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Happy 2020 Fellow Birders! It’s been a while since our last post but that doesn’t mean we’ve been idle. In fact, we just arrived back in the country after a month-long adventure to the Middle East—something which will occupy at least our next four or five posts. Before we get to the Levant, however, we want to share some birds on the way—in, you guessed it, Amsterdam!
Our flights were set up so that we got an eight-hour layover in the Netherlands, and you can bet we took advantage of it. As soon as our plane landed, we raced through immigration and customs, caught a train to Amsterdam’s Central Station and then a trolley out to what looked like our best birding opportunity, Vondelpark. As we entered the enormous urban landscape, clouds and chilly temperatures greeted us, but no rain, so we were in birding business. As fast as you can say “Common Wood-Pigeon”, our Life Lists exploded.
Braden and I had done our due diligence by studying eBird lists for Amsterdam prior to the trip, but we were still blown away by how many of the birds actually appeared in front of us. They included the European versions of some of America’s common birds—Eurasian Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Gray Heron, and Eurasian Magpie—but soon we also saw the more specialized residents. The first was a big surprise: European Greenfinch. These were followed by Eurasian Blackbirds, Eurasian Jackdaws, Eurasian Jays, Carrion Crows, and a prized trio of tits: Great, Blue, and Long-tailed.
But you know me. At the top of my “To See” list was the Great Spotted Woodpecker, the only possible woodpecker in the vicinity. After an hour, we still hadn’t seen one when Braden suddenly swiveled and pointed. “Woodpecker!” Unfortunately, the bird was high-tailing it away from us, but we saw it land in a tree at the far side of the park. “After it!” I shouted and we raced across the park. The lighting was terrible, but the bird stayed just long enough for some decent looks. BOO-YAH!
Our birding expedition wrapped up with a look at a Eurasian Wren, a Redwing, and some great quality time with European Robins—both Braden’s and my “Bird of the Day.” Then it was off to get warm and take a quick tour of the Van Gogh Museum. No offense to the great artist, but it seemed oddly anticlimactic after the living art we’d seen in the park.
Take a look at our complete checklist here: