Bucket List Biggie – Birding in Amsterdam

Sedge Warbler, one of many birds I saw in The Netherlands

When I was in Hawaii earlier this year, a couple I met on my nature tour mentioned that they were going to be going birdwatching in Amsterdam later this year with a young man who had set (and still holds) the world’s record for the number of birds seen during a Big Year*.

In 2016, 32-year-old Arjan Dwarshuis recorded 6,852 birds in 40 countries! My life list at the time was around 500, so that was mind-boggling.

When I decided to make Amsterdam our jumping off point for Svalbard, I knew I would try to find some new birds. But, I decided to try a guided session rather than doing it on my own. I also knew I didn’t have much time, but since Scott likes to rest after a long flight, it made sense to set something up for the first afternoon we were there.

This was before we had to change our schedule to accommodate a flight schedule change. If I had known our time was going to be so short, I might not have set up a full afternoon solo activity. But, it worked out because Scott slept the whole time I was gone.

Arjan Dwarshuis from his website

So, I started Googling, found Arjan and contacted him. He directed me to Birding Netherlands, which handled the booking for him. 

Everything seems fine online now, but while I was trying to communicate with Birding Netherlands and Arjan, I had trouble getting Dutch websites to translate into English. 

So, it took a few back-and-forth messages to set up an afternoon session. 

I still think we weren’t quite in sync because Arjan seemed surprised that I was solo rather than a group (and frankly, it was very pricey for a solo participant!). 

It may have been a glitch between Birding Netherlands and Arjan rather than my issue. Not a big deal. 

But, we got it all worked out with an agreement that Arjan would pick me up at the hotel after I arrived. Our flight got in at 8:00 a.m. and, of course, it took awhile to get through customs and to get to the hotel. Arjan seemed anxious to get started, so I rushed and met up with him as quickly as I could change clothes and get all my cameras set up. 

In retrospect, I should have done a few things: like eat something and get some bottled water.

Arjan, who is absolutely delightful, took me to Groene Jonker Natuurmonumenten (Jonker Green Natural Monument), a marshy natural preserve area on the outskirts for Amsterdam. Set in the midst of farms and suburbs, it was an area with ponds and tall grass (murder for trying to photograph birds!) with a couple of miles of paths and no appreciable shade.

Groene Jonker Natuurmonumenten

But, before I talk about Groene Jonker, I must mention that we made a few stops along the way to observe a few birds (most just on the edge of the distance my lens can handle). This involved, once, pulling off a rather busy street. The nature in The Netherlands is pretty close to civilization!

The first birds we saw included some Mediterranean Gulls, which, according to Arjan,were a bit unusual for this area ...

Mediterranean Gulls have pure white wings

A group of Eurasian Spoonbills …

Eurasian Spoonbills

A couple of Eurasian Oystercatchers, which I then saw later at the Natuurmonumenten and still couldn’t get a decent picture ...

A very fuzzy-looking Eurasian Oystercatcher

Fortunately, later in Norway, I saw – and photographed – dozens of them …

A much sharper Eurasian Oystercatcher from Norway

We also saw some White Storks, which I did not manage to photograph (but, I have many pictures from earlier visits to Spain and Germany) ...

White Stork in Segovia, Spain

Then, we continued on, stopping at a canal to photograph a Black Swan …

Black Swan

A juvenile and an adult Great-crested Grebe (really cool-looking birds) …

Great-crested Grebes

And, a family of Mute Swans …

Mute Swans

Then, we arrived at our destination: Groene Jonker or Groene Jonker Natuurmonumenten.

Our welcoming party

I am confused by the name, which is alternately listed as Groene Jonker or Groene Jonker Natuurmonumenten, but is said to be managed by a group called Natuurmonumenten. The group is a large private organization "for conservation and protection of natural areas, valuable landscapes and cultural heritage sites in The Netherlands." 

When we started on the path, we were immediately greeted by a Eurasian Tree Sparrow, posing on the sign and generally showing off …

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

And, almost immediately, a Ring-necked Pheasant (not native, but fairly common), jumped out of the bushes and scurried away …

Ring-necked Pheasant

As I mentioned, it was hot and Groene Jonker had no shade. I was jet-lagged, probably dehydrated and a bit hungry. As much as I enjoyed the birding (and the banana and cookies Arjan brought), I was torn with wanting to see the birds and wanting to get out of the sun and close my eyes. 

I think my compromised condition made me much slower with recognizing the birds and, even more so, photographing the birds. It was pretty frustrating exercise. And, while I added many new birds to my list, I wasn’t happy with most of my photos ….

