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Herdlevær
THE bird to see in the autumn - Yellow-browed Warbler / gulbrynsanger
Picture taken 08 October 2007
Herdlevær is one of the best places in Øygarden for rare passerines and every year, especially in the autumn, a number of good birds turn up. Being very close to Skogsøy it is the perfect place to stroll around after a morning seawatching. Sometimes it pays to use the whole day at Herdlevær - it can be excellent for visible migration of passerines, noteably Waxwing and Crossbill. Some seabirds can also be seen from Herdlevær - indeed it can be worth checking to see if there is much activity over the sea before heading out to Skogsøy.
As with the rest of Øygarden, Herdlevær does not get a great deal of coverage, but birders from Bergen visit fairly regularly during the spring and autumn. Yellow-browed Warbler is probabaly annual at this locality, occasionally with up to several birds present. The local residents here are to some degree used to strangers peering into their gardens in search of rarities - occasionally when a "twitch" happens birders from all over Norway can descend on the island. However, people are not used to birders in the same way as many places in Europe and one should not enter gardens, even if there is a "mega" there.
Often quiet bird-wise this place can be transformed under the right weather conditions and thousands of birds can be present during the autumn. Generally speaking there are very few "falls" in the spring and "sub Saharan" migrants tend to be thin on the ground at this time of year. Most birders visit Herdlevær after a day of seawatching and during the spring good seawatching weather is, as a rule, not terribly productive for passerines.
The commonest species of
warbler in the autumn tend to be Blackcap and
Chiff-chaff, with smaller numbers of Garden Warblers being seen.
Raptors
are often seen here, Sparrowhawk, Peregrine and White-tailed Eagle are
the most common and numbers of the former can reach double figures
during the autumn. Goshawk, Kestrel and Merlin are all regular visitors
too.
The heath, grassland and pools to the north often hold few birds, but if there is time are still worth checking for waders, wildfowl and raptors.
Gyrfalcon at Herdlevær, 25 October 2009
A few of the commoner Øygarden wader species breed here and other species including Jack Snipe, Green Sandpiper, Ruff and Bar-tailed Godwit can turn up, although Common Snipe and Eurasian Woodcock (in season) are more regular.
Small numbers of ducks and geese rest on the freshwater pools in the area during migration times and outside the breeding season there is a Heron roost which can number up to 50 birds.
Passerines in this heathy area to the north of the settlement are generally limited to the usal Øygarden species but Stonechat have been recorded out in this area.
A selection of the rarities seen at Herdlevær is given below:
Spotted Flycatcher / Gråfluesnapper
Herdlevær, 13 August 2006
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THE bird to see in the autumn - Yellow-browed Warbler / gulbrynsanger
Picture taken 08 October 2007
Herdlevær is one of the best places in Øygarden for rare passerines and every year, especially in the autumn, a number of good birds turn up. Being very close to Skogsøy it is the perfect place to stroll around after a morning seawatching. Sometimes it pays to use the whole day at Herdlevær - it can be excellent for visible migration of passerines, noteably Waxwing and Crossbill. Some seabirds can also be seen from Herdlevær - indeed it can be worth checking to see if there is much activity over the sea before heading out to Skogsøy.
As with the rest of Øygarden, Herdlevær does not get a great deal of coverage, but birders from Bergen visit fairly regularly during the spring and autumn. Yellow-browed Warbler is probabaly annual at this locality, occasionally with up to several birds present. The local residents here are to some degree used to strangers peering into their gardens in search of rarities - occasionally when a "twitch" happens birders from all over Norway can descend on the island. However, people are not used to birders in the same way as many places in Europe and one should not enter gardens, even if there is a "mega" there.
Female Red-backed
Shrike / Tornskate, Herdlevær, 04 July 2006
Although
actually an island it barely seems that way with just a few very short
bridges to drive across. The
area consists of a number of gardens, some farmland and a few lakes.
One can also scan the sea and check some of the islands where waders
sometimes gather. The calm waters on the inland side of
Herdlevær
regularly produce grebes and divers along with the more usual seaduck
and auks. The bay to the north of
Herdlevær is one of the better areas in Øygarden
to see Black Guillemot in winter.Often quiet bird-wise this place can be transformed under the right weather conditions and thousands of birds can be present during the autumn. Generally speaking there are very few "falls" in the spring and "sub Saharan" migrants tend to be thin on the ground at this time of year. Most birders visit Herdlevær after a day of seawatching and during the spring good seawatching weather is, as a rule, not terribly productive for passerines.
"Bombehagen",
Herdlevær - THE rarity garden
This place must have one of the best garden lists in the "county" of Hordaland
This place must have one of the best garden lists in the "county" of Hordaland
 |
There
are a number of side roads / tracks, all of which are worth exploring
as each is different in its own way. If one covers all these roads,
checking the gardens and fields on a hectic day then at least a few
hours can quickly pass. If time permits the area of heath,
grassland and pools to the north of the village can be worth a
look.
 |
 |
| Isabelline Shrike / Rødhalevarsler, Herdlevær, 15 November 2003. For more pictures click here | Bar-tailed Godwit / Lappspove, Herdlevær, 07 September 2006 |
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 |
| Whinchat / Buskskvett, Herdlevær, 27 September 2005 | Collared
Dove / Tyrkedue This species is at least as rare as Turtle Dove at Herdlevær! |
 |
 |
| Fieldfare / Gråtrost - a common breeder that can be seen at Herdlevær at any time of year. | Linnet / Tornirisk - another common breeder at Herdlevær |
The heath, grassland and pools to the north often hold few birds, but if there is time are still worth checking for waders, wildfowl and raptors.
Gyrfalcon at Herdlevær, 25 October 2009
A few of the commoner Øygarden wader species breed here and other species including Jack Snipe, Green Sandpiper, Ruff and Bar-tailed Godwit can turn up, although Common Snipe and Eurasian Woodcock (in season) are more regular.
Small numbers of ducks and geese rest on the freshwater pools in the area during migration times and outside the breeding season there is a Heron roost which can number up to 50 birds.
Passerines in this heathy area to the north of the settlement are generally limited to the usal Øygarden species but Stonechat have been recorded out in this area.
 |
 |
| Cuckoo / Gjøk, Skogsøy, 07 May 2004 | Common Tern / Makrellterne, a summer visitor to Herdlevær |
 |
 |
| Great Spotted Woodpecker / Flaggspett, Herdlevær, October 2003 | Barnacle Geese / Hvitkingås, Herdlevær, October 2003 |
Linnet are one of
the
commonest finches during the summers months. Twite, although in
decline, probably breed in
small numbers and are generally more abundant from late summer through
autumn. The numerous woods are full of Willow Warbler, Common
Whitethroat, Lesser Redpoll,
Chaffinch, Crested Tit and Coal Tit. Crossbills are regular and can
turn up in large numbers pretty much at any time of year - both Common
and Parrot Crossbills can be seen, although the latter is considerably
less regular.
 |
 |
| Grey-headed Woodpecker / Gråspett, can turn up in spring but is much more regular in the autumn. | Sanderling are among the waders that can be found resting at Herdlevør durin the early autumn - espcially during southerly winds |
A selection of the rarities seen at Herdlevær is given below:
| English | Norsk | Scientific |
| Great Crested Grebe | Toppdykker | Podiceps cristatus |
| Great Snipe | Dobbeltbekkasin | Gallinago media |
| Black-tailed Godwit | Svarthalespove | Limosa limosa |
| European Turtle Dove | Turteldue | Streptopelia turtur |
| Long-eared Owl | Hornugle | Asio otus |
| Tengmalm's Owl | Perleugle | Aegolius funereus |
| Hoopoe | Hærfugl | Upupa epops |
| Eurasian Wryneck | Vendehals | Jynx torquilla |
| Grey-headed Woodpecker | Gråspett | Picus canus |
| Richard's Pipit | Tartarpiplerke | Anthus novaeseelandiae |
| Olive-backed Pipit | Sibirpiplerke | Anthus hodgsoni |
| Bohemian Waxwing | Sidensvans | Bombycilla garrulus |
| Black Redstart | Svartrødstjert | Phoenicurus ochruros |
| Stonechat | Svartstrupe | Saxicola torquata |
| Barred Warbler | Haukesanger | Sylvia nisoria |
| Greenish Warbler | Østsanger | Phylloscopus trochiloides |
| Yellow-browed Warbler | Gulbrynsanger | Phylloscopus inornatus |
| Red-breasted Flycatcher | Dvergfluesnapper | Ficedula parva |
| Isabelline Shrike | Rødhalevarsler | Laniuus isabellinus |
| Red-backed Shrike | Tornskate | Lanius collurio |
| Rosy Starling | Rosenstær | Sturnus roseus |
| Two-barred Crossbill | Båndkorsnebb | Loxia leucoptera |
| Hawfinch | Kjernbiter | Coccothraustes coccothraustes |
Spotted Flycatcher / Gråfluesnapper
Herdlevær, 13 August 2006