Birdingonthe.Net Recent Postings from Alaska Birding > Home > Mail > Alerts Updated on Thursday, September 2 at 12:30 AM ET The most recently received Mail is at the top.	Snowy-throated Babbler,©Tony Disley

02 Sep Anchorage Spendard Lake/Lake Hood ["ak_zukes" ] 1 Sep Re: Big Ocean Details [joe staab ] 1 Sep Big Ocean Details [joe staab ] 01 Sep Gambell: YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER [Paul Lehman ] 30 Aug New to group - planning a visit ["lauriefoss" ] 31 Aug Report from a Moving Island in the Bering Sea [Aaron Lang ] 31 Aug Northern Saw Whet Owl ["Gary" ] 30 Aug Re: Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea [Oscar Johnson ] 30 Aug Palmer - 50+ Sandhill Cranes [Charles Iliff ] 30 Aug Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea [Paul Lehman ] 30 Aug Big ocean trip [joe staab ] 30 Aug AK WatchList talk WEDNESDAY in Homer [Beth Peluso ] 30 Aug No Subject [] 29 Aug Re: red tailed hawks - Nikiski [John Sharp ] 29 Aug red tailed hawks - Nikiski [] 29 Aug Saturday High Tide--Whimbrels ["w" ] 18 Aug Shorebird counts and nesting distribution [Gyorgy Szimuly/WorldWaders ] 24 Aug Invitation: North American Birders' Forum ["Greg" ] 26 Aug Gambell: 2 Lesser Sand-Plovers, miscellanea [Paul Lehman ] 25 Aug Tustumena Lake ["George Matz" ] 26 Aug Sharp-Shinned Hawk and Golden Crowned Kinglet ["Gary" ] 25 Aug White-winged Crossbills [Chris Maack ] 25 Aug Wednesday High Tide ["w" ] 25 Aug kingfishers in Ninilchik [] 25 Aug Wilson Snipe migration [seaside ] 24 Aug Gambell: more regular migrant totals [Paul Lehman ] 24 Aug Bonaparte's Gulls ["victoria_homer_alaska" ] 24 Aug Rusty Blackbird Migration ["trapperdan1" ] 23 Aug RBA Fairbanks Alaska August 23 2010 [] 23 Aug RBA Fairbanks Alaska August 23 2010 [] 22 Aug Killdeer, Ring-necked Ducks - Anchorage (late report) [Peter Scully ] 22 Aug Birds of Deadhorse 20100802-20100821 [Elias Elias ] 20 Aug SPARROW HELP [Bob Winckler ] 20 Aug Gambell: arrival, regular migrants [Paul Lehman ] 20 Aug Rusty Blackbirds ["w" ] 20 Aug Anchor Point, Kenai, & Kasilof Rivers Thur ["ak_zukes" ] 19 Aug Homer/Kachemak Bay Bird Hotline (235-PEEP): 8-18-10 ["lani.raymond" ] 19 Aug No Subject [] 18 Aug Adak report ["Isaac Helmericks" ] 18 Aug Seward Black Turnstones and a Whimbrel ["c_griz" ] 18 Aug Bohemian Waxwings ["ursus_8" ] 17 Aug Surf scoter chicks along Glenn Highway ["DIANNE TOEBE" ] 17 Aug Mountain bluebirds along Alaska Highway ["DIANNE TOEBE" ] 17 Aug Leach's storm petrel [joe staab ] 17 Aug Passerines from Unalaska [Aaron Lang ] 17 Aug Anchorage notables Tuesday Aug 17 ["tgtljo" ] 17 Aug Homer -- Mud Bay [Martin Renner ] 17 Aug August Seward Sporadic Bird Report ["c_griz" ] 16 Aug Anchorage - Tour of Anchorage Trail ["ak_zukes" ] 16 Aug The Birding Smackdown Report ["w" ] 16 Aug Glenn Hwy late Sat - Denali Hwy Sun ["ak_zukes" ] 14 Aug Anchorage Huffman & Birch Area Saturday Morning ["ak_zukes" ] 14 Aug Anchorage Fri Mid day/Mid town ["ak_zukes" ] 14 Aug Get Ready To Rumble ["w" ] 11 Aug Big Ocean Update [joe staab ] 10 Aug BIG OCEAN TRIP [joe staab ] 11 Aug Denali Hwy Northern Wheatears ["trapperdan1" ] 10 Aug Kenai Wildlife Viewing Platform - ["kennethtarbox" ] 9 Aug big ocean update [joe staab ] 09 Aug Homer/Kachemak Bay Bird Hotline (235-PEEP): 8-8-10 ["lani.raymond" ] 08 Aug Homer/Kachemak Bay Birders' First Saturday trip to the Anchor River: 8-7-10 ["lani.raymond" ] 7 Aug Cliff Swallows [Aaron Lang ] 6 Aug Birds of Deadhorse AK 20100802-20100806 [Elias Elias ] 07 Aug Smackdown Rules ["w" ] 07 Aug Westchester Lagoon-A-Thon Birding Smackdown ["w" ] 06 Aug Anchorage Coastal Trail Thur Eve ["ak_zukes" ] 06 Aug Homer/Kachemak Bay: 8-5-10 ["lani.raymond" ] 5 Aug Kayaking/birding Wood Tikchik State Park ["George Matz" ] 4 Aug 51ST SUPPLEMENT TO AOU √LIST OF N.A. BIRDS [Bob Winckler ] 3 Aug Seaside Farm report [seasidefarm ] 3 Aug Birds on the move [Aaron Lang ] 3 Aug air force snipe & Potter Marsh [Beth Peluso ] 03 Aug Changing seasons! ["jmh_tk" ] 03 Aug Homer/Kachemak Bay FIRST SATURDAY birding field trip announcement ["lani.raymond" ] 03 Aug ANOTHER Solitary ["w" ] 2 Aug Kachemak Bay [Martin Renner ] Subject: Anchorage Spendard Lake/Lake Hood From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Thu, 02 Sep 2010 05:30:09 -0000 Weird birds over there in Spenard.... I saw a Merlin hopping after a cigarette butt that was rolling down the middle of the road! 1 Horned Grebe SE corner of the lake. Steve W. Subject: Re: Big Ocean Details From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 21:26:13 -0700 (PDT) ________________________________ From: joe staab To: ak birding group Sent: Wed, September 1, 2010 7:00:51 PM Subject: Big Ocean Details Greetings all, Here is where we stand,, since everyone is excited about the trip WE ALL should make a personal check to Major Marine Tours in the amount of $167.50.  This will speed up our boarding time,, but you may pay with a debit or credit card and even cash. Tomorrow at 4:30 pm I will post on akbirding that the trip is on or postponed til saturday. That outlook for friday is positive as the winds and seas are favorable.  NOAA predicts west winds at 15 knots and 5 foot seas for friday,, perfect for a pelagic trip. We will all meet at the Major Marine office in the Seward boat harbor around 7:00 to 7:15 am , there are parking lots on both ends of the harbor that only require a $5 fee and the machine takes debit or credit cards. Anyone with any problems should contact me at 907-362-1841 or 224-3627 . Mary will be guarding the home phone.   