompanied by Eurasian blackbirds (Turdus merula) and redwings (Turdus iliacus).
