Bird of the Year 2018

Estonian Ornithological Society has announced that the winner of the competition for, 'Bird of the Year 2018' is Capercaillie.  The candidate was chosen as one of the symbols of pristine nature, as 2018 will also be the 100th anniversary of the Estonian Republic. In the final round Golden Eagle and Goldcrest were competing with Capercaillie, and in earlier rounds Black Grouse, Eurasian Jay, Nuthatch, Goosander, Bullfinch and several other species were in the running.  Ivar Ojaste, one of the proposers of Capercaillie, said, „Capercaillie is an inhabitant of our primeval natural forests, it spends its whole life in Estonia and is extremely sedentary. Lekking places of Capercaillie are situated in the margin forests of raised bogs, which are also symbols of our indigenous nature.“

Capercaillie / Photo: Ingmar Muusikus

This time the bird of the year was chosen very early to allow time for preparations of different actions and to celebrate the national anniversary with dignity - but there is still lots of time before 2018. In mid-December there will be a big convivial bird evening, where the ongoing Great Tit year will be officially concluded and the baton will be passed to Turtle Dove - the bird of the year 2017.
Estonian Ornithological Society has elected the Bird of the Year since 1995. The purpose is to thoroughly bring into the open some particular bird species or group of bird species and to attract nature lovers to study and protect that species. The full list of birds of the year is available in the webpage of the Estonian Ornithological Society.

Clients are talking... Kliendid räägivad...

„It was a very good trip thanks and a good flight back.
Uku worked really hard - we were sometimes out until 9pm and out at 4.30am at times.
Great views of White-backed Woodpecker for all of us as well as surprises such as Brown Bear and a Glaucous Gull past Poosaspea Point.
So many thanks to you and Uku.
Below are White-tailed Eagle in Matsalu Bay, Black Woodpecker near Roosta, Bewicks Swans early in the morning at Poosaspea Point and Grey-headed Woodpecker and female Capercaillie near Tudu“. R.B / April 2014

White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) / Richard Bayldon

Black Woodpecker (Dryocopus martius) / Richard Bayldon

Bewicks Swans (Cygnus bewickii) / Richard Bayldon

 Grey-headed Woodpecker (Picus canus) / Richard Bayldon

Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) / Richard Bayldon

„Just thought I would email to let you know that Bill and I arrived home safely, and we would like to say that we had a wonderful time in Estonia, your tour was perfectly organised, the accommodations were lovely and the food was wonderful, and Margus looked after us all very well, thankyou for suggesting the Ryanair flights and the Ilmarine hotel (which was also excellent) your suggestions made our trip to Estonia possible, please thank Ingrid and Margus for us, and thanks again to you, we are considering returning to Estonia for a spring tour, not sure when, maybe next year, we shall be in touch.“ A&B.G / March 2014

Clients are talking / Kliendid räägivad

"We had a good time in Estonia last week. All the warm clothing wasn’t really necessary, luckily. Tallinn is beautiful, and the two-days birding with Karel were also excellent. We saw or heard about 120 bird species, 6 of which I had not seen before. Excellent view of Great snipe, Corncrake, River warbler, White-backed woodpecker, and a soaring Lesser spotted eagle. And other very ‘good’ birds like Citrine wagtail. The pair of Hawk Owls was a very nice surprise." B.B / Belgium, May 2013

  Great Snipe (Gallinago media) / Arne Ader

Citrine Wagtail (Motacilla citreola) / Rein Kuresoo

***

"Thank you for giving up your own time to take us out, and to give us such a super day, the first day we were "on tour" in Estonia.  It was great seeing you again, and thanks for a very special lunch.   If only I had known you would be with us that day, I would have asked you to the opera - it was "La Traviata", and the Estonian company did it well.

Thank you for going to so much trouble over my anorak.  It doesn't look very special, but I am very attached to it - especially when it is cold!!    I feel such a fool to leave it in your car, but thank you for all the trouble you have taken to return it to me.

Thank you for finding us such a good guide.  He is absolutely one of the best.   We still want Tarvo, but when we can't have Tarvo we will be delighted to have Margus.   I know very few guides as good as him - he is a good bird finder and guide, and good company also.   You did well to find him.

I am already looking at my diary to see when we can go back again!" P.C / UK, June 2013 

 Female Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) / Pierre Vernay

***

"Our trip to Estonia was a great success. All participants were absolutely satisfied with Roosta puhkeküla accomodation (the cottages), all meals we were served, sauna and the atmosphere of the personel. The buss service and the driver Aivo were also great. Aivo did a good job taking account that we changed the routes many times according to weather. Our guide Mikko was super. He created from the very beginning open relations to all of our group members. He also knew the areas and places we visited and he had a good knowledge of both flora and fauna.