Joe By the way,,, you guys owe me BIG TIME!! [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Big Ocean Details From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 20:00:51 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, Here is where we stand,, since everyone is excited about the trip WE ALL should make a personal check to Major Marine Tours in the amount of $167.50.  This will speed up our boarding time,, but you may pay with a debit or credit card and even cash. Tomorrow at 4:30 pm I will post on akbirding that the trip is on or postponed til saturday. That outlook for friday is positive as the winds and seas are favorable.  NOAA predicts west winds at 15 knots and 5 foot seas for friday,, perfect for a pelagic trip. We will all meet at the Major Marine office in the Seward boat harbor around 7:00 to 7:15 am , there are parking lots on both ends of the harbor that only require a $5 fee and the machine takes debit or credit cards. Anyone with any problems should contact me at 907-362-1841 or 224-3627 . Mary will be guarding the home phone.   Joe By the way,,, you guys owe me BIG TIME!! [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Gambell: YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER From: Paul Lehman <lehman.paul1 AT verizon.net> Date: Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:38:27 -0700 Today, Weds Sep 1, has a miserable horizontal light-to-medium rain falling in a 25 mph SSW wind. The good news is that there is a YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER here today (in and bordering the Far Boneyard). The bad news is that I am the only one so far to have good views of the bird. Everyone else has just seen a small, well-marked bird. We are currently inside having lunch and drying out, and will head back out there for the rest of the day.... This is the 6th record for Yellow-browed Warbler in Alaska, all in fall, with two previous records here at Gambell, two at St Paul, and one at Attu. Yesterday, at exactly the same area bordering the Far Boneyard we flushed a very interesting "LBJ" several times but never saw it well and it seemingly got away. Some thought it most likely a Locustella warbler, but who knows for sure. Frustrating. Despite many of the Asian passerines having a notably furtive behavior, we typically manage to get good views of virtually all such passerines here in fall. Yesterday we also had our first Spectacled Eider of the season, as well as the first Gray-cheeked Thrush--a regular migrant in which most of the birds here are likely from the westernmost breeding population on Russia's Chukotsk Peninsula, and returning to the Americas for the winter. --Paul Lehman Subject: New to group - planning a visit From: "lauriefoss" <lauriefoss AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:36:42 -0000 Dear AKBirders, Hello and please allow me to introduce myself. I live in Austin, TX and am planning a visit to AK in June of 2011. I'll be lurking here in your online neighborhood until then, and probably for some time afterwards. I am planning a trip and have invited my favorite birding buddies along for a 2-week trip. If the timing is right we also plan to add on a WBA ANWR basecamp stay. Thanks for your postings and for loving the birds of AK. Laurie Foss Austin, TX Subject: Report from a Moving Island in the Bering Sea From: Aaron Lang <birdingak AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:03:28 -0800 A few notes on fall migration from a ship in the eastern Bering Sea. In addition to the expected alcids, tubenoses, and larids out here, since leaving Dutch Harbor on 16 August we've had several notable shorebird and passerine migrants flyby or land on board. Shorebirds on the move this week include: PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVER, WANDERING TATTLER, Tattler sp., RUDDY TURNSTONE, and a lone BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW that flew by the ship yesterday (8/30) while we were ~90 miles west of Cape Newenham. Most shorebirds have come in to check out the ship, done a few laps and then left. Several flocks of turnstones have spent over an hour with the ship—doing laps, but never landing. On 30 August good numbers of geese were on the move while we were 90-100 miles west of Cape Newenham. I estimated that 600-800 in small flocks flew by the ship in the morning hours, heading south. Most that came close enough to be identify were BRANT. One flock was a group of CACKLING GEESE. A few NORTHERN PINTAILS were on the move as well. This morning (8/31) a HORNED LARK (ssp*. flava*, the breeding race from eastern Russia) landed on board. (We were about half way between Cape Newenham and St. Paul Island.) Before the Horned Lark chose its perch I watched it fly around the ship for a few minutes with a smaller mystery passerine. It was a small sparrow-like jobby, about the size of a Savannah, but with a longer tail. That's all I could get on it and unfortunately after a few laps around the ship it flew off without landing. Another interesting hitchhiker was a GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW which spent two days on board (29-30 August). During its two days on board it dabbled in piscivory, dining on juvenile Pacific sandlance on the back deck. It was gone this morning. An ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER spent about an hour on the ship on 25 August. I've posted a few photos of these birds on www.birdingAK.com. Good birding, Aaron Lang Homer [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Remember -- Be nice!Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AKBirding/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AKBirding/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: AKBirding-digest AT yahoogroups.com AKBirding-fullfeatured AT yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: AKBirding-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ Subject: Northern Saw Whet Owl From: "Gary" <gbullockak AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:13:03 -0000 I heard a Northern Saw Whet Owl calling this morning from 5:57-6:06 am. It moved twice, calling from 3 different locations during the 9 minutes. Gary Bullock Huffman & Birch Area Anchorage Subject: Re: Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea From: Oscar Johnson <henicorhina AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 22:49:42 -0700 (PDT) We just had our first two Short-tailed Shearwaters of the fall show up here on the Farallon Islands. 22nd and 23rd of August. Both were fly-bys from the east end of the island during strong northwest winds. Please send some of your Asian birds our way! Oscar ________________________________ From: "SwallowtailStudio AT comcast.net" To: Paul Lehman Cc: barbarac2003 AT yahoo.com; Laurie Larson ; Richard Crossley ; greatgrayowl AT aol.com; akbirder AT eagle.ptialaska.net; alaskabirds AT ak.net; davidsonne AT aol.com; kingbird77 AT hotmail.com; columbarius33 AT yahoo.com; tgtljo AT gci.net; cerwa AT earthlink.net; ghrosenberg AT comcast.net; mtheindel AT aol.com; miliff AT aol.com; guymcc AT pacbell.net; sgmlod AT aol.com; bandmac AT gci.net; donacoates AT aol.com; g g allin ; marleen murgitroyde ; George Armistead ; lrbevier AT colby.edu; joanlentz AT cox.net; Ned Brinkley ; steve heinl ; pdavis AT ix.netcom.com; jrhough1 AT snet.net; David MacKay ; schwit AT 3rivers.net; bob AT wildernessbirding.com; jcwilson AT lightspeed.net; markgarland AT mac.com; akbirding AT yahoogroups.com; hilone AT hilonesometours.com; Nick Pulcinella ; jjsykes AT charter.net; Oscar Johnson ; Jeremiah Trimble ; Don Freiday ; lehman paul Sent: Mon, August 30, 2010 7:09:35 PM Subject: Re: Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea 100,000 Short-tailed Shearwaters and I haven't seen one. Wah! Please tell my Gambell friends that I said hello. Can you believe that Rodney is a Facebook friend? Take care, Louise ----- Original Message ----- From: "Paul Lehman" To: "lehman paul" Cc: barbarac2003 AT yahoo.com, "Laurie Larson" , "Richard Crossley" , greatgrayowl AT aol.com, akbirder AT eagle.ptialaska.net, alaskabirds AT ak.net, davidsonne AT aol.com, kingbird77 AT hotmail.com, columbarius33 AT yahoo.com, tgtljo AT gci.net, cerwa AT earthlink.net, ghrosenberg AT comcast.net, swallowtailstudio AT comcast.net, mtheindel AT aol.com, miliff AT aol.com, guymcc AT pacbell.net, sgmlod AT aol.com, bandmac AT gci.net, donacoates AT aol.com, "g g allin" , "marleen murgitroyde" , "George Armistead" , lrbevier AT colby.edu, joanlentz AT cox.net, "Ned Brinkley" , "steve heinl" , pdavis AT ix.netcom.com, jrhough1 AT snet.net, "David MacKay" , schwit AT 3rivers.net, bob AT wildernessbirding.com, jcwilson AT lightspeed.net, markgarland AT mac.com, akbirding AT yahoogroups.com, hilone AT hilonesometours.com, "Nick Pulcinella" , jjsykes AT charter.net, "Oscar Johnson" , "Jeremiah Trimble" , "Don Freiday" Sent: Monday, August 30, 2010 4:58:33 PM Subject: Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea Best bird at Gambell the past few days has been the juvenile CHIPPING SPARROW on 8/28 (yes, I know you are all thrilled!), a species which breeds no closer than east-central or southeast AK but which has now occurred here a surprising 19 times in fall. Also a rare-but-regular White-crowned Sparrow today. The first several Sharp-tailed Sandpipers (all juveniles, as is typical) of the season started appearing on 8/28. Today there were also 24 Emperor Geese, Steller's Eider, a couple Eurasian Wigeon. On both 8/27 and 8/28 we estimated a MILLION Crested Auklets passing the point. Another good count was the 51+ N. Wheatears on 8/27, the first Red-throated Pipit in almost a week turned up yesterday, a couple more japonicus American Pipits, a bunch more Arctic Warblers, and another Bluethroat. Up to 4 Ancient Murrelets continue daily right along the beach. The arrival of the first juvenile Black-legged Kittiwakes yesterday beat the all-time arrival date for that age-class by a whopping one day. Two days ago I saw a dark-morph N. Fulmar, a rare visitor from points south--the local fulmars are all light-morph birds. Short-tailed Shearwater numbers are picking up, with ca. 100,000 estimated yesterday. --Paul Lehman [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Palmer - 50+ Sandhill Cranes From: Charles Iliff <ciliff2 AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:35:50 -0700 (PDT) West side of Trunk road - Experiment Farm. Some were juveniles. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Gambell: miscellaneous miscellanea From: Paul Lehman <lehman.paul1 AT verizon.net> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:58:33 -0700 Best bird at Gambell the past few days has been the juvenile CHIPPING SPARROW on 8/28 (yes, I know you are all thrilled!), a species which breeds no closer than east-central or southeast AK but which has now occurred here a surprising 19 times in fall. Also a rare-but-regular White-crowned Sparrow today. The first several Sharp-tailed Sandpipers (all juveniles, as is typical) of the season started appearing on 8/28. Today there were also 24 Emperor Geese, Steller's Eider, a couple Eurasian Wigeon. On both 8/27 and 8/28 we estimated a MILLION Crested Auklets passing the point. Another good count was the 51+ N. Wheatears on 8/27, the first Red-throated Pipit in almost a week turned up yesterday, a couple more japonicus American Pipits, a bunch more Arctic Warblers, and another Bluethroat. Up to 4 Ancient Murrelets continue daily right along the beach. The arrival of the first juvenile Black-legged Kittiwakes yesterday beat the all-time arrival date for that age-class by a whopping one day. Two days ago I saw a dark-morph N. Fulmar, a rare visitor from points south--the local fulmars are all light-morph birds. Short-tailed Shearwater numbers are picking up, with ca. 100,000 estimated yesterday. --Paul Lehman Subject: Big ocean trip From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:33:46 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, Talked with Major Marine Tours today monday August 30th and here is a quick update. On thursday Sept. 2nd  between 4:00 and 4:30 pm there will be a post on wether the friday date is on or cancelled. This will be after viewing the updated marine forcast and talking it over with Ron.  The 5 day forcast for this friday is looking well,, winds predicted to be from the west which is good for us. Remember to dress in layers,wear water-proof boots or shoes, have decent rain gear and bring food for the day. Raven's Haven B&B will be providing 2 crocpots with warm dishes for latter in the day.   Joe [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: AK WatchList talk WEDNESDAY in Homer From: Beth Peluso <bpeluso AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:08:55 -0700 (PDT) What: Presentation "Birds to Keep an Eye on: How Citizen Scientists Help Vulnerable Birds" When: Wednesday, Sept. 1, 7:00pm Where: Islands and Ocean Center, Homer, AK If you're around Homer on Wednesday, I'm helping the Kachemak Bay Research Reserve kick off the fall citizen science season! Learn about vulnerable birds included on the 2010 Alaska WatchList and how your citizen science efforts, such as eBird or the Christmas Bird Count, can help them. I'll also have copies of the hot-off-the-press WatchList brochure, with its fantastic Whiskered Auklet photo on the cover, available.   Beth Peluso Audubon Alaska [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: No Subject From: davidsonne AT aol.com Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:51:22 -0400 Monday, August 30 Took the ferry from Homer to Kodiak on the 28th. Most of the usual suspects and nothing out of the ordinary. 15-20 Cassin's Auklets may be a slightly high count. Spent? a nice day birding Kodiak with Rich Macintosh. Highlight were a Stilt Sandpiper at the outlet of Kalsin Lake and a Slaty-backed Gull at Narrow Cape. Struggling now to find something at Homer. David Sonneborn = [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: red tailed hawks - Nikiski From: John Sharp <jjsharp42 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 19:54:05 -0700 (PDT) Nice post. I lived 25 years in Maine and know the feeling. John Houston, TX ________________________________ From: "echecs AT alaska.net" To: AKBirding AT yahoogroups.com Sent: Sun, August 29, 2010 9:19:12 PM Subject: [AK Birding] red tailed hawks - Nikiski   Earlier today I was sitting on my deck, enjoying the sunshine. I heard a raven and was watching him/her flying over head. Shortly he was joined by three other silhouettes in the sky. They were doing little to no wing flapping so I knew they had to be either hawks or eagles. One cry and I knew they were the hawks that nest southwest of my home. With all the rain we've gotten this year, hikes have been pretty much out of the question, so it was nice to see the hawks from my deck. I'm not sure when they will be traveling south, so I hope to get to see them again before they do. If this weather holds, I hope to get one bird watching hike in and maybe a picture of the hawks. Dorey Harman Nikiski [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: red tailed hawks - Nikiski From: echecs AT alaska.net Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:19:12 -0800 (AKDT) Earlier today I was sitting on my deck, enjoying the sunshine. I heard a raven and was watching him/her flying over head. Shortly he was joined by three other silhouettes in the sky. They were doing little to no wing flapping so I knew they had to be either hawks or eagles. One cry and I knew they were the hawks that nest southwest of my home. With all the rain we've gotten this year, hikes have been pretty much out of the question, so it was nice to see the hawks from my deck. I'm not sure when they will be traveling south, so I hope to get to see them again before they do. If this weather holds, I hope to get one bird watching hike in and maybe a picture of the hawks. Dorey Harman Nikiski Subject: Saturday High Tide--Whimbrels From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Sun, 29 Aug 2010 01:26:55 -0000 Saturday's high tide was about 10:00 to coincide with Diane Toebe's shorebird walk at Westchester Lagoon. An enthusiastic but slightly soggy group joined Diane for Dowitchers, Snipe, Kingfishers, a flock of 25-30 Robins, and most of the other usual suspects. On the way to the Lagoon, we spotted 8 Whimbrels on the mudflats just off the Audubon Bench, but were unable to re-locate the birds later. The mixed flocks are growing. Earlier Saturday The Keys yard list grew with a Western Wood Peewee in a flock of assorted warblers, juncos, chickadees, and a Hairy WP. A merlin chased the flock off, so I missed the Eurasian Bullfinch. w keys Spenard Subject: Shorebird counts and nesting distribution From: Gyorgy Szimuly/WorldWaders <gyorgy.szimuly AT worldwaders.org> Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2010 03:47:24 +0200 Dear Birders, Thanks to the kind moderators I had a chance to follow birding news and reporting from birders of Alaska and was thrilled by the activity, not talking about the birds of that dream destination. Me, as a completely outsider, in geographical meaning only, could get a nice picture of your activity and birds. When I started to develop the WorldWaders database (http://www.worldwaders.org) for shorebirds, I dreamed to have so many active users and collaborators who help to grow this global initiative big. some of you have already joined and I am more than grateful for that. You made an excellent job. The journey is long but our supporters help to spread the word and help to include more and more sites and more and more species. Mapping shorebirds globally is a huge challenge but we are ready to face this task. It is clear now that every effort is worth. Here I make another try to encourage you, who spend endless hours in the field to share your shorebird records with us, with the WorldWaders database, both for nesting and non-breeding shorebirds. I know in the growing eBird era (which I am personally supporting and contributing) the community is divided but some might take a few minute by case to submit records. Please join us and help to make a better world for shorebirds. Thanks for listening (I really hope it is not considered as an advertising!). Our project detail can be read here: http://www.worldwaders.org/index.php?modul=ujmadar Kind regards, Gyorgy Szimuly (Szimi)/WorldWaders __________ Tata, Hungary Website: http://www.worldwaders.org Project enquiry: projects AT worldwaders.org Skype: worldwaders.org Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=118733871495865 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Invitation: North American Birders' Forum From: "Greg" <gregneise AT ilbirds.com> Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:00:15 -0000 AKBirding subscribers, I would like to introduce to you the recently launched North American Birders' Forum (NABF) at http://www.birdersforum.com Forum topics include rare bird reports, field reports for all of the continental United States and Canada, identification discussion, conservation, birding locations, eBird Notable Sightings for all of the continental United States, Avian Science and more. There is no limit to the number or size of photos (or other files) that can be attached, and we have unlimited bandwidth. Photos and descriptions are permanently archived with static URLs, and are searchable. The new forum also features RSS feeds from popular blogs like eBird, Sibley Guides Notebook, ABA Peeps, Two-fisted Birdwatcher and more. There are also expert-led topic areas, such as "Hawk Talk with Vic Berardi" and "Optics and Digiscoping with Jeff Bouton". As we grow, you can expect more of these very informative and fun discussion boards. Another feature of the forum is Listers' Central ( http://www.birdersforum.com/lists/ ), where you can enter your list totals for ABA area, regional, state, county and site life lists, state and county year lists and big days. The custom-built database allows you to filter and sort the entries, and you can update your totals as you see new birds. I think that Listers' Central will be one of the most popular parts of NABF, and I hope you enjoy it. There's a fair amount of info up, and more is being added every day...but the main thing needing to be added is you. Registration is very fast and easy: choose a user name and password, enter a valid email address, and you're done. So click on to http://www.birdersforum.com to see what it's all about. Cheers, -greg neise Berwyn, IL ps- the hot topic of the week is leaked photos from the movie set of "The Big Year" starring Owen Wilson, Steve Martin, Jack Black and Anjelica Houston: http://birdersforum.com/index.php/topic,896.0.html Subject: Gambell: 2 Lesser Sand-Plovers, miscellanea From: Paul Lehman <lehman.paul1 AT verizon.net> Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 11:12:48 -0700 Two juvenile Lesser Sand-Plovers were found here at Gambell on Tuesday, a species that is proving to be annual in very small numbers. Also some more regular landbird migrants, such as 3 japonicus American Pipits and a bunch more Arctic Warblers, Bluethroat, total of 11+ White Wagtails, 5 Hoary Redpolls, etc., but still no rare landbirds (as of early Thursday). Three Ancient Murrelets swam around just a few feet off the beach yesterday; this species is a regular post-breeding visitor to the northern Bering Sea from well to the south (former northern breeding limit was the Aleutians, but small numbers are now breeding at St Paul). A couple Sabine's Gulls. Crested Auklet numbers were passing the point in the late afternoon and evening at the rate of 400,000+ daily, with the likely numbers probably nearing a million birds per day if someone had actually seawatched continuously from around 4PM to 10PM. Also good numbers of Leasts and Parakeets, and just slightly-below-average murres, guillemots, and puffins. But so far, overall seabird diversity has been quite poor compared to most years in late August, with most non-alcids being in very short supply so far. For the second year in a row, kittiwake numbers seem particularly low, and I've heard from a couple folks that productivity this year on some islands (e.g., St Paul, Adak) looks to be very poor. In case folks were wondering, the temps here this week have been stuck mostly between 46-48 degrees, with a couple brief warm spells soaring to 52. It gets light enough to bird at 7:30AM, but stays light well after 10PM. --Paul Lehman Subject: Tustumena Lake From: "George Matz" <geomatz AT alaska.net> Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 17:32:41 -0800 Monday and Tuesday I canoed the upper part of the Kasilof River and Tustumena Lake. I started at the boat ramp which is at the end of Tustumena Road. Saw numerous fish-eating birds, but no songbirds. Species include Common Loon, Red-breasted