List of birds of the Faroe Islands

Atlantic puffins in Mykines

The tjaldur (oystercatcher) is the national bird and can be found all over the country.

In the Faroe Islands there are currently about 110 different species of birds although, including vagrants during the last 150 years, over 260 species have been recorded. There are about 40 common breeding birds, including the seabirds fulmar (600,000 pairs), puffin (550,000 pairs), storm petrel (250,000 pairs), black-legged kittiwake (230,000 pairs), guillemot (175,000 pairs), Manx shearwater (25,000 pairs).

Symbolically, the most important of the birds of the Faroe Islands is the Eurasian oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus). Their annual arrival on about 12 March is celebrated by the Faroese people as the start of spring. For this reason, the tjaldur (pronounced [ˈtʃaldʊɹ]), is recognised as the national bird of the Faroes. However, in numbers, the avifauna is dominated by an estimated two million pairs of breeding seabirds of several species. There are also some resident landbirds and many regular visitors, both passage migrants and breeders, as well as several species recorded occasionally as vagrants, mainly from Europe. The Faroese postal system, the Postverk Føroya, prints stamps portraying Faroe birds. See external links.

History

In the 19th century, the islands were occasionally visited by black-browed albatross; one bird regularly summering with gannets for 34 years before it was shot for the Natural History Museum in Copenhagen. The great auk also visited the Faroes and may have bred there, but became extinct throughout its range in the North Atlantic in the early 19th century due to human predation. The pied raven, a colour morph of the common raven, also occurred but disappeared by the middle of the 20th century.

Historically, harvesting seabirds for food was an important source of nutrition for the islanders. A reduced and strictly regulated harvest, mainly of fulmars and puffins, continues. In general, the seabirds and their nesting areas are now strongly protected.

List of birds

The most common birds are listed with their Faroese names too.

Anseriformes

Anatidae

• Canada goose - introduced
• Brent goose (helsigás) - visitor
• Greylag goose (grágás) - breeding
• Greater white-fronted goose (korngás) - visitor
• Pink-footed goose (íslandsgás) - visitor
• Barnacle goose (øshvít gás) - breeding
• Snow goose - visitor
• Mute swan (knubbsvanur) - introduced
• Whooper swan (svanur, okn) - visitor
• Common shelduck - vagrant
• Mallard (villdunna) - breeding
• Blue-winged teal - vagrant
• Common teal (krikkont) - breeding
• Gadwall - vagrant
• Eurasian wigeon (ennigul ont) - breeding
• American wigeon - visitor
• Northern pintail (stikkont) - breeding
• Garganey - vagrant
• Northern shoveler - vagrant
• Common pochard - vagrant
• Tufted duck (trøllont) - breeding
• Ring-necked duck - vagrant
• Greater scaup - visitor
• Common eider (æða) – breeding
• King eider (æðukongur) - vagrant
• Steller's eider - vagrant
• Common scoter (kolont) – vagrant
• Velvet scoter - vagrant
• Surf scoter - vagrant
• Long-tailed duck (ógvella) - visitor
• Common goldeneye (súgont) - visitor
• Barrow's goldeneye (íslendsk súgont) - vagrant
• Red-breasted merganser (toppont) – breeding
• Common merganser (tannont) – vagrant

Galliformes

Tetraonidae

• Rock ptarmigan – introduced
• Willow ptarmigan - introduced

Phasianidae

• Common quail (vaktil) – former breeding visitor
• Black grouse - breeding

Gaviiformes

Gaviidae

• Red-throated diver (lómur) – breeding
• Black-throated diver (øssvartur lómur) – vagrant
• Great northern diver (havgás) – visitor
• White-billed diver (nevgulur lómur) - visitor

Podicipediformes

Podicipedidae

• Little grebe (smágjør) – vagrant
• Slavonian grebe (gjør) – breeding
• Red-necked grebe – vagrant

Procellariiformes

Diomedeidae

• Black-browed albatross (súlukongur) - vagrant

Procellariidae

• Northern fulmar (havhestur) - breeding with 600,000 pairs and a certain population stays all year long
• Manx shearwater (skrápur) – breeding with 25,000 pairs
• Great shearwater – visitor
• Mediterranean shearwater - vagrant

Hydrobatidae

The European storm petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus), or drunnhvíti, can be best observed in Nólsoy in the biggest colony of the species in the world.

• European storm petrel (drunnhvíti) - breeding with 250,000 pairs, most of them to be observed from August to November
• Leach's storm petrel (sýldur drunnhvíti, havtyrðil) – breeding with 10,000 pairs

Suliformes

Sulidae

The gannet (Morus bassanus), known as súla, is the biggest bird in the Faroe Islands.

• Northern gannet (súla) - breeding only in Mykines with 2,000 pairs.

Phalacrocoracidae

• Great cormorant (hiplingur) - breeding
• European shag (skarvur) – breeding

Pelecaniformes

Ardeidae

• Great bittern - vagrant
• American bittern - vagrant
• Little bittern - vagrant
• Black-crowned night heron - vagrant
• Grey heron (hegri) - visitor
• Purple heron – vagrant

Threskiornithidae

• Common spoonbill - vagrant
• Glossy ibis – vagrant

Accipitriformes

Pandionidae

• Osprey (fiskiørn) – vagrant

Accipitridae

• European honey buzzard – vagrant
• White-tailed sea eagle – vagrant
• Eurasian sparrowhawk - vagrant
• Rough-legged buzzard - vagrant
• Hen harrier - vagrant
• Western marsh harrier – vagrant
• Black kite - vagrant

Falconiformes

Falconidae

The merlin (Falco columbarius subaesalon), known as smyril, is the only bird of prey of the Faroes.

• Gyrfalcon – visitor
• Peregrine falcon - vagrant
• Merlin (smyril) - breeding
• Common kestrel – visitor

Gruiformes

Rallidae

• Water rail (jarðakona) - visitor
• Baillon's crake – vagrant
• Spotted crake – vagrant
• Corncrake (akurskrift) – vagrant
• Common moorhen - visitor
• Eurasian coot – visitor

Gruidae

• Common crane – vagrant

Charadriiformes

Haematopodidae

• Eurasian oystercatcher (tjaldur) - breeding

Recurvirostridae

• Pied avocet - vagrant

Charadriidae

• Ringed plover (svarthálsa) – visitor
• Killdeer - vagrant
• Eurasian dotterel - vagrant
• Eurasian golden plover (lógv) - breeding
• Grey plover – vagrant
• Northern lapwing (vípa) - breeding

Scolopacidae

The common snipe, mýrisnípa in Faroese, has a local sub-species Faroese snipe (Gallinago gallinago faeroeensis)

The whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), known as spógvi, which comes in the early summer and leaves the Faroes in August to Africa and Southern Asia.

• Eurasian woodcock - visitor
• Common snipe (mýrisnípa) (sub-species Faroese snipe) – breeding
• Jack snipe - visitor
• Ruddy turnstone - visitor
• Little stint - vagrant
• Purple sandpiper (sjógrælingur) - breeding
• Dunlin (fjallmurra) - breeding
• Red knot - visitor
• Sanderling - visitor
• Ruff - visitor
• Common sandpiper - vagrant
• Wood sandpiper - vagrant
• Common redshank (stelkur) - breeding
• Common greenshank - vagrant
• Black-tailed godwit (reyðspógvi) - breeding
• Bar-tailed godwit - visitor
• Eurasian curlew - visitor
• Whimbrel (spógvi) – breeding
• Grey phalarope - visitor
• Red-necked phalarope (hálsareyði) – breeding

Stercorariidae

• Great skua (skúgvur) - breeding with 450 pairs
• Arctic skua (kjógvi) - breeding with 900 pairs
• Pomarine skua (jói) – visitor
• Long-tailed skua (snældukjógvi) - visitor

Laridae

The Arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea), is known as terna in Faroese. Note to pronounce it [ˈtɛdna], because a [ˈtɛrna] is a stewardess.

• Little gull - vagrant
• Black-headed gull (fransaterna) - breeding with 250 pairs
• Lesser black-backed gull (likka) - breeding
• Herring gull (fiskimási) - breeding with 1,500 pairs
• Iceland gull (lítil valmási) – visitor
• Glaucous gull (valmási) – visitor
• Great black-backed gull (svartbakur) - breeding with 1,200 pairs
• Common gull (skatumási, skata, gneggjus) - breeding with 1,000 pairs
• Sabine's gull - vagrant
• Black-legged kittiwake (rita) - breeding with 230,000 pairs
• Ross's gull - vagrant
• Ivory gull – visitor

Sternidae

• Black tern - vagrant
• White-winged black tern - vagrant
• Caspian tern - vagrant
• Arctic tern (terna) - breeding with 2,000 pairs
• Little tern - vagrant

Alcidae

The guillemot (Uria aalge) is very common and known as lomviga. The Faroese used to eat it.

• Little auk (fulkubbi) - visitor
• Razorbill (álka) - breeding with 4,500 pairs
• Great auk (gorfuglur) - extinct
• Common guillemot (lomvigi/a) - breeding with 175,000 pairs
• Brunnich's guillemot (íslandslomvigi/a) - visitor
• Black guillemot (teisti) - breeding with 3,500 pairs
• Atlantic puffin (lundi) – breeding with 350,000 pairs

Pterocliformes

Pteroclidae

• Pallas's sandgrouse – vagrant

Columbiformes

Columbidae

• Rock dove (bládúgva) – breeding
• Wood pigeon - visitor
• Turtle dove – visitor

Cuculiformes

Cuculidae

• Common cuckoo – vagrant

Strigiformes

Strigidae

• Snowy owl – visitor
• Long-eared owl – vagrant
• Short-eared owl – visitor
• European scops owl – vagrant

