Best Spring Migration Places in Europe (1 Viewer)

[Himalaya]

What are the best places (not actual countries but areas and reserves) for Spring Migration in Europe? I always enjoy reading about British sites and what turns up there but what is it like in Northern France, Holland and what are the hot spots around Europe.

I am tempted to just say Western Europe as then it would be easier to compare with Britain and also likely more observer coverage. How do places like Dungeness, Spurn Portland etc compare to other places in Europe?

 

[Nutcracker]

As a general rule, the further south and east you go, the greater the species diversity. Britain, right on the fringes of Europe and cut off from the continental landmass, has the some of the poorest species totals (only Ireland and Iceland, even further offshore, are worse!).

That apart, look for bottlenecks that concentrate migrating birds together to avoid wide water crossings, such as getting from Denmark to Sweden at Helsingør, or Gibraltar for birds arriving from Africa, to get good migration.

 

[Xenospiza]

For visible migration, on days with easterly to southeasterly wind Breskens, Kamperhoek and Eemshaven in the Netherlands are great (I always go to Breskens out of tradition, but Kamperhoek and Eemshaven have had the better species in the last ten years). Check trektellen.nl for totals: you can even compare to Spurn.
Skagen in Denmark and Fehmarn or Geltinger Birk in Germany have similar potential, probably even better chances for raptors. For staging migrants or chances of rarities, you could go look at e.g. Texel in the Netherlands.
Whatever you fancy, the Netherlands beat East Anglia hands down in spring!

 

[Andy Adcock]

I think the Swedish site of Falstebo get big numbers of common birds.....

andy

 

[Nutcracker]

I think the Swedish site of Falstebo get big numbers of common birds.....

andy

Falsterbo is not particularly good in spring, as there's nothing much to direct birds towards it then; it's much more an autumn site, when the shape of Sweden funnels birds there. Spring birds continue north through Denmark until they have to leave at Helsingør or Skagen.

Green: spring routes
Red: autumn routes

 

[François Doyen]

Breskens is a great spot with S/E wind. There are some great pictures of migrating birds here : http://www.pbase.com/thomasluiten/vogels_op_trek__birds_on_migration

 

[Mike Crawley]

I haven't been but isn't Tarifa a migration hotspot ?

 

[rosbifs]

http://migraction.net/

this shows french hotspots and where is active when. you can trawl through previous years, days to get an idea of the species.

Gruissan crops up like autumn but its a little sporadic and wind dependant. I think this area has the highest concentration of Pallid Harriers in france...

 

[John Cantelo]

I haven't been but isn't Tarifa a migration hotspot ?

Although the area between Tarifa and Gibraltar is rightly famed for the passage of raptors and storks, it's often forgotten that passerines also come through in good numbers. Although the relative narrowness of the straits probably militates against dramatic falls, the area's location means that it can be alive with Bee-eaters, flycatchers, etc., etc. Unlike other areas too it's reliably warm and sunny (even in early March) with a superb supporting cast (Little Bustard, White-headed Duck, etc) in the nearby hinterland. Just check out my notes on the area (see below) for confirmation .....

 

[cafe birder]

Kolka point in Latvia is easily my favourite spring migration point. Its as near as Tarifa to the UK and also has good numbers of birds of prey. Not many rarities get reported from there but that is mainly because the average number of birders within 200 square miles of this site is less than 1 most days. If it got the coverage that ,say Falsterbo, has then I suspect much more would be found.
regards Howard

 

[John Cantelo]

Kolka point in Latvia is easily my favourite spring migration point. Its as near as Tarifa to the UK and also has good numbers of birds of prey.
regards Howard

That may well be true, but I wager Tarifa is a hell of a lot warmer!

 

[cafe birder]

Ah but no chance of ticking iceberg at Tarifa which takes the fun out of it

 

[Jos Stratford]

Ah but no chance of ticking iceberg at Tarifa which takes the fun out of it

You want to try a winter trip to some of the headlands further north in Estonia ...I almost dipped the sea on one famous visit a few winters back with some British birders I was showing round - the entire sea was a frozen ice pack as far as the eye could see! Even when we traveled as far west as we could, tot he outer edge of Saaremma island, I promised the sea wouldn't be frozen there and that we would soon be watching Steller's Eiders. Oops, it was frozen too ...in the end, in two days we found one single bit of open sea, a mere few hundred metres in expanse in all - luckily jam packed with the Steller's et al.

 

[jurek]

Go south-west, species diversity is even bigger.

 

[rosbifs]

About 4 years ago we went to Spain, Monegros and then Emporia Rosas, then into France - Gruissan.

On the Spanish side the place was teeming with migrants - Nigtingales, Warblers, had pratincoles, red rumped swallow but not much in the way of 'movement' - a front was holding back stuff from crossing the Pyrenees so subsequently Gruissan was very quiet - so much so that the LPO (RSPB) bird wardens were all in Spain trying to see some birds. It was incredible the difference from one side to the other.

As with most migration 'hotspots' if the wind isn't right or the weather you're flogging a dead horse. Always better to choose a location that has other things to offer...

 

[Nohatch]

Batumi, Georgia is hard to beat in autumn, just check out the statistics at BRC: http://www.batumiraptorcount.org/bird-migration/migration-count-data
Not sure how it is in spring, but I think the guys were thinking about doing some monitoring then.

 

[temmie]

Batumi can be excellent in spring, and there is always the option to go and see some resident birds in the Caucasus and towards the Armenian border: Both Snowcocks, Caucasion Grouse, Great Rosefinch, Diademed Redstart and a lot of raptors!

 

[Nutcracker]

...., Diademed Redstart ...

New split, or new discovery?? Not on the IOC list!

 

[Warixenjalka]

I know that we can't compete for places like Tarifa or Batumi. At least, birds of prey amounts. But the arctic waterfowl volumes in South-East Finland is definitely among the top European places.
http://www.arktikavirolahti.fi/in-english :t:

 

[temmie]

New split, or new discovery?? Not on the IOC list!

Guldenstadts I mean!
Sometimes I get severely confused and reacting on automatic pilot! In Dutch, Diademed Redstart is like the word-by-word translation of Diadeemroodstaart, but that one occurs in Morocco and is better known as Moussier's Redstart. so confusion all around!