Merganser, Bald Eagle, Sand Hill Crane, Belted Kingfisher, and Common Raven. Someone asked the other day about Common Loons in this area. There is a pair that hangs out at near the boat ramp. George [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Sharp-Shinned Hawk and Golden Crowned Kinglet From: "Gary" <gbullockak AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 01:18:12 -0000 Yesterday afternoon I watched a juvenal plumaged sharp-shinned hawk harassing songbirds at the feeders without success. Higher up in the spruce, I saw a golden crowned kinglet, the first I've seen in a long time. Gary Bullock Huffman & Birch area Anchorage Subject: White-winged Crossbills From: Chris Maack <cmaack AT gci.net> Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:05:24 -0700 We caught a female white-winged crossbill with a brood patch while bird banding at Campbell Tract on Tuesday, August 24. Saw the male, perhaps her mate, because he came down to the mist net and perched on the end piece, seemingly trying to figure out a way to come to her assistance. Chris - - - Chris Maack Bird Treatment & Learning Center Anchorage, AK [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Wednesday High Tide From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:10:43 -0000 This morning's tide near Westchester produced both Yellowlegs, 21 Dowitchers on the island, 7 cranes near the Chester Creek Mouth, 2 Semi-palm Plovers, and 1 Spotted. Also a singing Wilson's Warbler, a Merlin at Fish Creek, and flocks of Redpolls/Siskins. w keys Spenard Subject: kingfishers in Ninilchik From: echecs AT alaska.net Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:59:51 -0800 (AKDT) We went to the Ninilchik fair last Sunday, and after wards detoured through the Ninilchik village. While driving over the bridge we saw a pair of kingfishers on a guide wire. They were having fun around the stream below. Dorey Harman Nikiski Subject: Wilson Snipe migration From: seaside <seaside AT xyz.net> Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 00:37:27 -0800 Overheard and saw high up in the evening sky, a flock of 12 Wilson's Snipe, winging their way southeast under a full moon. ALso the cranes are gathering and calling to each other all day and into the night over Seaside Farm, flying down to the mud flats and circling noisily back up to the fields, giving flight training to the youngsters . Usual flocks of Oc Warblers, chasing each other around, foraging among the flower still left in my garden, flocks mixed with Wilson's and Yellow--but not much else, except some Fox Sparrows and Golden Crowned still gorging on the abundant elderberries. Also a Savannah at the head of Kachemak Bay in the beach grasses. Will it be an early fall? Feels cool these nights. Most of the sparrows were gone around the first week of September last year. Mossy Kilcher , Homer. Subject: Gambell: more regular migrant totals From: Paul Lehman <lehman.paul1 AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:00:10 -0700 Right after arriving here on the 20th I came down with one of the worst colds/sinus infections I've ever had, so lost 1-1/2 days of birding. Slowly getting better. Still just regular migrants present, with no rarities from either direction yet. Totals for the several days for the various "trans-Beringian" landbird migrants, most of which are heading to Southeast Asia for the winter (but the Wheatears are all going all the way west and then south to the Middle East and Africa!) include: Arctic Warbler: 24 Bluethroat: 5 Northern Wheatear: 40 Eastern Yellow Wagtail: 67 White Wagtail: 7 Red-throated Pipit: 5 Also 3 Slaty-backed Gulls, Yellow-billed Loon, and many hundreds of Red Phalaropes. Most of the Gray Whales each has its own personal entourage of many Red Phalaropes and a few Short-tailed Shearwaters, which feed close to the blow-hole when the whale surfaces. Currently we are supposed to have multiple days with south winds and a bit of showery rain. --Paul Lehman Subject: Bonaparte's Gulls From: "victoria_homer_alaska" <victoria_homer_alaska AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 06:57:27 -0000 50 or so Bonaparte's in winter plumage on the beach about a mile from the head of Kachemak Bay, with a spattering of Mew Gulls. The contrast in size and voice was striking. What a diverse voice from a gull! I had a wonderfully close look at them over the course of a good few hours. Subject: Rusty Blackbird Migration From: "trapperdan1" <trapperdan AT hotmail.com> Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2010 05:13:00 -0000 We just observed conseratively, 200 Rusty Blackbirds, migrating past our home overlooking the Palmer Hayflats. Very impressive. Dan Crowson 3.1 Miles SSE of Wasilla,AK Overlooking the Palmer Hayflats Subject: RBA Fairbanks Alaska August 23 2010 From: Ken_Russell AT fws.gov Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:38:32 -0800 hotline: Fairbanks and Interior Alaska date: August 23, 2010 number: (907) 451-9213 to report: (907) 451-9213 coverage: Fairbanks and vicinity transcriber: Ken Russell Birds Mentioned Lesser Sandhill crane Canada Goose Great Gray Owl Osprey White-Winged scoter Common Loon American Kestrel Northern Harrier White-Fronted goose Belter Kingfisher Sharp-Shinned Hawk Mountain Bluebird Welcome to the Birding Hotline for Interior Alaska as of August 23, 2010. There are still thousands of LESSER SANDHILL CRANES and CANADA GEESE in the fields at Creamer's Refuge. A GREAT GRAY OWL was seen along the Richardson Highway at Quartz Lake on August 22. The following birds were seen between August 19 and 21: Seven OSPREY soaring over Lakeview Terrace, with WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS and 8 COMMON LOONS on the ponds. A male AMERICAN KESTREL and A NORTHERN HARRIER were at the Airport Float ponds, another male AMERICAN KESTREL was at the peat ponds at Sheep Creek and Murphy Dome Roads, and an OSPREY and BELTED KINGFISHER were at Wander Lake. A pair of SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS with 2 or 3 young were seen at11.5 mile Chena Hot Springs Rd. on August 17. A small flock of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS were reported along the Alaska Highway in the vicinity of the junction with the Taylor Highway that goes to Chicken and Eagle on August 15. A SHARP-SHINNED HAWK pair with 2 young were seen at 4.5 mile Chena Hot Springs Road on August 9. If you'd like to become a member of Arctic Audubon Society, information is available at their web site: www.arcticaudubon.org . Thanks for calling the Birding Hot Line. -End Transcript Visit Arctic Audubon Society's website: http://www.arcticaudubon.org/. Site includes information on birding locations in Interior Alaska as well as a calendar of Arctic Audubon programs. Also visit Alaska Bird Observatory's website: http://www.alaskabird.org/ Directions to the sites mentioned in the report can found in A Birder's Guide to Alaska by George C. West; American Birding Association Ken Russell and Laurel Devaney Fairbanks, Alaska Subject: RBA Fairbanks Alaska August 23 2010 From: Ken_Russell AT fws.gov Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:38:32 -0800 hotline: Fairbanks and Interior Alaska date: August 23, 2010 number: (907) 451-9213 to report: (907) 451-9213 coverage: Fairbanks and vicinity transcriber: Ken Russell Birds Mentioned Lesser Sandhill crane Canada Goose Great Gray Owl Osprey White-Winged scoter Common Loon American Kestrel Northern Harrier White-Fronted goose Belter Kingfisher Sharp-Shinned Hawk Mountain Bluebird Welcome to the Birding Hotline for Interior Alaska as of August 23, 2010. There are still thousands of LESSER SANDHILL CRANES and CANADA GEESE in the fields at Creamer's Refuge. A GREAT GRAY OWL was seen along the Richardson Highway at Quartz Lake on August 22. The following birds were seen between August 19 and 21: Seven OSPREY soaring over Lakeview Terrace, with WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS and 8 COMMON LOONS on the ponds. A male AMERICAN KESTREL and A NORTHERN HARRIER were at the Airport Float ponds, another male AMERICAN KESTREL was at the peat ponds at Sheep Creek and Murphy Dome Roads, and an OSPREY and BELTED KINGFISHER were at Wander Lake. A pair of SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS with 2 or 3 young were seen at11.5 mile Chena Hot Springs Rd. on August 17. A small flock of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS were reported along the Alaska Highway in the vicinity of the junction with the Taylor Highway that goes to Chicken and Eagle on August 15. A SHARP-SHINNED HAWK pair with 2 young were seen at 4.5 mile Chena Hot Springs Road on August 9. If you'd like to become a member of Arctic Audubon Society, information is available at their web site: www.arcticaudubon.org . Thanks for calling the Birding Hot Line. -End Transcript Visit Arctic Audubon Society's website: http://www.arcticaudubon.org/. Site includes information on birding locations in Interior Alaska as well as a calendar of Arctic Audubon programs. Also visit Alaska Bird Observatory's website: http://www.alaskabird.org/ Directions to the sites mentioned in the report can found in A Birder's Guide to Alaska by George C. West; American Birding Association Ken Russell and Laurel Devaney Fairbanks, Alaska [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Killdeer, Ring-necked Ducks - Anchorage (late report) From: Peter Scully <peterandrewscullyii AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 14:27:46 -0700 (PDT) On Friday afternoon, there were 3 Ring-necked Ducks in Westchester Lagoon and a Killdeer on the mud flats at the out flow of the creek just south of Westchester. New to AK and not sure on the status/scarcity of these birds here, but they looked a little out of the range described in Sibley. Cheers, Peter Scully Subject: Birds of Deadhorse 20100802-20100821 From: Elias Elias <fabflockfinder AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2010 12:09:36 -0800 Hi all, Still plenty of birds around Deadhorse. Some birds are moving around the tundra. Some unfledged young are still around. But mostly it feels like things are winding down. At the close of my 3rd week here I've got 38 species, mostly I have been bound to the parking lot of the Delta Hotel which is at the edge of town and actually has quite a nice view of the tundra west of town for 6 km to the pipeline and north to Lake Coleen. I have been able to make a couple of evening jaunts south on the haul road about 30 miles. Last time we did it, we came across 3 Muskox and a Caribou and a Red Fox. No Lemmings yet this year. Have made some other forays to east town like by the Tesoro Gas Station (unleaded 4.5$) and the post office/general store. Here is a plain text list of the species which I have had so far: Greater White-fronted Goose: still lots around Cackling/Canada Goose: still lots around Tundra Swan: quite a few seen while I am flying around American Wigeon: likes the lobe of the Sag River over by the Tesoro Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal: with some chicks day before yesterday Aythya sp. Spectacled Eider: hard to see this year Long-tailed Duck Willow Ptarmigan: with chicks (60% grown) Pacific Loon: lots of aerial displays still not chick noted yet at all Bald Eagle: one subadult Northern Harrier Rough-legged Hawk Peregrine Falcon