Birding Alaska

Yellow-rumped Warblers Dendroica coronata, Strawberry Hill, Dutch Harbor, 17 August 2010.

I had about an hour today to head back to Strawberry Hill, Dutch Harbor, before I had to return to the NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson in time to leave on a cruise in the southern Bering Sea. Yesterday’s Fox Sparrows were still present and were trumped today by two Yellow-rumped Warblers! The first warbler was with the Fox Sparrows on the top of the hill. The second was in the tall spruce trees that border the small lake just south of the hill.

Gibson and Byrd (2007) list Yellow-rumped Warbler as “casual in fall in eastern, central and western Aleutians.” The first records for Unalaska/Dutch Harbor were one at Strawberry Hill on 22 September 2009, followed by one on the hill on 10 October 2009 and two at the Sitka Spruce Children’s Park (near Strawberry Hill) on 11 October 2009.

A lone Bank Swallow flew by me on my walk back to the ship.

• Gibson, D. D., and Byrd, G. V. 2007. Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Nuttall Ornithological Club and the American Ornithologists’ Union. Series in Ornithology 1.

Fox Sparrow Passerella illiaca unalaschensis, Strawberry Hill, Dutch Harbor, 16 August 2010.

My favorite thing to do in Dutch Harbor/Unalaska is to bird the planted sitka spruce trees around the town. The best group of trees is the robust stand that grows in a protected gulley on the top of Strawberry Hill. Many, many good birds have been found in this migrant trap over the years including a number of island firsts and a few firsts for the Aleutians! Nearly every trip through the stand has a surprise. This time it was a trio of adult Fox Sparrows–the first I’ve seen on the island. Although this race of Fox Sparrow (unalaschensis) was first collected at Unalaska Island, it is “extralimital at the type locality.” (Gibson and Kessel 1997). The western limits of its range are the alder thickets of Unimak Island, the first island in the Aleutians. Gibson and Byrd (2007) remark that the species is “casual or intermittant in spring and summer in eastern Aleutians beyond Unimak Pass” where it’s preferred habitat doesn’t exist.  Breeding east of Unimak was first suspected in 2003 when a “full-tailed juvenile” was found at Unalaska, but wasn’t confirmed until very recently by local birder Suzi Golodoff and visiting bird guru, Rich MacIntosh.

Pacific Wren Troglodytes pacificus kiskensis, Stawberry Hill, Dutch Harbor, 16 August 2010.

Also present on Strawberry Hill was a regular resident and breeder on the island–the Pacific Wren, or Winter Wren T. troglodytes as it’s now known by the American Ornitholgists’ Union. It was split from the Winter Wren (which occurs in eastern North America, on the basis of vocalizations and mitochondrial DNA differences. Click here for details of this and other revisions to the AOU Check-list.

Other birds of note yesterday were three Bank Swallows still flying over town. This is just a few days shy of the late date for the Aleutian Islands.

• Gibson, D. D., and Byrd, G. V. 2007. Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Nuttall Ornithological Club and the American Ornithologists’ Union. Series in Ornithology 1.
• Gibson, D. D., and Kessel, B. 1997. Inventory of the species and subspecies of Alaska birds. Western Birds 28:45-95.

Now that the frenetic spring and summer breeding season is over and my schedule has eased up I have some time to post photos of this summer’s adventures. One of the highlights of my summer was a short trip that Bob Dittrick and I took to a nondescript ridge called Deadhorse Pass on the Eureka Road off of the Elliot Highway. We had just returned to Fairbanks after a three week stint in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and had only two days break in the schedule before Bob headed back into the Refuge and I headed for Nome.

The Eureka Road is about a three hour drive north and west of Fairbanks and is the location of the first Yellow-bellied Flycatcher nest found in Alaska. Yellow-bellied Flycatchers have been recorded irregularly in the spring in east-central Alaska for a number of years (mostly singing males). The species has also been caught at banding sights in Fairbanks and Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge. The Eureka Road population was discovered in 2004 and was nicely written up in Western Birds volume 37, number 1 which you can find here:

Martin, P. R., Bonner, F., Gibson, D. D. 2006. First Nest of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher for Alaska with Notes on Breeding Biology. Western Birds 37:8-22.

