Estonia Ramsar wetland
Sookuninga Nature Reserve
148 bird species recorded; the most in May.
Pille Vahtmäe · CC BY-SA 4.0
This month here
4 species in January.13 species in February.50 species in March.68 species in April.132 species in May.108 species in June.63 species in July.82 species in August.16 species in September.47 species in October.7 species in November.9 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
148 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 148Speciesrecorded more than once
- 93Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 2ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 3,243Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 55 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 10Raptors
- 4Owls
- 14Waders
- 3Gulls & seabirds
- 12Ducks & geese
- 2Herons, ibises & grebes
- 3Storks & cranes
- 78Songbirds
- 22Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 148 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors10 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common BuzzardButeo buteo
- Western Marsh HarrierCircus aeruginosus
- European Honey-buzzardPernis apivorus
- Lesser spotted eagleAquila pomarina
- European HobbyFalco subbuteo
- Eurasian SparrowhawkAccipiter nisus
- White-tailed EagleHaliaeetus albicilla
- Golden EagleAquila chrysaetos
- Eurasian GoshawkAccipiter gentilis
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
Owls4 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian Pygmy-OwlGlaucidium passerinum
- Ural OwlStrix uralensis
- Tawny OwlStrix aluco
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
Waders14 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Northern LapwingVanellus vanellusNT
- Wood SandpiperTringa glareola
- European Golden PloverPluvialis apricaria
- Eurasian WoodcockScolopax rusticola
- Green SandpiperTringa ochropus
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Common SnipeGallinago gallinago
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Eurasian CurlewNumenius arquataNT
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- Red-necked PhalaropePhalaropus lobatus
- Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusNT
- RuffCalidris pugnax
Gulls & seabirds3 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common GullLarus canus
- European Herring GullLarus argentatus
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
Ducks & geese12 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Whooper SwanCygnus cygnus
- Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifrons
- GoosanderMergus merganser
- Eurasian TealAnas crecca
- Tufted DuckAythya fuligula
- Eurasian WigeonMareca penelope
- Bewick's SwanCygnus columbianus
- Mute SwanCygnus olor
- Long-tailed duckClangula hyemalisVU
- SmewMergellus albellus
Herons, ibises & grebes2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
Storks & cranes3 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Common CraneGrus grus
- White StorkCiconia ciconia
- Black storkCiconia nigra
Songbirds78 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian WrenTroglodytes troglodytes
- Eurasian ChaffinchFringilla coelebs
- Eurasian BlackbirdTurdus merula
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
- Great titParus major
- Willow WarblerPhylloscopus trochilus
- Eurasian SiskinSpinus spinus
- Tree PipitAnthus trivialis
- Wood WarblerPhylloscopus sibillatrix
- European Pied FlycatcherFicedula hypoleuca
- Northern RavenCorvus corax
- WhinchatSaxicola rubetra
- SkylarkAlauda arvensis
- European RobinErithacus rubecula
- GoldcrestRegulus regulus
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Red-breasted flycatcherFicedula parva
- Eurasian JayGarrulus glandarius
- Eurasian Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus
- Hooded CrowCorvus cornix
- Willow TitPoecile montanus
- Meadow PipitAnthus pratensis
- Spotted FlycatcherMuscicapa striata
- BlackcapSylvia atricapilla
- Eurasian TreecreeperCerthia familiaris
- Song ThrushTurdus philomelos
- Eurasian NuthatchSitta europaea
- YellowhammerEmberiza citrinella
- FieldfareTurdus pilaris
- European Crested TitLophophanes cristatus
- Marsh TitPoecile palustris
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Garden WarblerSylvia borin
- Red-backed ShrikeLanius collurio
- Mistle ThrushTurdus viscivorus
- BullfinchPyrrhula pyrrhula
- European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis
- Lanius excubitorLanius excubitor
- RedwingTurdus iliacus
