Birdwatching on Schiermonnikoog

More than 300 species

Schiermonnikoog is one of the best birding spots in the Netherlands. Each year more than 300 species of breeding birds, waders and migrants occur here. Thanks to the mix of beach, dunes, woods, salt marsh, polder and mudflats, you can come across birds almost anywhere.

Breeding birds on the salt marsh

On the quiet Oosterkwelder, spoonbills, common terns, short-eared owls and marsh harriers breed, among others. In the breeding season colonies of thousands of gulls occupy the salt marsh; the lesser black-backed gull is the island's most numerous breeding bird. The spoonbill is one of Schiermonnikoog's best-known birds and also breeds at the Westerplas, together with cormorants. In recent years rare beach-nesting birds such as the Kentish plover, common ringed plover and little tern have also bred on the Balg. Their nests are hard to spot and very vulnerable, so stay out of the closed areas.

Waders and the tide

Waders feed on the mudflats at low tide and retreat at high tide to the salt marsh, the beach, sandbanks or the Westerplas. That is why you see them best around high tide. Species you often see include the knot, bar-tailed godwit, grey plover, oystercatcher and curlew. Many waders stop over here on their migration to Africa; others spend the winter around the island.

Geese and winter visitors

From autumn into spring, large flocks of brent and barnacle geese graze in the Banckspolder, sometimes with red-breasted geese among them. In winter you also have a chance of snow bunting, shore lark and golden plover. Migrants such as redwing, fieldfare, waxwing, merlin and peregrine falcon visit the island too.

The best places

• The bird hide at the Westerplas (freely accessible).
• The Wadden dike, overlooking the mudflats and the Banckspolder.
• The salt marshes on the Wadden side.
• The beach towards the eastern tip.
• Bring binoculars and check the tide table beforehand.