We all want to recommend Estonian Nature Tour services to all Finnish tourists and also to people from other countries. The Estonian nature is rich and beautiful. Satisfaction starts when you get  more than you expected. Here, in our case, this happened!" K.S / Finland, May 2013

A group of 19 birdwatchers and nature photographers of the Finnish Club of Helsinki 

visited Western Estonia 17.-20.5.-2013

***

"I am delighted to report that the bear-watch at Tudu was a success. I easily found the spot as you described, and soon after, two more cars of English people, along with Triin arrived. We were in the hide by 6 pm., and very quickly the first Racoon Dogs appeared, showing interest in the bear-food. About 9, two adult bears arrived, presumably a pair, and while one (the female?) stayed in the background, the other fed hungrily for about 15 minutes, giving wonderful views. A little later a Woodcock came and stood in full view before the hide for several minutes -- the best view I have ever had! In the morning light a fox came to wander around, and a White-Backed Woodpecker (very clearly seen and positively identified) appeared too. I am very grateful to you for organizing all that for me." J C-E. / Australia, June 2013

Click here to see video of Alutaguse Bears, taken on the same night...

 White-backed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos leucotos) / Agamemnon Loutsios 

***

"Just to say we all had a great trip to Estonia and saw plenty of good birds - particularly the Grouse, Woodpeckers and Geese and even found a Black Kite. The mammals were equally good even though we didn't see a bear the Racoon Dogs were super and the Flying Squirrel was just fabulous. 

 Flying Squirrel (Pteromys volans) / JM Bompar

 Black Kite (Milvus migrans) / Source: Wikipedia

 

Margus is a really good birder, a superb tour leader a great guy and great company. We more or less stuck to the itinerary but changed things around a bit to suit our needs after discussions with or suggestions from Margus.Margus worked tirelessly throughout the week to find us birds & mammals and nothing was too much trouble for him - he really helped to make the trip and I wouldn't hesitate to use him again. So please pass on a big thank you once again from all of us.

The Mooste Viinavabrik Guesthouse was absolutely wonderful - a great building, great food, great staff and ideally located. You have just got to continue to use the place.

Finally a big thank you to you for the organisation and all the work you have done in the background that helped make for a fabulous and successful trip." J.W / UK, May 2013

***

"We had all a great trip in Estonia. It seems that everybody in the group enjoyed our visit very much. Margus is a very easy-going person to deal with and his knowledge about birding in Estonia is over the top! I like very much to travel with him. The people in the group also find him very nice." G.P / Sweden, Avifauna, June 2013

Ural Owl (Strix uralensis) / Raili Mets

Tour report: Estonia in Early Spring 6-13 April 2013

The first four trips have been incredibly successful. For example, during 8-day trip together with our bird guide Tarvo Valker clients have observed 15 Black Grouse, 7 Capercaillies, 6 Hazel Hens and 7 species of Woodpeckers - including superb views of the White-backed, Three-toed and Middle Spotted Woodpeckers. Plus several Nutcrackers, lots of dancing Cranes, Steller`s Eiders, Parrot Crossbill and  for the most of birdwatchers as a bird of the trip: stunning Pygmy Owl settled at the evening sun.

 

1 Sat (6th April)    TALLINN, to Saaremaa island

After landing at the Tallinn airport late afternoon, we headed towards Saaremaa island, which is quite a long drive, but on the way we had some time for birding as well. First, it is important to mention, that the fields were still covered with thick snow – as our guide said, it has been an exceptionally late spring here.
Before catching the ferry, we had a brief stop at Kasari river (Matsalu National Park) where there was some open water. We had superb views of 4 White-tailed Eagles – all of them nice adults. In the open water we spotted several pairs of Goosanders and Goldeneyes. Next stop just before catching the ferry was Tuhu bog. On the nearby fields we saw our first Cranes and at the bog we had a really nice view of the single male Black Grouse. After he flew we noticed that there were also 7 females in the nearby tree tops. Next we drove to Saaremaa island, setlled down at Loona Manorhouse and enjoyed a georgious meal before heading to bed.

