Living in Estonia: the great migration

Autumn is a strange period of the year. Some people already regret the end of the summer and start preparing for the winter. In Estonia, you already say "goodbye" to a part of your clothes you know you might not wear anymore for the next 6 months or so... 

An autumn tree tunnel on the Salevere hiking trail

But autumn has its positives sides too: for a few weeks, the nature shows its most beautiful colours, until the first storm will deprive the trees of their last leaves. Now that I have been in Estonia and started living the life of Estonians, I have developed a few other ways to qualify autumn. The first signs already came late august: swallows and other small birds start gathering on electric power lines, storks and cranes show more rarely and the numerous nests are becoming deserted.

The cliffs of Salevere

Another one for my collection of mushrooms in the wild

By living in Estonia, I have become more aware about the migration of birds, its importance and its timing. Indeed, birds are - together with the flora - part of the nature rhythm. Although I have been taught about migratory birds as a child, by both school and through my parents, the concept was mostly theoretical to me. Yes, I have seen a few storks in Belgium. I have been taken (and still go on my own) to the Zwin, a natural space dedicated to birds at the Belgian coast, next to the Dutch border. So I know. But I have never experienced it first person. 

The ruins of the old fortress next to Lahmuse

The view from the Lahmuse manor house

Estonia, and the (other) Nordic countries as well, is a prime summer destination for migratory birds. Human development in Europe has limited the free space available and birds have to reach more and more towards North to find food in abundance to feed themselves and raise their babies during the summer season. And to prepare for the long journey back towards Southern Europe and Africa. Here, there is abundance of space and food. 

Estonia has also clear rules (laws?) with respect to birdlife. For example, if a stork builds its nest on your chimney, you are allowed to move it but not to destroy it. You have to buy a post that you plant in your property to install the nest on it. When it comes to very rare species, like eagles, then it becomes more tricky. An eagle nest cannot be move. Moreover, you are not allowed to approach within a distance of a few meters. So, if you are the "lucky" owner of a ground where an eagle family decides to settle, you are requested to leave them in peace for the whole nesting season... 

A double dry toilet organised by RMK. I liked this one because of the hearts on the doors, which - to me, but apparently to me alone - indicated the gents' loo on the left and the ladies' on the right... 

Another funny public toilet... to tell you the truth, there is a building right behind the wall.

At the end of September or early October, the migration of birds starts. It is known that migration is performed in large groups. Even birds which are usually solitary or living in small groups (family) join flocks for this long journey. In Estonia, one of the places where the birds gather before the travel is the Matsalu National Park. Located in the coastal area of Läänemaa, between Haapsalu and Pärnu (https://goo.gl/maps/roL8U), this national park offers lots of place for birds and the access for humans is very restricted. 

In this early October weekend, we embarked with a group for a day-trip to Matsalu. The company was rather old (average age on the bus, 65 years old?) and the trip a bit disappointing, mostly because of the slow pace. It was to be expected, firstly with a large group of old people and generally you never know how many birds you will see beforehand. On the other hand, we also visited a manor house in Lahmuse and discovered the Salevere hiking trail, along cliffs where the local snakes hibernate. Among these snakes, the viper and the slowworm. The latter is not a snake but rather a lizard that with atrophied legs. I don't remember seing one ever and that I'm looking forward to observe since I have been reading the book by Estonian author Andrus Kivirähk "The man who spoke snakish" (a great book, by the way).

A flock of geese flying above us in Matsalu

We were able to see a few flocks of birds anyway. From two species: one related to geese and one smaller black and white bird, which I can't classify. We have seen many groups resting in the fields in the late afternoon. We also saw some on the water of the bay. And we could see flocks flying in the distance and even above our heads for a while. I have to say it is impressive. We have decided to come back to Matsalu on our own in spring to see the birds coming back. Hopefully we will be successful. I will keep you updated about it in a few months... 

Our tour group in Matsalu, desperately looking for birds around...