Title: Iceland at the Summer Solstice: Countless Nesting Birds

‘Situated just below the arctic circle, Iceland is a great place to watch ocean going migratory birds in large numbers and often at close range during the breeding season. In a two-week self-drive tour around the island over the summer solstice I was delighted to see colonies of Atlantic Puffins and other pelagic cliff-nesting birds. Many shorebirds and Arctic Terns were defending their territories in grassy areas, and some waterfowl already had young ones to nurture. The ever-changing scenery, waterfalls, glaciers, and fields of lupines added to the beauty of the island. I will share this experience, photographs, videos and what I have subsequently learned about the survival strategies of these migrating birds.’

Manjul Bhushan holds a Ph.D. in physics and has over 40 years of research experience in applied physics and microelectronics. After retirement she co-founded the project AvianActs to explore scientific techniques for studying and modeling the behavior of birds.