We arrived on the ridge around 4 PM on July 3rd but the only empid that we heard that afternoon was a Hammond’s Flycatcher–one bird called once. We birded the rest of the afternoon and finally hit the sleeping bags around 11 PM. At 2:16 AM we awoke to the whine of mosquitoes and the distinctive song of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher! Despite the very encouraging start to the early morning we did not get satisfactory views of the bird until around 7:30 AM when I managed these photos.

The bird spent much of the morning calling from dense trees for about 10-15 minutes at a time before going completely silent. After about 20-30 minutes of silence we would again hear it from an entirely different locations some distance away. So went the morning until after about five hours with only brief views of the bird we began to discern a pattern to its circuit. We finally parked ourselves on a patch of mossy slope and waited near one the stands. After about 30 minutes (I fell asleep) Bob spotted the bird in the open and its distinctive song jarred me from my sleep. We watched the birds until around 9 AM and enjoyed great views. We were able to snap a few photos and get comparison looks of Hammond’s Flycatcher as well.

In contrast, reports from birders who had visited the site earlier in the season reported having the birds singing and showing well at the pull-out where looks were easily obtained from the parking area. What a difference a week makes a to a flycatcher in July!

Sunrise circa 2:45 AM on the ridge. The Yell0w-bellied Flycatcher began singing at 2:16 AM.

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Empidonax flaviventris, Eureka Road, 4 July 2010.

Note the bold eye-ring, bic0lored bill, and yellowish wash to the belly and throat. The song is diagnostic and this individual gave it’s clear “chebunk” call throughout much of the morning.

There was at least one other calling Yellow-bellied Flycatcher in the area as well as a Hammond’s Flycatcher E. hammondii and several Alder Flycatchers E. alnorum. The Alder Flycatchers were in thicker shrub on the other side of the ridge, but the Hammond’s was in the same area as this Yellow-bellied and when the two would come into contact the Yell0w-bellied would aggressively chase the Hammond’s away. The Hammond’s was noticeably grayer overall with less contrast between the wing coverts and the back and lacked yellow on the underparts. The bill of the Hammond’s Flycatcher was distinctly shorter and narrower, looking dainty when compared to that of the Yellow-bellied. The distal half of the lower mandible was dark. We heard the Hammond’s call only a few times throughout the morning, but whenever it was near the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher’s favorite stand of trees it was silent and in all interactions between the two the Yell0w-bellied aggressively drove the silent Hammond’s away.

White Admiral Limenitis arthemis, Eureka Road, 4 July 2010.

By 8 AM the sun was out and this beautiful White Admiral was sunning itself in the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher habitat.

• Click here for a report and photo of a “new” Yellow-bellied Flycatcher site discovered on the Steese Highway near Fairbanks in June 2010.
• Click here for detailed directions to the Eureka Road as well as more information on the Steese Highway Yellow-bellied Flycatchers.

I’ve just returned from three weeks (June 13-July 2) in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge where I led two birding trips for Wilderness Birding Adventures.  Below is a brief photo tour through some of the many highlights.

Fledgling Gray-headed Chickadee Poecile cincta, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, 16 June 2010.

The large white cheek patch, gray crown and contrasting sooty mask help identify North America’s rarest chickadee. This year we found a family group that included four fledged young.

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Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia, Safety Lagoon, near Nome, 1 June 2010.

Caspian Terns have been expanding their range in recent decades and have now colonized several areas in southcoastal, southeast, and western Alaska.  There are a very few records for the Seward Peninsula, all of which come from Safety Sound/Lagoon near Nome and represent the northernmost records of the species in Alaska.  These two Caspian Terns were resting on an island in Safety Lagoon near milepost 18.5 on the Council Road on June 1st.