2 Sun (7th April)    SAAREMAA ISLAND 

We awoke to find strong winds with occasional snowfalls but this did not deter us from heading to Cape Undva for the Steller`s Eiders, pausing to see a Great Grey Shrike sitting on the wires.
It was really cold at the coast but, despite that, the bay was full of seaducks, especially nice numbers of Goldeneyes and Long-tailed Ducks. It was really special to see them in hundreds all together. We found several Smew, Red-breasted Mergansers and a lovely group of Velvet Scoters. The biggest bonus was to see a male Parrot Crossbill which landed briefly on the rocks. We also saw several Steller`s Eiders flying in the distance, but none of them seen swimming. Eventually we found our first male swimming but it took off before everybody had a proper look at it so we decided to have lunch and come back the next day, when the weather is hopefully better.
In the afternoon we went to Viidumäe forest. It was still windy, so we didn`t have any luck with Nutcrackers here, but we got our first brief views of the Black Woodpecker. It was obvious that it was not owling weather so we drove around on the fields to pick up some migrants. We had several groups of Lapwing, many Skylarks, Yellowhammers and the first Curlew.

3 Mon (8th April)    MATSALU NATIONAL PARK, to central Estonia 

We drove in the morning to Cape Undva again and just before reaching to the coast we found a nice group of 25 Waxwings feeding on the juniper bushes. After some searching we found 2 male and one female Steller`s Eiders swimming at the coast, about 200 meters off-shore. This was much better than yesterday and everyone felt pleased with their views before we headed to the harbour for our journey to central Estonia.
After lunch we went to a wooded meadow to search for the woodpeckers. The weather was a bit windy still, but much better than yesterday. A few whistles by our guide and the first Grey-headed Woodpecker responded quickly. After few minutes we had really good views of the bird perched on the tree top. As we have really early start tomorrow, we drove to our new guesthouse in Central Estonia, had another absolutely superb meal and went to bed.

4 Tue (9th April)    TOOSIKANNU & SAARJÕE

We started our mammal safari with the open truck at 5.30am. It was sunny morning and although it was -12 degrees Celsius it didn’t feel that cold as there was no wind. The first half hour was rather quiet. After that we got a brief view of a Hazel Hen flying over the forest track, then fairly quickly found two young Elk at the edge of the forest. They were really tame and we had bins on them for several minutes. We made a stop in a forest clearing to have warm coffee and could hear a Black Woodpecker drumming.  After a few minutes it flew in and landed just next to our truck - a male Black Woodpecker sitting in the early morning sun - what a beautiful moment!
We returned to the guesthouse for breakfast then with such good weather headed back out for more birding. The first hour produced several Hazel Grouse with at least 5-6 individuals. It is really unusual to have so many sightnings in a day of this shy game bird. Nutcrackers were quiet again but we managed to see our first White Stork.
After lunch we headed to the Saarjõe Nature Reserve for some forest birding. After few stops we heard drumming of a White-backed Woodpecker. A nice male was found close to the road and we had really nice views. As it was approaching Pygmy Owl time, we went to check one of last years territories. Just near our minivan we had another woodpecker for our list - two Lesser Spotted were perched on the top of the dead spruce tree. Our guide whistled for the Pymgy Owl and quickly 2 Crested Tits jumped out and we had superb views of them. No response from the Owl, but we had another Black Woodpecker drumming. During the evening we checked several Pygmy Owl sites with no luck but eventually, in the fading light, we heard a response. After a few minutes a Pygmy Owl landed on top of a spruce just in front of us! We had 10 minutes scope views of this stunning little creature - and with nice evening sunlight on the bird! For most of us it was definately bird of the trip. We also heard Ural Owl at the same site - what quality birding to get such sightings in just a few hours. With smiling faces we headed back to the guesthouse to have a late dinner and some evening beers.

5 Wed (10th April)     SAARJÕE & AUDRU

We had another 6 o`clock start to go back to the Saarjõe Nature Reserve for the forest birds. It was really sunny and calm again. The first hour was rather poor but things improved when we found 2 Nutcrackers perched at a dead tree. We drove the forested tracks to see Capericaillies with no luck at first. After coffee and breakfeast in the forest our luck changed. Just two minutes in the minivan and there they were - 7 female Capericaillies on the road and one lekking male just a few meters from them! We looked and looked at them. Anthony was absolutely thrilled as that bird has been avoiding him for 38 years! 

 Capercaillies (Tetrao urogallus) / Tarvo Valker

After that we headed toward Pärnu town. A brief stop at the nearby park produced superb views of 2 Middle Spotted Woodpeckers. What a privilege to observe 5 species of woodpeckers in just 2 days! In the afternoon we searched for migrants in nearby fields and found plenty of Skylarks, many Lapwings and the first White Wagtails, but it seemed that the cold weather was still holding many migrants back and we did not add many species to the list.

Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos medius) / Tarvo Valker

6 Thu (11th April)    To North-East, ALUTAGUSE

We left our base late in the morning and drove toward north-east Estonia. On the way we made a stop at Ohepalu Nature Reserve to try for another woodpecker - Three-toed. Our first stop produced a drumming male and half of the group had good views of the bird but unfortunately it flew into dense forest before all had seen it well. 

  Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides tridactylus) / Tarvo Valker

In the afternoon we did some mammal tracking in the Alutaguse region finding Brown Bear and Lynx tracks here. Another stop in the forest produced 15 minutes of quality birding again. First 2 White-backed Woodpeckers were found, when male Black Woodpecker flew over and just after that a single male Black Grouse. When our guide heard quiet pecking and soon discovered a male Three-toed Woodpecker feeding low down on a dead tree, just at the roadside. We had long views of that one and finally everybody had 6 European woodpeckers on their list!
In the late evening we drove the forested areas in search of Ural Owl, but as it started raining we didn`t have any luck with that.

7 Fri (12th April)    ALUTAGUSE & LAHEMAA

This is our last early morning out in the forest and on the way we found an adult male Merlin on the telegraph pole, 3 male Black Grouse lekking on the snow and a small group of Snow Buntings on the roadside. Forest birding wasn`t to good, although we had several Willow Tits here. In the afternoon we did some seawatching at Lahemaa. We had here a flock of Velvet Scoters, Common Eiders and a few Long-tailed Ducks and Red-breasted Mergansers. We also had several Kestrels and 2 White-tailed Eagles while driving.

8 Sat (13th April)    To Tallinn, departure...

It was our last day and after breakfeast we headed towards Tallinn. Our first stop was in a city park for Red Squirrels. Unluckily we didn`t find any, but we added two new species on our bird list. First we saw a Woodcock flying over our heads, probably flushed up by a dog, then 2 Hawfinches in one garden.
After that we went for a guided walk in Tallinn old town, had our last traditional Estonian meal and went to the airport. We ended our tour with 92 bird species, including 6 species of woodpeckers, 3 speceies of grouse, Pygmy Owl, White-tailed Eagle, Common Crane, Nutcracker and Parrot Crossbill.

All together 90 bird species were seen during whole week.

Full list of birds:

1.    Mute Swan
2.    Whooper Swan
3.    Bean Goose
4.    Greater White-fronted Goose
5.    Greylag Goose
6.    Shelduck
7.    Eurasian Wigeon
8.    Eurasian Teal
9.    Mallard
10.    Tufted Duck
11.    Common Eider
12.    Steller`s Eider
13.    Long-tailed Duck
14.    Common Scoter
15.    Velvet Scoter
16.    Goldeneye
17.    Smew
18.    Red-breasted Merganser
19.    Goosander
20.    Hazel Grouse – 6-7 individuals seen during the trip
21.    Black Grouse – 7 males and 8 females seen
22.    Capercaillie – 1 lekking male together with 7 females
23.    Crested Grebe
24.    Cormorant
25.    Grey Heron
26.    White Stork
27.    White-tailed Eagle – at least 7 individuals during the trip
28.    Sparrowhawk
29.    Common Buzzard
30.    Kestrel
31.    Merlin – 1 adult male
32.    Crane
33.    Oystercatcher
34.    Ringed Plover
35.    Lapwing
36.    Woodcock – 1 ind. on the last day in Tallinn
37.    Curlew
38.    Black-headed Gull
39.    Common Gull
40.    Lesser Black-backed Gull
41.    Greater Black-backed Gull
42.    Herring Gull
43.    Feral Pigeon
44.    Wood Pigeon
45.    Stock Dove
46.    Pygmy Owl – one seen at Central Estonia
47.     Ural Owl – one heard at Central Estonia
48.    Grey-headed Woodpecker – 1 seen + 1 just heard
49.    Black Woodpecker – about 10 ind. seen during the whole week
50.    Great Spotted Woodpecker
51.    Middle Spotted Woodpecker – 2 ind. in the park near Pärnu town
52.    White-backed Woodpecker – 3 ind. seen
53.    Lesser Spotted Woodpecker – 2 seen
54.    Three-toed Woodpecker – 2 males seen in Alutaguse region
55.    Skylark
56.    White Wagtail
57.    Waxwing – a group of 25 ind. at Saaremaa island
58.    Blackbird
59.    Mistle Thrush
60.    Goldcrest
61.    Long-tailed Tit
62.    Marsh Tit
63.    Willow Tit
64.    Crested Tit
65.    Coal Tit
66.    Blue Tit
67.    Great Tit
68.    Nuthatch
69.    Treeceeper
70.    Great Grey Shrike
71.    Eurasian Jay
72.    Magpie
73.    Nutcracker
74.    Jackdaw
75.    Rook
76.    Raven
77.    Hooded Crow
78.    Starling
79.    House Sparrow
80.    Tree Sparrow
81.    Chaffinch
82.    Brambling
83.    Siskin
84.    Greenfinch
85.    Goldfinch
86.    Linnet
87.    Common Crossbill
88.    Parrot Crossbill – 1 male at Cape Undva
89.    Bullfinch
90.    Yellowhammer

