May 14-27, 2026 with Chris Benesh & Kari Engelbarth
2026 marked the fourth year of Field Guides return to Finland. Finnature’s Kari Engelbarth was tasked with guiding us around this fascinating country of 5.6 million people. Having roughly 48 people per square mile, Finland has the third lowest population density of any European country. Finland is a land of many lakes and vast expanses of coniferous forests, dominated by Scots Pine and Norway Spruce. The principle non-conifers are birches. I found myself frequently mentally comparing the landscape to visually similar ones in North America and contemplating which bird species were ecological replacements for familiar ones found in our northern latitudes.
We got started in Helsinki, the capital of Finland where about a quarter of the country’s population is centered. Despite this, Helsinki has a relaxed vibe. Motorists drive the speed limit, litter is rare, and folks seem to have a quiet, reserved contentedness. The birding here was very productive. We visited a marsh, Espoo--Laajalahti Maari, where we saw a wonderful assortment of waders and waterfowl. Eurasian Oystercatcher, Little Ringed Plover, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Redshank, and Temminck’s Stint were among the shorebird highlights. Our only Common Pochard was here.
The following day was filled with travel as we headed northeast toward the massive inland lakes complex which includes the massive Lake Saimaa. We had a few productive birding stops along the way, but it was a boat trip out of Oravi that was the main event. This trip is geared toward observing Saimaa Seals, a freshwater species formally elevated to full species status in 2025, making it one of the rarest mammals in the world with an estimated population of roughly 500. This species became landlocked geologically and developed adaptations (dentition and skull morphology) to a diet specific to the fishes found in Lake Saimaa. It was these morphological changes, along with genetic drift, that lead to these seals being determined a full species. We had great views of at least four seals, but alas, the trip was also memorable for the rain shower we experienced along the way. Yikes! We finished up the day with a nice sighting of Short-eared Owl on our way to Savonlinna.
The next day had a few interesting sightings as well travel toward Joensuu. A roadside stop to check out some Barnacle Geese ended up with brief sightings for some of a pair of Corncrakes. Later in the day, we visited Höytiäisen lintuasema. This charming spot was terrific. Highlights here included Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker and Red-breasted Flycatcher, along with Eurasian Wren, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wood Warbler and others. Our time around Joensuu also included a circuit southeast of the city that took us to some interesting habitats in far eastern Finland, where we encountered massive goose flocks and a smattering of new birds for us, such as Garden Warbler, Black Kite, our first Black Grouse, Northern Wheatear, a couple of Tundra Bean Geese, Common Cuckoos, and more Common Rosefinches.
North of Joensuu we visited Koli National Park with its sweeping vistas. A stop at Ahvenisen kioski featured showy, Red-necked Grebe and Arctic Loon! Then it was on to Lieksa to check in to the hotel there before heading out to the wolverine blind near Eräeero Tmi Eero Kortelainen. This was quite a unique experience for all. The viewing blind featured a sitting room overlooking a large pond, with a secondary room with bunk beds available to anyone needing some sleep. Our vigil continued throughout the night. A wolverine was spotted around 9:20 in the evening and showed well several times over the next 30-40 minutes. Another one appeared briefly in the early morning hours. We spent a lot of time watching the antics of a Mallard group. A few goodies dropped by, including a Green Sandpiper, Old World cousin to the Solitary Sandpiper. Other sightings included a pair of Common Goldeneye, Great and Lesser Spotted woodpeckers, Mistle Thrush, Tree Pipit and more. Sometime after 8:00 am the next morning we departed the blind and headed back to the hotel to get some more rest before our afternoon drive to the Oulu area. On our way there we stopped to see a couple of wonderful Ural Owls.
