Birding Alaska

Long-billed Murrelet Brachyramphus perdix, near Aurora Lagoon, Kachemak Bay, 6 August 2011.

Dave Sonneborn, Rich MacIntosh and I finally relocated one of the Long-billed Murrelets in Kachemak Bay that had been found on 4 June and 23 July 2011.  We found the bird about 1/2 mile offshore of Aurora Lagoon in Kachemak Bay. More details of this morning’s outing can be found here. This is generally the same location of this summer’s other two sightings.

Karl Stolzfus of Bay Excursions tells me that brachyramphus murrelet numbers in this area typically remain high until late August. Since at least one bird has been present since 4 June, I don’t see any reason why one wouldn’t stick around as long as the big numbers of Kittlitz’s and Marbled Murrelets do.  Good luck to anyone else giving it a try and let me know if you want company!

On 23 July 2011, while conducting murrelet surveys in Kachemak Bay, Kathy Kuletz, Liz Labunski, and Tamara Zeller of the US Fish and Wildlife Service found and photographed THREE Long-billed Murrelets. The birds were in the same area where Karl Stoltzfus photographed the Kenai Peninsula’s first record of Long-billed Murrelet on 4 June 2011.

Long-billed Murrelets Brachyramphus perdix, Kachemak Bay, 23 July 2011. In addition to the long bill, the dark nape which lacks a white collar, white throat, and white eye-ring separate these birds from the similar Marbled Murrlet B. marmoratus. Karl Stoltzfus also commented that the color of the bird he saw struck him as “charcoal, closer to black than to brown.” Click any photo to enlarge. Photos taken by Liz Labunski.

Long-billed Murrelet is a close relative of Marbled Murrelet and was formerly considered a subspecies of Marbled Murrelet, but was elevated to full species status in 1998. Prior to this summer there were only five confirmed records for Alaska. All of the previous Alaska records involved one day occurrences of single birds.

On 29 July 2011, Karl Stoltzfus of Bay Excursions, Homer, took a group of local birders out to try to relocate the Long-billed Murrelets–or at least one of them! In perfect glassy conditions we spent the morning slowly cruising and scanning the area. We didn’t conduct any sort of formal count, but by the most conservative estimates there were at least 400-500 brachyramphus murrelets near shore between Glacier Spit and Aurora Lagoon in Kachemak Bay. At least 100 of these were Kittlitz’s Murrelets. Our search did not produce a Long-billed Murrelet, but there were likely many more murrelets out there than the birds we were able to study. We also turned up Pigeon Guillemot, Common Murre, three Ancient Murrelets, one Thick-billed Murre (very rare in Kachemak Bay), four Arctic Terns, one Aleutian Tern, and one Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel.

It was a great morning of murrelet study and comparison and probably the best photographic opportunities that I’ve ever had for murrelets. As far as the Long-billed goes, with all the murrelets around and all the food in the water I don’t see any reason why there isn’t at least one still around. I’ll be trying to get back out there again soon and give it another try.

Buller’s Shearwater Puffinus bulleri, one of five at Albatross Bank, southeast of Kodiak Island, 6 October 2010.

Today was another fine tubenose-filled day on the water. Today’s procellarid species total of ten was highlighted by five Buller’s Shearwaters at Albatross Bank about an hour before sunset. Buller’s Shearwater is listed as “Rare” on the official Checklist of Alaska Birds. Most Buller’s Shearwaters recorded in Alaska have been seen in late summer and fall in the Gulf of Alaska. They seem to be regular during this season, occasionally in very large numbers, but there is very little birder coverage of the Gulf at anytime of year so the exact status of the species is difficult to infer.  This is the first time I’ve seen Buller’s in Alaska!

Other procellarids seen today: Short-tailed Albatross (1), Black-footed Albatross,  Laysan Albatross, Northern Fulmar, Sooty Shearwater, Short-tailed Shearwater, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel, Leach’s Storm-Petrel, and Mottled Petrel (1).

We’ll be in inshore waters of Kodiak tomorrow morning and beginning the gulf crossing to Seattle sometime tomorrow afternoon.

Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus, Unimak Pass, Aleutian Islands, 5 October 2010.

Black-footed Albatross Phoebastria nigripes, Sanak Bank, south of Sanak Island, 5 October 2010.

Laysan Albatross Phoebastria immutabilis, Sanak Bank, south of Sanak Island, 5 October 2010.

Mottled Petrel Pterodroma inexpectata, Sanak Bank, south of Sanak Island, 5 October 2010.

A fine day of cruising on the water today. With fair weather and following seas the ship spent the entire day transiting east along the south side Unimak Island and the Alaska Peninsula. We began the day at dawn in Unimak Pass and by sunset we were about midway between Sanak Island and the Shumagin Islands.  Along the transit we recorded nine species of tubenoses, including all three north Pacific albatross (over 100 albatross total for the day!), three Mottled Petrels, and several hundred Leach’s Storm-Petrels.

I’m currently on board the NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson in the Bering Sea. The last few days in the eastern Bering Sea have produced some interesting birds. In addition to the usual variety of tubenoses, alcids and larids a number of southbound migrants have passed the ship this week. Some are birds that have adapted to long, non-stop ocean crossings, others are not…

Bristle-thighed Curlew Numenius tahitiensis, Eastern Bering Sea, 30 August 2010.

Highlighting the list of fly-by appearances was this lone Bristle-thighed Curlew. It flew in to the stern of the ship, checked us out, gave a few whistles and flew off. Although the pictures are marginal you can still make out the warm tones to the underparts and the diagnostic mark–the peach-colored rump which appears contrastingly pale in the last photo.

Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres, Eastern Bering Sea, 30 August 2010.

Ruddy Turnstones have been regular this week with at least one small flock approaching the ship every day. Today (8/30) we recorded over 20 individuals in several small flocks. Other shorebirds seen from the ship today were Pacific Golden-Plovers (4), Bristle-thighed Curlew (1), and Red Phalarope (100′s). Three Wandering Tattlers have flown by the trip since the we left Dutch Harbor on 17 August. Mind-boggling to think that the tattlers, turnstones, plovers and curlew may be in Hawaii or further before this ship get’s back to Dutch Harbor!

A Piscivorous Golden-crowned Sparrow Zonotrichia atricapilla, on board the Oscar Dyson in the Eastern Bering Sea 30 August 2010.

This Golden-crowned Sparrow landed on the ship on yesterday and was still here today. He’s been eating, or attempting to eat, juvenile Pacific sand lance Amodites hexapterus which the NOAA scientists have been catching on their surveys. A new food item for the species?

Orange-crowned Warbler Oreothlypis celata, Eastern Bering Sea, 25 August 2010.

This Orange-crowned Warbler only spent a few hours on board. (Note the change to the genus. Click here for info on other changes and updates to the AOU checklist.)

On March 6th I left Kodiak on the USCG icebreaker, Polar Sea.  We transited west to Unimak Pass and north to St. Lawrence Island as part of the Bering Sea BEST project, a partnership between the North Pacific Research Board and the National Science Foundation.  We rolled back into Kodiak on April 7th after 33 days at sea.  Here are a few photos from the trip…

Spectacled Eider Somateria fischeri, St. Lawrence Island Polynia, Bering Sea, 23 March 2010.

A flock of Spectacled Eiders from 1000 feet up.  The entire world’s population, about 370,000 birds, winters in the limited open water of the St. Lawrence Island polynia in the Bering Sea.

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Mottled Petrel Pterodroma inexpectata, southern Bering Sea, 9 October 2009.

This Mottled Petrel was one of five seen today from the NOAA Ship Miller Freeman about 100 miles north of Dutch Harbor.  This distinctive seabird is told from other similar pterodroma petrels by its unique gray belly.  It breeds on small islands off New Zealand and spends the non-breeding season–April to October–in the North Pacific and the deep waters of the southern Bering Sea.  It is the only regularly occurring pterodroma in Alaska.  There are two records of Cook’s Petrel Pterodroma cookii from Alaskan waters and it is considered accidental on the Alaska Checklist.

Peter Harrison’s Seabirds of the world: A photographic guide describes the flight of the Mottled Petrel as “wild and impetuous.”  Perfect.

Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus, 64 miles southeast of St. Matthew Island, Bering Sea, 28 September 20o9.

Marbled Murrelet Brachyramphus marmotus, 117 miles north of St. Paul Island, Bering Sea, 28 September 2009.

Two rarities from the Bering Sea today: one big, one small.  Short-tailed Albatross is a nice find anywhere.  Marbled Murrelet is very rare this far north, nesting no closer than the Aleutian Islands and Alaska Peninsula.  There are several records from the Pribilof Islands, mostly from spring and early summer. In the northern Bering Sea Marbled Murrelet is considered casual at St. Lawrence Island (Lehman 2005).

• Lehman, P. E. 2005. Fall migration at Gambell, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska. Western Birds 36:2-55.