Full list of mammals:

1.    Roe Deer
2.    Elk - 2
3.    Red Fox
4.    Mountain Hare
5.    Pine Martin
6.    Weasel – seen only by bird guide


Compiled by Estonian Nature Tours` leader Tarvo Valker

Client Comments - Wildlife Holiday in Estonia

"We had a fantastic trip in Estonia and all your organisation worked perfectly. We saw all three woodpeckers and the capercaillie with Margus (and he helped us with a location for black grouse lekking). We got at least 7 beavers with Rannus and the great snipe lek was a success - at least 7 or 8 birds!

Great Snipe / Arne Ader

The raccoon dogs were a disappointment - just a bit of bad luck I guess (especially for the dogs), but Jan tried very hard to find us things and was really helpful. Sorry we didn't get to meet you on the 5th but we decided to try for corncrake at Aardla (corncrake is virtually impossible in the UK) and it made us very late so we drove directly to Tallinn. We got fantastic views of the corncrake though!!!

Raccoon Dog / Valeri Štšerbatõh

Loved Tallinn (though you should tell them to keep the restaurants open later) - and the birthday lunch was great (a very nice place called Aed that was recommended by a girl we met). I even got up at dawn to watch the transect of venus.
We definately want to return - perhaps earlier in the season next time. Owls, raccoon dogs and lynx please.
Thanks so much for helping with a terrific trip. Great countryside, very friendly people and 12 birds off our list (plus the beavers)." Brilliant! M.A. / UK, June 2012


"Yes, back home now unfortunately. I did not want to leave. Peace, quiet, friendly people and above all great birding. Roosta and Hobekala guesthouse were both very comfortable and suitable for what I wanted. All in all the trip was a great success and I will certainly be back.
Many thanks for setting it up for me, it all went very smoothly." R.G. / UK, April-May 2012

As well as offering a high quality service Estonian Nature Tours can also organise your trip quickly and reliably. Even if you are only getting in touch last minute we can still help you enjoy an excellent trip - and if you know what you want to see then we can get you sorted in no time!

Titchwell Marsh

The Estonian Nature Tours team also visited the Norfolk area during the British Birdfair 2011 for some birding. Our main destination was Titchwell Marshes where we encountered nice flocks of waders - including Black-tailed Godwits, Dunlins, Avocets, Ruffs and many other wetland birds. Even a rare vagrant - a Buff-breasted Sandpiper was seen at Titchwell that day. It was an interesting visit not only for birds but also for the great opportunity to see successful nature conservation efforts in action. We were also delighted to see the very modern hides at this wetland which allow birdwatchers to get really close to the birds without disturbing them. We also went to Hunstanton to see Fulmars - a bird which is rather common in Norfolk, but not present in Estonia.

View to the Titchwell Marshes
Photo: Tarvo Valker

Titchwell Marsh is an exceptional nature reserve on the north Norfolk coast. It is a part of a network of outstanding wildlife sites across Europe called Natura 2000. A walk from the visitor centre down to the sandy beach takes you past reedbeds and shallow lagoons, which are often full of birds. You can sit on benches or watch from spacious, wheelchair-accessible hides. Read more...

Hiking trail before entering the hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker

RSPB Titcwell Marsh nature reserve is under pressure. The sand dunes along
the beach are being eroded by the sea. The ersosion of the dunes would
ultimately threaten the sea walls that prtect the reserve´s valuable
freswater habitats. These habitats are home to spectacular and rare breeding birds such as bitterns, mars harriers and bearded tits.

Inside view of the birdwatching hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker

In autumn 2009, the RSPB started work on the Titchwell Marsh Coastal Change
Project.

Find out more about the project here...

View to the mudflats from the hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker