Top 100 Birding Sites of the World

Information

SITE RANK

HABITAT Coast, heath, marshes, woods and gardens

KEY SPECIES Big numbers of raptors (including European Honey Buzzard, Red Kite, Rough-legged Buzzard and rarities), finches, tits, waders, pigeons, wildfowl, Black Woodpecker, Spotted Nutcracker

TIME OF YEAR A migration site, best in autumn from late August to the end of October

Sunrise is the best time for visible migration at Nabben, at the southern tip of the Falsterbo peninsula.

It is estimated that about 500 million birds pass through southern Scandinavia each autumn, on their way to their wintering grounds in the milder parts of western Europe and beyond. For many, this southward journey leads them to the shores of the Baltic Sea where, in their need to avoid the potential risks of a long sea crossing, they are funnelled south and west along the coast to the very south-western tip of Sweden, where the Danish island of Sjaelland, and safety, lies only 20 km away. At this point, jutting out into the Baltic, lies the peninsula of Falsterbo, one of the finest places in the world to watch bird migration, and the site of a bird observatory since 1955. Between late August and the end of October, untold millions of birds take off from this small spit of land and leave the Scandinavian mainland behind.

Although the overall variety of bird species is superb, what has really made Falsterbo’s reputation is the numbers of raptors that pass through here. Almost 30 species have been recorded altogether, which is impressive enough, but it is the sheer potential numbers that coax visiting birders to come here from all over Europe to witness the spectacle. Up to 14,000 individual raptors have been counted passing over in a single day. Daily totals of certain species, such as Eurasian Sparrowhawk, routinely exceed 1,000, with similar totals for Common Buzzard and slightly fewer (600) for European Honey Buzzard. Needless to say, these birds make a spectacular sight, especially in mid-morning during light south-westerly winds, when the air seems to be full of shapes soaring to gain height before they break out over the sea. Many of these fleeting visitors also live up to their predatory nature by attacking smaller birds en route, especially Eurasian Sparrowhawks and Merlins, which frequently follow travelling flocks of small passerines over the water.

The seasonal numbers of raptors illustrate the importance of Falsterbo most effectively. In the course of the whole autumn the average total counts for the commoner species are as follows: Eurasian Sparrowhawk 15,300, Common Buzzard 10,500, European Honey Buzzard 5,000, Rough-legged Buzzard 1,100, Western Marsh Harrier 680, Red Kite 630, Common Kestrel 400, Osprey 240, Hen Harrier 210 and Merlin 200. Other regular migrants that pass through in smaller numbers include White-tailed and Golden Eagles, Montagu’s Harrier, Eurasian Hobby and Peregrine Falcon. Not surprisingly, rarities often get mixed up with all these birds. Both Greater and Lesser Spotted Eagles are recorded from time to time, and in recent years increasing numbers of Pallid Harriers have also been turning up.

As you might expect, each species has its own peak time of appearance. Western Marsh Harrier and European Honey Buzzard are commonest from late August to early September, while Red Kites peak in the third week of September and both Common and Rough-legged Buzzards hit their greatest passage in mid-October. On the whole, go for variety in mid-September, and for big numbers in October.

Falsterbo is far from being just a raptor site and, indeed, numbers of other species can be just as impressive. This corner of Scandinavia is arguably the best site in the whole of Europe for seeing the visible movement of smaller day-flying migrants. These include Common Starling, finches, pipits and pigeons. In contrast to such birds as warblers or flycatchers, these migrants begin their daily journeys at dawn, rather than at dusk, and their movements often continue until mid-morning. Daylight, of course, makes it possible for birdwatchers to witness them in action, and at times at Falsterbo flocks of birds can seem to simply deluge through. If the wind is southwesterly it is perfectly possible to see about 1,000 birds passing by every minute! In such conditions it is easy to be overwhelmed and lose concentration.

From September onwards, each dawn sees crowds of birdwatchers huddled at the very tip of Falsterbo itself, at Nabben. From here flocks of birds stream past from first light, often barely over head height, challenging the birders present to identify them from a few calls. Most of these shapes will be finches, of which the most numerous are Common Chaffinch and Brambling. These closely-related birds often flock together and, because of the somewhat subtle differences between them in flight, it is impossible to count them separately. Instead the term ‘chaffling’ has arisen here, for convenience. On a good migration day 10,000 ‘chafflings’ may pass Falsterbo and, exceptionally, 500,000 have been seen in a 12-hour period. Flocks of these birds are a common sight from late September to the middle of October.

Many other species pass by as well, of course. The average seasonal totals for the more numerous visible migrants include 207,000 Common Wood Pigeons, 134,000 Common Starlings, 40,000 Western Yellow Wagtails, 32,000 Western Jackdaws, 30,000 European Greenfinches, 26,000 Common Linnets, 24,000 Eurasian Siskins, 23,000 Barn Swallows and 20,000 Tree Pipits. The seasonal total of 17,000 Blue Tits will also surprise the many European birders who are unaware how migratory this species can be. These small birds often seem to baulk at the shore at first, making several false starts before finally committing themselves to crossing the sea.

As with the birds of prey, a whole host of less common species and rarities can also become caught up in these movements. Notable regulars include the Spotted Nutcracker, Bohemian Waxwing, Red-throated Pipit and Lapland Bunting. Even Black Woodpeckers are regularly seen in the lighthouse garden, although they are not resident and both their origin and destination are obscure.

Nevertheless, steps are continually taken at Falsterbo to try to understand the patterns of migration of the visitors. The first scientific studies and censuses were carried out here in the 1940s, and ringing has taken place ever since the 1950s. In conjunction with the University of Malmö, much pioneering work has been undertaken at Falsterbo into the biology of migration as a whole.

For birders, though, the science is an afterthought. For a few months in autumn, the entrancing and thrilling spectacle of mass migration in this small part of Sweden is all that counts.

On average, 630 Red Kites pass Falsterbo each autumn.

Black Woodpeckers regularly turn up at Falsterbo, but nobody knows where they come from, or where they go afterwards.

A dark-morph juvenile Honey Buzzard; this is the third most numerous migrant raptor to pass through Falsterbo and its numbers peak early in the autumn.

Common Starling is an abundant migrant at Falsterbo; flocks travel by day and are known to orient themselves by using the sun’s position in the sky.