Birding Alaska

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.

Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus, Northern Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis and a few Short-tailed Shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris, Bering Sea, on the shelf-break about 140 miles west of St. Matthew Island, 3 August 2009.

Two immature Short-tailed Albatross spent much of the day around the ship today as the ship conducted pollock surveys. One of the birds is starting to show some white feathers coming in on the throat and around the eyes and its plumage is a bit lighter brown than the other albatross which showed uniformly dark brown plumage with no white feathering. At times both albatross sat on the water and did a courtship-like display, gently wagging their bills bag and forth, sometimes touching each other. We were surprised to see to young immatures engaged in this behavior, but I guess it has to start sometime. Last night while in Russian waters a dark juvenile and an adult Short-tailed Albatross made brief fly-bys of the ship.

Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus, Pervenets Canyon, Bering Sea, 30 July 2009.

A fine way to start the morning.  This is 5th of 6 Short-tailed Albatross seen on the trip.  The 6th came just 45 minutes later but was a bit too wily to photograph.

The first few days at sea have been great.  Our departure from Dutch Harbor on July 21st was met with 4o knot winds and 15-20 foot seas, not the best birding conditions, even on a 209 foot ship.  Despite the conditions I was able to snap off a few marginal photos of this Mottled Petrel just north of Unimak Pass in the large swells.  Mottled Petrel is the only Pterodroma expected in Alaskan waters.  It is first picked out by its fast and arching flight and then identified by its shape, sharply patterned back and underwing, and its dingy-gray belly; it is the only Pterodroma to show this gray belly.  Normally you see Mottled Petrels for about three seconds as they flash by, however, with the very strong winds several of the birds, including the bird in these photos, cruised along side the ship for several minutes.  We saw four Mottled Petrels on the first night out and at least eight the next morning within 45 miles of Unimak Pass.

Mottled Petrel Pterodroma inexpectata, Bering Sea north of Unimak Pass, 21 July 2009.

This evening, July 23rd, things got even better–even the weather!  While transiting over Zhemchug Canyon on the Bering shelf (about 180 miles west-northwest of St. Paul Island) under calm winds and seas we found two Short-tailed Albatross–a dark brown juvenile and a paler sub-adult bird.  The juvenile is photographed here.

Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus with Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels Oceanodroma furcata and a Short-tailed Shearwater Puffinus tenuirostris, Zhemchug Canyon, Bering Sea, 23 July 2009.