From May 13-20 I was on Adak Island in the central Aleutians leading a birding trip for Wilderness Birding Adventures. The Asian rarity highlights from the trip were a female Smew and a Hawfinch. Least Sandpiper and Northern Wheatear were very good finds from an island perspective. Rarities aside, Adak has an interesting list of subspecies endemic to the central Aleutians, a diversity of seabirds and the ever present feeling of anticipation that something truly rare might blow in.  Below are some photos from the trip.

Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe, Adak, 15 May 2010.

Casual in the spring in the central Aleutians, this male is only the third spring record for Adak Island.

Smew Mergellus albellus (foreground) with female Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula, Shotgun Lake, Adak, 16 May 2010.

Gray-crowned Rosy-finch Leucosticte tephrocotis griseonucha, Adak National Forest, 14 May 2010.

The Aleutian Gray-crowned Rosy-finch, griseonucha, is larger than littoralis, the breeding race from south coastal and southeast Alaska and approaches umbrina (from the Pribilofs) in size. It is slightly browner overall than umbrina. These three races of Gray-crowned Rosy-finch share the gray crown and completely gray cheek of coastal varieties of the species.

Turner’s Rock Ptarmigan Lagopus mutus atkhensis, Adak, 18 May 2010.

Turner’s Rock Ptarmigan is endemic to the islands of the Central Aleutians.

Pacific Golden-Plover Pluvialis fulva, Contractor’s Camp, Adak, 17 May 2010.

A flock of six at Contractor’s Camp were the only that we saw. The species is a regular migrant at Adak.

Wandering Tattler Tringa incana, Finger Cove, Adak, 17 May 2010.

Wandering Tattler is a regular migrant on Adak in small numbers. This individual is separated from the similar Gray-tailed Tattler by it’s darker gray upperparts, coarse barring on the lower belly, dark forehead, and nasal groove (not nostril) which extends for greater than half the length of the bill. The call is also diagnostic.

Hoary Redpoll Acanthis hornemanni, Adak National Forest, 16 May 2010.

A rare visitor to Adak, this species has nested in the central and western Aleutians. Up to four Common Redpolls were also present on Adak during our stay.

Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla, Sweeper Creek, Adak, 20 May 2010.

When Birds of the Aleutian Islands, by Gibson and Byrd was published in 2007 there were no records of this species from the central Aleutians. It has since been recorded at least 5 times at Adak.  We had a flyby at Clam Lagoon on 13 May and this bird at Sweeper Creek on 20 May. The overall dark plumage, compact build, all black lower mandible and white forehead separate it from the similar Long-toed Stint C. subminuta.
For photos of the elusive Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes, probably the “best bird” of our trip see Isaac Helmrick’s blog.

Back in the Bering Sea on the NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson.  We left Kodiak on April 23rd and we’ll finish this cruise in Dutch Harbor on May 3rd. The mission of the cruise is to service oceanographic moorings in the eastern Bering Sea.

Young Spotted Seal Phoca largha, Bering Sea, 28 April 2010.

Thayer’s Gull Larus thayeri and third-cycle Glaucous Gull L. hyperboreus, Bering Sea, 28 April 2010.

While watching seals on a small flow of brash ice about 60 miles north of Unimak Island today I noticed this adult Thayer’s Gull in a group of Glaucous and Glaucous-winged Gulls. Thayer’s Gulls are probably casual in the Bering Sea. This adult is separated from Herring, Vega, and Herring x Glaucous-winged Gull hybrids by outer primary pattern, its smallish bill and rounded head, and relatively long primary projection.

Emperor Goose Chen canagica, Homer, 1 January 2010.

Originally found on the Homer Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on 19 December 2009, this Emperor Goose was a dandy way to ring in the new year. It is of less than annual occurrence on the Kenai Peninsula.

Other Alaska CBC totals for Emperor Goose this year include: Adak–102; Unalaska/Dutch Harbor–1368; Kodiak–588; Narrow Cape/Kalsin Bay (on Kodiak Island)–114; and Homer–1.