Focus on... Migration at Sea
12 Nov 2015
Bird migration is particularly hard to study at sea and many questions remain unanswered. For example, how many birds set out across the North Sea but fail to reach land? That is why it's always fascinating to read about accounts of birds resting on ships and other offshore structures.
Based on oil rig in the North Sea, Kevin Duffy has been documenting autumn migration on Twitter. Besides expected species like Redwing, Merlin and Short-eared Owl, he has also found less familiar migrants including Water Rail and Little Grebe.
Martin Grimm documented an incredible mass migration of songbirds on a research vessel in the Baltic Sea. Huge numbers of Chaffinch, Brambling and Siskin appeared on deck on the night of 18 and 19 of October. His videos show thousands of birds descending onto the ship, as well as birds of prey taking advantage of the tired migrants.
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