Iceland is an amazing place to go birding. There are great birding opportunities all along the ring road and a large variety of different habitats. This trip was no exception. However the weather interfered with the birding. It rained everyday and there was frequently strong gusting winds. So even though we could see lots of birds, the opportunity to get out and photograph them was lacking.
We started birding right near the airport at Gardosskagi on our way to Reykjavik. There were posters with bird ID information.
On the inlet side of the lighthouse, there were a lot of Eider ducks and ducklings. There were also several varieties of pelagic birds as well. We saw Eider Ducks wherever we went.
Another bird that we saw regularly was the Oyster Catcher.
There were a lot of Arctic Terns feeding in Jokulsarlon. My goal was to get a picture of them catching a fish. The superzoom camera might have worked with better lighting, but the lens was too slow for the overcast conditions. But I had fun trying.
We also saw seals at Jokulsarlon and on the Westman Islands.
The birding wasn’t as good as I hoped for due to the weather, but I enjoyed it just the same.
Mark, Wink, Meg and Kate-Lynne
