Birding Alaska

Homer birder Michelle Michaud discovered this Buff-breasted Sandpiper at the mouth of the Anchor River yesterday and it was still present today, 22 August 2011. Buff-breasted Sandpiper breeds on the Arctic coastal plain and migrates primarily through the interior of the continent. In southcoastal Alaska they occur only as casual fall migrants primarily in August and September. This is one of only a few records for the Kenai Peninsula and only the second record for the Homer/Kachemak Bay checklist area. The first was of a bird found in Homer on 11 September 2000 (North American Birds 55:(1)90.)

Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tringites subruficollis, Anchor River mouth, 21 August 2011. Photo by Michelle Michaud.

The largely underrated, ignored, and unappreciated smallest shorebird in the world–the Least Sandpiper. A flock of 13 Least Sandpipers arrived in Beluga Slough, Homer yesterday–the first report of the spring.

The small size, yellow legs, neatly contained bib, uniformly marked upperparts and short bill that narrows to a point and slightly droops identify this bird as a Least Sandpiper.

The out of focus bird is slightly warmer and more orangey-brown in tone.

Least Sandpipers often feed by creeping along in a hunched posture.

A nice scapular “V”.

Note the variation in color in this group. The bird on the right is a slightly brighter bird with warmer orangey-brown fringes to the scapulars, wing coverts and tertials.

Just how big is a Least Sandpiper?

Least Sandpipers Calidris minutilla, Beluga Slough, Homer, 29 April 2011. Click on any photo to enlarge.

Black-bellied Plover Pluvialis squatarola, Homer Spit, 5 December 2010.

It’s turning into a very interesting fall and winter birding season in Homer! Martin Renner and I were birding the Homer Spit on Sunday when this Black-bellied Plover flew in and landed on the beach in front of us. This is the first winter record of Black-bellied Plover for Homer and one of only a few late November-December records for Southcoastal Alaska. The bird was still on the spit as of 7 December.

Northern Harrier Circus cyaneus, Homer Boat Harbor, 5 December 2010.

This is probably the same Northern Harrier that Lani Raymond reported from the spit on 27 November.  There are a few other mid-winter records for the Homer area. These two birds added to a very interesting weekend of birding in Homer. Hopefully some of these birds can be relocated for the Homer Christmas Bird Count on 18 December.

More information on these and other Homer birds can be found here.

Rock Sandpiper Calidris ptilocnemis, probably tschuktschorum, Homer Boat Harbor, 13 November 2009. Click to enlarge.

The winter flock of Rock Sandpipers in Homer (usually 2,500-5,000 birds) is predominately made up of the darker plumaged race tschuktschorum, but may also be contain a few of the Aleutian race couesi (Dan Ruthrauff, USGS, pers. comm.) Banding studies are needed to confirm this. A small number, usually less than three percent, of the Homer flock is made up of nominate ptilocnemis, which breeds on the Pribilof Islands and St. Matthew and Hall Islands. Most ptilocnemis winter on the mudflats of Uppper Cook Inlet. Nominate birds are identified by their paler gray upperparts, more similar in tone to that of winter plumaged Sanderling, and their broader white wingstripe. See photos below. Click on any photo for a larger version.

A typical winter Rock Sandpiper flock in the Homer Boat Harbor, containing mostly dark tschuktschorum (with possibly couesi), small numbers of nominate ptilocnemis, and small numbers of Dunlin C. alpina. Looking closely (click to enlarge) you can see that this flock also harbored the late record Long-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus scolopaceus for the Kenai Peninsula, 13 November 2009.

Rock Sandpiper Calidris ptilocnemis, probably tschuktschorum, Homer Boat Harbor, 13 November 2009.

Rock Sandpiper Calidris ptilocnemis, probably tschuktschorum, Homer Boat Harbor, 13 November 2009.

Dunlin C. alpina and Rock Sandpiper C. ptilocnemis, Homer Boat Harbor, 13 November 2009.

Rock Sandpipers C. p. ptilocnemis (paler bird in center), Homer Boat Harbor, 12 March 2009.

Rock Sandpiper C. p. ptilocnemis (paler bird in center) surrounded by probable tschuktschorum, Homer Boat Harbor, 12 March 2009.

Click here for a photo comparing ptilocnemis, couesi, and tschuktschorum wings patterns. Many thanks to Dan Ruthrauff of the USGS for this very useful pdf.

Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus, Beluga Slough, Homer, 16 October 2010. In the last photo (which is terrible) the bird is flying to the left with the wings below the body. I posted it to show the tail, which was dark centered, paler on the edges, but which lacked an orange subterminal band. Click on any photo for a larger version.

Found in Beluga Slough today by my dog, Hartney.  My dog flushed the bird and it flew from the dog and past me, dropping in tall vegetation about 40 feet away. On this first look I saw a silent and smallish snipe with a broad white trailing edge to the secondaries and a plain gray underwing. This naked eye look was intriguing so I flushed the bird again and got a long and good look at the bird as it flew directly away. It flushed from a distance of only 1 meter and flew straight away. In this view I saw a small, brightly marked snipe (approximately 2/3rds the size of a Wilson’s or Common) with a short and stout bill. Two sets of bright yellowish braces were obvious on the back and continued to the base of the tail where the mantle and scapular stripes on each side merged together. The tail was dark and pointed. I did not discern any colored band on the tip of the tail.  At this point I was pretty sure I had a Jack Snipe so I got out my camera and walked to where I saw the bird land, but did not immediately find the bird. I zig-zagged around in this area for a few minutes and with the help of my dog eventually flushed the bird again and obtained a couple of photos of the bird in flight. On the first two flushes the bird was silent. On the third flush I may have heard it call. If I did (there was traffic) the call that I heard was a low and muffled “shhhhhh” about twice as long in duration as the “scape” call that a Wilson’s/Common Snipe utters upon being flushed. The sound was muffled and and very unlike the call of a Wilson’s. At this point I began calling other birders, and so waited about 10-15 minutes before moving in on the bird again.

I did not see the bird again until just before 7pm  when Dave Sonneborn, my brother-in-law and I relocated the bird in the same area and got three views of the bird in flight. Each time it flushed at very close distance and flushed silently. Even in low light the boldly patterned back stood out, as did the small size and bill length. We left the bird at dark in the same area we found it.

October 17th update:

Thirty birders combed Beluga Slough today and did not see the bird. I’ll be checking the slough daily this week and will post if I refind it.

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.)

I just returned from leading two birding tours in Nome for Wilderness Birding Adventures. The two days that I get to spend each spring looking for Bristle-thighed Curlews are two of the best of the entire year. Here are a few shots of North America’s most beautiful shorebird.

Bristle-thighed Curlew Numenius tahitiensis, north of Nome, 8 June 2010.

Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus (left) chasing a Bristle-thighed Curlew, north of Nome, 8 June 2010.

A single Long-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus scolopaceus in a flock of Rock Sandpipers Calidris ptilocnemis, Homer boat harbor, 13 November 2009.

Dunlin Calidris alpina and Rock Sandpipers, Homer boat harbor, 13 November 2009.

High tide today pushed a flock of about 2,500 Rock Sandpipers, 150 Dunlin and one stubborn Long-billed Dowitcher into the rocky corner of the Homer boat harbor.  Rock Sandpipers and Dunlin are regular at this time of year, but the dowitcher is setting a new late record each day.