- Northern NutcrackerNucifraga caryocatactes
- Common RosefinchCarpodacus erythrinus
- WhitethroatSylvia communis
- Eurasian MagpiePica pica
- Thrush NightingaleLuscinia luscinia
- Icterine warblerHippolais icterina
- European GreenfinchChloris chloris
- Marsh warblerAcrocephalus palustris
- Eurasian River WarblerLocustella fluviatilis
- HawfinchCoccothraustes coccothraustes
- DunnockPrunella modularis
- Lesser whitethroatSylvia curruca
- Eurasian Tree SparrowPasser montanus
- Western JackdawColoeus monedula
- Common crossbillLoxia curvirostra
- Coal TitPeriparus ater
- Common House MartinDelichon urbicum
- Northern WheatearOenanthe oenanthe
- Greenish WarblerPhylloscopus trochiloides
- RookCorvus frugilegus
- Eurasian Golden OrioleOriolus oriolus
- Common Reed BuntingEmberiza schoeniclus
- Common RedstartPhoenicurus phoenicurus
- WoodlarkLullula arborea
- Common LinnetLinaria cannabina
- Common Grasshopper WarblerLocustella naevia
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Carrion CrowCorvus corone
- Western Yellow WagtailMotacilla flava
- Blyth’s Reed WarblerAcrocephalus dumetorum
- Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros
- Sedge WarblerAcrocephalus schoenobaenus
- BramblingFringilla montifringilla
- Barred WarblerSylvia nisoria
- Common RedpollAcanthis flammea
- Bohemian WaxwingBombycilla garrulus
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- Common FirecrestRegulus ignicapilla
Other birds22 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Great Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocopos major
- Black WoodpeckerDryocopus martius
- Common CuckooCuculus canorus
- Common Wood PigeonColumba palumbus
- White-backed WoodpeckerDendrocopos leucotos
- Black GrouseLyrurus tetrix
- Hazel GrouseTetrastes bonasia
- Grey-headed WoodpeckerPicus canus
- Lesser Spotted WoodpeckerDryobates minor
- Eurasian Three-toed WoodpeckerPicoides tridactylus
- Corncrake, corn crakeCrex crex
- European SwiftApus apus
- European NightjarCaprimulgus europaeus
- Stock DoveColumba oenas
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Grey PartridgePerdix perdix
- European Turtle DoveStreptopelia turturVU
- WryneckJynx torquilla
- Western CapercaillieTetrao urogallus
- Middle Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocoptes medius
- Common QuailCoturnix coturnix
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in May.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan-3°/-8°55 mm
- Feb-3°/-9°46 mm
- Mar1°/-5°44 mm
- Apr9°/0°46 mm
- May16°/6°49 mm
- Jun19°/11°79 mm
- Jul22°/14°74 mm
- Aug22°/13°87 mm
- Sep16°/9°59 mm
- Oct9°/3°73 mm
- Nov3°/0°72 mm
- Dec0°/-4°62 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Sookuninga Nature Reserve.
Protected area in Estonia
Sookuninga Nature Reserve is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in Estonia.
148 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 3,243 open records.
The most recorded are the Eurasian Wren, the Eurasian Chaffinch and the Common Crane.
72 species come for the summer, 17 for the winter and 4 only pass through.
2 are threatened worldwide, including European Turtle Dove and Long-tailed duck.
The most species are recorded in May.
Get there and watch
- Kilingi-Nõmmenearest town · 20 km in a straight line
- Pärnu Airport (EPU)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 49 km in a straight lineCar hire at TAY airport (Tartu)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 2observation towers within 6 kmNigula raba vaatetorn
- 1marked trails within 4 kmNigula raba õpperada
- 2viewpoints within 5 kmNigula raba vaatetorn
- 1car parks within 3 km
- bird hides within 6 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- campsites within 10 km
- places to stay within 10 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Sookuninga Nature Reserve.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas3 mountains within 25 kmKivikupitsa Hill21 m · 20 kmTõotusemägi · 20 kmTornimägi · 21 km
Lakeyas3 lakes within 15 kmSokas Ezers0.9 km² · 4.0 kmMazezers0.2 km² · 9.1 kmRamatas Lielezers1.6 km² · 10 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Other places nearby.
Sookuninga Nature Reserve
Estonia
- 66Birdyas Score
- 148Species
- 93Migrants
- 2Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q7562662) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 3,243 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas, Lakeyas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit