29th September 2016
Staff: FGA, IKE, LST
Weather: Rainy and strong wind
Projects: none
Today was our last day working at Kvismare Fågelstation. We spent most of the time cleaning up the station and pack up equipments. Since May, we managed to ring a total of 7342 birds – a record high in recent years. We are very pleased with this result.
I (Stanley) have been working here since the beginning of May and it has been a great experience. Whether it was counting cranes in the freezing evening while eating family-sized pizzas; wading through the stinky muddy reed beds to find marsh harrier nests under the blazing sun; getting up at 3 o’clock in the mornings to open mist-nets in the dark; or just simply sitting on top of a fågeltower sharing a bottle of wine while appreciating the breath-taking sunset with fellow birders, I have truly enjoyed every single minute of my stay here at Kvismaren.
During the past 5 months, I have met amazing friends: Daniel, Mariana, Laila, Fran, Marcelo, Kieran, Gintaras, Andreas, Ineta and Jacob. It was great fun working with them and, for some weirdest reason; we managed to form an awesome memorable team that everyone got along quite well with each other. I will always remember Daniel’s obsession for “boring” leaf warblers, Marcelo’s amazing lasagne, Mariana’s unforgettable canoe tipping skills, Laila’s exceptional mud wading technique, Fran’s unstoppable afternoon naps and of course the laughter and the frustration that we all shared. Our kind and lovely neighbour, Maja and Anita, always invited us to experience the real Swedish culture, whether it was traditional festivals, berry picking, visiting local castles or cheering for the EuroVision song contest. They also made great Swedish food. I am sure you will be missed by all of us! I was also fortunate to meet all the amazing board members. My gratitude goes to all of you for giving this memorable experience.
Last night, we had a BBQ to celebrate the end of the season and we finally had the opportunity to witness one of the greatest natural phenomena, the northern light! I managed to take a couple of photos and would like to share them here together with some other photos I took around Kvismaren.
Hejdå Kvismaren! Good luck for the next season!
LST