We saw more puffins – but also razorbills and guillemots. At Látrabjarg, the westernmost tip of Iceland, there are literally thousands of seabirds. Kittiwakes nest there, as do razorbills, puffins, and guillemots. (Here’s an overview of all seabird colonies in Iceland.). How many guillemots can you fit on one ledge? As for fitting animals on… Read More Birds of Iceland IV

Before humans and their imports, the Arctic Fox was the only land mammal. Humans of course brought along their farm animals like sheep, horses and cattle, but also mice, minks, and in the 18th century reindeer. At sea, there are two types of seals, and plenty of whales. We saw humpback whales – very impressive!… Read More Mammals of Iceland

They deserve their own post, as they are just so cute. Can I convince you? Correctly, they are called Atlantic Puffins. They come to grassy cliffs in large colonies to breed, digging their nests (or taking over existing burrows). The rest of the year they spend at sea and are hardly seen by humans. Also,… Read More Puffins (birds of Iceland III)

The birding adventure continues! I have now seen more rock ptarmigans in 2 weeks than all sightings in the Swiss Alps combined! The rock ptarmigans was mostly still in its winter plumage; the snow bunting we met enthusiastically singing for all tourists at Jökulsárlón (the most famous glacier lagoon) was already in its spring/summer plumage,… Read More Birds of Iceland II

We knew we wanted to have a good luck at the puffins, but were surprised by how many birds we see! Common snipes, redshanks, oystercatchers and of course gulls and wagtails are birds we have seen all over. The snipe is kind of cool because it flies very high, and then waggles its tail while… Read More Birds of Iceland I

We are lucky enough to spend almost five weeks in Iceland. Here’s a few first noteworthy things we came across (and as a data scientist, I of course like to geek about data): Population Energy In some areas, hot water comes from geothermal sources. The smell of sulphur is pretty strong and takes some getting… Read More Iceland: population, energy