It didn’t help that many of them were very far away ... 

A distant Common Shelduck

... and that the marsh birds were flitting rapidly in and out of the tall marsh grass ...

A Grasshopper Warbler in the tricky marsh grass

This is especially true of the Bluethroat, a bird I really wanted to photograph. I saw one – several times – always flying rapidly away. No pics.

Of course, some were close and willing to pose ...

Mute Swan

We observed birds in two areas – the distant pond and the grasses along the path.

In the pond and along the shore, we saw a male Tufted Duck …

Tufted Duck

Pied Avocets …

Pied Avocet

Northern Lapwings, adult …

Adult Northern Lapwing

… and juvenile …

Juvenile Northern Lapwing

A parade of Graylag Geese (a mom with her brood) …

Mama Graylag Geese and her five Goslings (plus a Common Redshank on the shore)

Common Shelducks …

A family of Common Shelducks

Common Redshanks  (you can see just a glimpse of the bright red legs that give the bird its name)... 

A feeding Common Redshank

And a Common Moorhen ...

Common Moorhen

There were a number of other birds that were just too, too far away to successfully photograph, including two new birds for me, Black-tailed Godwits (a wading bird) and Common Pochards (a duck).

In the grasses, we saw quite a few Reed Buntings, which were by far the most cooperative – and attractive – of the birds we saw …

Reed Buntings

Other birds included a singing Greater Whitethroat …

Greater Whitethroat

A soaring Marsh Harrier …

Marsh Harrier

A (somewhat rare) Grasshopper Warbler ...

The Grasshopper warbler actually sound like a grasshopper

A hovering Eurasian Kestrel …

The Eurasian Kestrel is larger and less colorful than the American Kestrel

Black-headed Gulls, which resemble the Mediterranean Gulls we saw earlier, except that they have black on their wing tips while the Mediterraneans’ wings are pure white …

Black-headed Gulls

Sedge Warblers …

Sedge Warbler (in the sedge!)

Eurasian Curlews (flying rapidly away) …

Eurasian Curlews (see my photography challenge?)

Plus some Graylag Geese flying by …

Graylag Geese

Once again I saw a few more new birds, in addition to the Bluethroat, that I simply could not get a pictures of. That included Common House-Martins and Common Swifts that were just too fast for me, Gray and White Wagtails and some Common Wood-Pigeons and Stock Doves. I did get a Common Wood-Pigeon the next day in Amsterdam ...

Common Wood-Pigeon in Amsterdam

I also managed to snag some pictures of a Painted Lady Butterfly ...

Painted Lady

And some Common Carder Bees …

Common Carder Bee on a thistle

By this time, I had had enough, I was dangerously on the edge of passing out from exhaustion and thirst. I think Arjan caught on. We had a quick snack and headed back, stopping briefly to observe some very distant Birds … a Eurasian Linnet, a European Goldfinch and a, somewhat rare, Icterine Warbler.

All in all, the birds I have outlined here along with a number of birds we observed that I had also seen elsewhere, such as Canada Geese, Mallards, Northern Shovelers, Gadwalls, Eurasian Collared Doves and Eurasian Magpies, I saw a whooping 53 different species during my walk with Arjan. He saw a few more and we heard a few we didn't see, as well; I only count them if I actually got a good enough look to be sure I saw it. Not bad for one afternoon.

I got many good Reed Bunting shots

I have pondered the birdwatching a bit. As I said, I was generally disappointed in my photos. I just can’t decide if it is my skill, my camera equipment or my expectations. 

Every time I feel that I should just give it all up, however, I get a good shot. On this trip, it was primarily the Reed Buntings that I was able to capture. So, I guess, I will just keep doing it.

By the way, birding in Amsterdam wasn't the "bucket list biggie" noted in the title of this post. Traveling to Svalbard was. But, it was still a treat. 

I will get to Svalbard next.

*A Big Year is a personal challenge or an informal competition among birders who attempt to identify as many species as possible by sight or sound within a single calendar year and within a specific geographic area. Popularized in North America, Big Years are commonly done within single U.S. states and Canadian provinces, as well as within larger areas up to and including the entire world. The American Birding Association Area Big Year record of 836 species was set by John Weigel of Australia in 2016. As I said, the world Big Year record of 6,852 species was set in 2016 by Arjan Dwarshuis. Big Years were popularized by the 2011 movies of the same name starring jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson.

And, if you are wondering, the big ones get sponsors. One of Arjan's is Canon, which has a large manufacturing presence in Amsterdam.

Trip date: June 15-July 4, 2019