The following day we hit a few stops southwest of Oulu and saw some wonderful birds. A juvenile Boreal Owl (called Tengmalm’s Owl in Europe) peered back at us from its nest hole, and nearby was a nesting Black Woodpecker. We went to see a nesting Great Gray Owl as well. We braved some high winds scanning waters with lots of flyby Black-headed Gulls and a few Red-breasted Mergansers, and lots of Great Cormorants. The Liminka--Virkkula bird tower was a great spot for seeing a variety of species. We had some good studies of Ruff here, and Kari picked out a distant roosting Pied Avocet from the masses. At Lumijoki--Varjakka we had our only Spotted Flycatcher of the trip. After dinner that night, some of us headed into Oulu to track down a lonely Terek Sandpiper singing from atop a light standard. We also had great looks at Mountain Hare while there. The next morning, we had some decent birding despite the weather. Highlights included a couple of Gray Partridges, Black-tailed Godwit, and Common Snipe. A few other highlights from the Oulu area included Ortolan Buntings, a stunning Horned Grebe, Common Cuckoo, Gray-headed Woodpecker, and Eurasian Wren. The afternoon was spent driving north to Kuusamo. But we did stop to enjoy a pair of Smew along the way.
Our first morning in Kuusamo began with a 3:00 am start. Kari assured us that we would be rewarded by making an early run to search for grouse. It did indeed! We had some Black Grouse, Willow Ptarmigan, and several Western Capercaillie, including a couple of males displaying right on the road. We also had Green and Wood sandpipers, Bohemian Waxwing, Song Thrush, and Willow Tit. We were back by 8:30 for breakfast and a long break before our afternoon birding, checking various wetlands. The following morning, we tracked down some Siberian Jays near Ruka, then had a lovely Rustic Bunting east of there, along with a couple more jays. We took a hike in search of Red-flanked Bluetail but came up empty with that species. But along the way had great views of Bullfinch, Eurasian Siskin, and Willow Tit. That afternoon most of us headed to the bear blind near Kuntijarvi. The bears put in the briefest of appearances, but the birding was quite good. We enjoyed point blank views of Wood Sandpiper and Common Snipe, and a couple of White-tailed Eagles put on a show. Gulls were pretty good too. We had several European Herring Gulls, a few Baltic Gulls (dark subspecies of Lesser Black-backed, sometimes split), and some Common Gulls. A Black Grouse was a nice sight on the way back to our hotel late that evening.
Our final morning near Kuusamo was spent tracking down White-throated Dipper and some Goosanders (Old World form of Common Merganser) deserving of full species status. We also caught up with Gray-headed Chickadee (known in Europe as Siberian Tit). A few stops for waterfowl (including Smew) then an otherwise long drive to Ivalo, our base for our final birding time in Finland. Our time in Ivalo began with an ambitious pre-breakfast hike to look for ptarmigan at Kilopaa. The steep trail rises out of the conifers and into tundra. Along the way, we encountered several Willow Ptarmigan, Bluethroat, Meadow Pipit, European Golden-Plover, and ultimately, a male Rock Ptarmigan! The other highlight of the day was a delicious lunch at Neljän Tuulen Tupa. There were some wonderful feeders there, and we had good views of Pine Grosbeak and European Greenfinch along with others. Later in the day we went looking for Dotterel but came away with a few golden plovers. The last birding of the trip was going out in search of Little Bunting. We could hear three different birds, but they gave just the briefest of views. Then it was time to pack for our flight back to Helisinki and say our farewells to Kari.
I want to thank you all for being such terrific company on this adventure. As it was my first time there, there was a lot of learning on the fly and difficultly answering certain questions. I appreciate your patience with me. A few of you may have heard this news elsewhere in your travels, but I wanted to share a moment of reflection in remembrance of Val Phillips who passed away peacefully earlier this summer. Safe travels to all of you!
Mammals seen on the tour:
European Hare (Lepus europaeus)
Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus)
European Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
Brown Bear (Ursus arctos)
Wolverine (Gulo gulo)
Saimaa Seal (Pusa saimensis)
Moose (Alces alces)
Caribou (Rangifer tarandus)
Western Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus)
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/522157
You can see my iNaturalist report of non-avian taxa at this link: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/field-guides-finland-tour-2026
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/fin26TRIPLIST.pdf
-- Chris