Caprimulgiformes

Caprimulgidae

• Common nighthawk – vagrant
• European nightjar – vagrant

Apodiformes

Apodidae

• Common swift – breeding

Coraciiformes

Coraciidae

• European roller – vagrant

Upupidae

• Hoopoe – vagrant

Piciformes

Picidae

• Wryneck – visitor
• Great spotted woodpecker – visitor

Passeriformes

Alaudidae

• Skylark (lerkur) - breeding
• Woodlark - vagrant

Hirundinidae

• Common house martin (lonsvala) - breeding
• Sand martin - vagrant
• Barn swallow (svala) – breeding

Motacillidae

• White wagtail (erla kongsdóttir) - breeding
• Blue-headed wagtail - visitor
• Yellow wagtail - vagrant
• Grey wagtail - vagrant
• Rock pipit (grátitlingur) – breeding
• Meadow pipit (titlingur) – breeding

Bombycillidae

• Waxwing – visitor

Cinclidae

• White-throated dipper - vagrant

Troglodytidae

• Eurasian wren (músabróðir) – breeding

Prunellidae

• Dunnock – vagrant

Turdidae

• Dusky thrush – vagrant
• Blackbird (kvørkveggja) - breeding
• Song thrush - visitor
• Redwing (oðinshani) - breeding
• Fieldfare - visitor
• Ring ouzel – vagrant
• Scaly thrush – vagrant

Corvidae

The common raven has a sub-species North Atlantic raven (Corvus corax varius) and is known as ravnur. In Faroese National symbolism, it is the counterpart of the oystercatcher and standing for the Danish Monopol Trade.

• Jackdaw – visitor
• Rook - visitor
• Hooded crow (kráka) – breeding
• Common raven (ravnur) - breeding (see also: Pied raven)

Acrocephalidae

• Sedge warbler – vagrant
• Eurasian reed warbler – vagrant
• Great reed warbler – vagrant

Phylloscopidae

• Common chiffchaff – visitor
• Wood warbler – vagrant
• Arctic warbler – vagrant
• Yellow-browed warbler – vagrant

Sylviidae

• Barred warbler – visitor
• Garden warbler (garðljómari) – visitor
• Eurasian blackcap – visitor
• Common whitethroat – visitor
• Lesser whitethroat (notuljómari) – visitor

Regulidae

• Goldcrest – visitor
• Common firecrest – vagrant

Muscicapidae

• Whinchat – vagrant
• European stonechat – vagrant
• Northern wheatear (steinstólpa) - breeding
• Black redstart – vagrant
• Common redstart – visitor
• European robin – visitor
• Red-spotted bluethroat – vagrant
• Pied flycatcher - visitor
• Red-breasted flycatcher – vagrant
• Spotted flycatcher – vagrant
• Brown flycatcher – vagrant

Laniidae

• Red-backed shrike - vagrant
• Great grey shrike – vagrant

Emberizidae

• Corn bunting – vagrant
• Yellowhammer – visitor
• Red-headed bunting – vagrant
• Ortolan – vagrant
• Reed bunting – vagrant

Calcariidae

• Lapland bunting – vagrant
• Snow bunting (snjófulgur) – visitor

Fringillidae

The starling has a Faroese sub-species (Sturnus vulgaris faeroensis), which is bigger than other starlings in Europe. The people's friend is called stari in Faroese.

• Common chaffinch - visitor
• Brambling (fjallafinka) - visitor
• Hawfinch – vagrant
• Greenfinch - visitor
• Siskin – vagrant
• Linnet – vagrant
• Twite (íriskur) – vagrant
• Common redpoll - visitor
• Common crossbill - visitor
• Two-barred crossbill – vagrant
• Common rosefinch – vagrant
• Eurasian bullfinch – vagrant

Ploceidae

• House sparrow (gráspurvur) – breeding
• Tree sparrow (gerðisspurvur) – breeding

Sturnidae

• Common starling (stari) – breeding, endemic subspecies
• Rosy starling - vagrant

Oriolidae

• Golden oriole - vagrant

Places

Just at the road: Bird cliffs of Suðuroy.

Excellent places for watching seabirds (guillemots, kittiwakes and puffins are common everywhere) including:

• Svínoy with many great skuas
• The Vestmanna cliffs with a boat tour
• Mykines has the only Faroese population of gannets
• Nólsoy has the largest colony of storm petrels in the world
• Skúvoy with the largest Faroese colony of guillemots and lots of great skuas, which gave the island its name
• Suðuroy has at the west coast the best accessible bird cliffs from the land side

See also

• Faroese puffin

References

• Williamson, Kenneth. (1970). The Atlantic Islands. Collins: London. (2nd edition). ISBN 0-7100-6911-1

External links

• About the stamps and the birds
• PDF download of Faroese birds (652.31 KB, 4 pages)
• Faroenature.net - Bird Names (Latin, Faroese, English, Danish, German, Norwegian, Swedish)