Sandhill Crane Semipalmated Plover: last one a long time ago Whimbrel Semipalmated Sandpiper: all gone Least Sandpiper one individual two days in a row Pectoral Sandpiper: still a few around but numbers way down Stilt Sandpiper: Long-billed Dowitcher: weren't around when I arrived but they are now Wilson's Snipe Red-necked Phalarope: numbers dropping slowly Red Phalarope Sabine's Gull: 60 miles off the coast little flock of 5 Glaucous Gull: Arctic Tern Parasitic Jaeger Long-tailed Jaeger Common Raven Northern Wheatear: great flyby one morning in parking lot Eastern Yellow Wagtail: gone American Tree Sparrow: one wanderer Savannah Sparrow: on the move Lapland Longspur: on the move Snow Bunting: I cut and pasted the eBird report for your perusal. Not certain how it (or if) will come across Report Details Date range: Aug 1, 2010 - Aug 31, 2010 Total # of Species: 39 Total # of Checklists: 34 Location(s): Dalton Hwy.--Delta Camp (Deadhorse); Deadhorse; Deadhorse post office; Deadhorse to Franklin Bluffs 26 miles; duckpond; plane ride from Deadhorse north west to Harrison Bay; service area 10 Summary Aug 1-5 Aug 6-10 Aug 11-15 Aug 16-20 Aug 21-25 Aug 26-31 Number of Species 16 22 19 27 5 -- Number of Individuals 502 882 449 1,167 36 -- Number of Checklists 5 12 4 11 2 -- Highest Count for a Species (sample size) Hide Sample Size *Species Name* Aug 1-5 Aug 6-10 Aug 11-15 Aug 16-20 Aug 21-25 Aug 26-31 Greater White-fronted Goose 35 (3) 150 (8) 140 (3) 180 (6) 20 (1) -- Cackling Goose -- 6 (1) -- -- -- -- Cackling/Canada Goose 20 (4) 20 (5) 20 (3) 45 (5) 10 (1) -- Tundra Swan 2 (1) -- 2 (1) 4 (2) -- -- American Wigeon -- -- -- 9 (2) -- -- Northern Pintail -- 6 (4) 5 (2) 15 (4) 4 (1) -- Green-winged Teal -- X (1) -- -- -- -- Aythya sp. -- -- -- 75 (1) -- -- Spectacled Eider -- 1 (1) -- -- -- -- Long-tailed Duck -- 1 (1) -- 115 (1) -- -- Willow Ptarmigan -- -- -- 6 (1) -- -- Pacific Loon 8 (2) 2 (3) 3 (1) 10 (4) -- -- Bald Eagle -- -- 1 (1) -- -- -- Northern Harrier -- -- 1 (2) 1 (3) -- -- Rough-legged Hawk -- -- -- 1 (1) -- -- Peregrine Falcon -- -- -- 1 (1) -- -- Sandhill Crane -- 2 (2) 1 (1) 2 (1) -- -- Semipalmated Plover 3 (5) 3 (1) -- -- -- -- Whimbrel -- -- X (1) -- -- -- Semipalmated Sandpiper 20 (5) 15 (7) 14 (3) 10 (3) -- -- Least Sandpiper 1 (2) -- -- -- -- -- Pectoral Sandpiper 15 (5) 25 (8) 2 (2) 21 (4) -- -- Stilt Sandpiper -- 1 (2) -- -- -- -- Long-billed Dowitcher -- -- -- 6 (3) -- -- Wilson's Snipe -- -- -- 4 (1) -- -- Red-necked Phalarope 80 (4) 75 (7) 65 (3) 65 (6) -- -- Red Phalarope -- 1 (2) X (1) -- -- -- Sabine's Gull -- -- -- -- 1 (1) -- Glaucous Gull 1 (2) 1 (3) 8 (3) 2 (6) -- -- Arctic Tern -- -- -- 1 (1) -- -- Parasitic Jaeger -- 2 (1) 2 (2) 3 (1) -- -- Long-tailed Jaeger 1 (1) -- -- -- -- -- Common Raven 2 (2) 2 (2) 1 (1) 6 (3) -- -- Northern Wheatear -- -- -- 1 (1) -- -- Eastern Yellow Wagtail 7 (4) 1 (1) -- -- -- -- American Tree Sparrow -- -- -- 1 (1) -- -- Savannah Sparrow 8 (2) 6 (4) 7 (3) 14 (5) 1 (1) -- Lapland Longspur 8 (4) 8 (6) 20 (3) 10 (4) -- -- Snow Bunting 1 (1) 2 (4) X (1) 5 (1) -- -- Elias Elias Arcata CA/Deadhorse AK 707-633-8833 walkie-talkie [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: SPARROW HELP From: Bob Winckler <winckler AT mtaonline.net> Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:48:19 -0800 Hi Birders, Need some help with an ID! A unfamiliar sparrow has been hanging around my feeder for the last couple of weeks, but I can't pin down which species it is. I assume that it's a juvenile but I can't figure out what it's transitioning to. We had both White and Golden-crowned Sparrows show up here in the early spring, be we haven't seen them since. The bird's head stripes really stand out and are quite brown in good light and because of their brown color, and the lack of much striping on its breast, my best guess is juvenile White-crowned. See the first three photos in the msbirders folder. Any ideas?? Many thanks, Bob Wasilla Subject: Gambell: arrival, regular migrants From: Paul Lehman <lehman.paul1 AT verizon.net> Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 17:04:36 -0700 Greetings from Gambell, Alaska. Arrived this morning (August 20), a typical arrival date for me most years. I am scheduled to stay this year for 6-1/2 weeks, until September 28. Will be leading a tour group for some of the time, doing "independent" birding for the rest. In the first few hours of walking around I've seen just "regular" migrants, including 7 White Wagtails (local breeders, with several juveniles), 29 Eastern Yellow Wagtails, 4 Red-throated Pipits, Wheatear, Bluethroat, 11 Arctic Warblers. At least 20 Gray Whales (a record high count) off the Point, so obviously the zooplankton population is doing well (as are the auklets!). They are constructing new roads around town, and later (next year?) up on to the summit of the mountain (cemetery area) and over to the east side of the mountain. But during construction there will be a fair amount of truck traffic along the road along the mountain side and down around the culvert area below Troutman Lake, so there will, unfortunately, be a bunch more disturbance in those areas this year and perhaps next year. But otherwise the vegetation in all three of the boneyards looks nice and lush. In my one hour of birding in Nome this monring before my flight out here there was a Gyrfalcon, 2 Northern Shrikes, and a flock of 15 Aleutian Terns (they typically depart right about now--next stop, Hong Kong!). --Paul Lehman Subject: Rusty Blackbirds From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:33:39 -0000 It looks like the fall flock of Rusty Blackbirds is starting to reunite. There were 8 in the reeds between the Radio Tower and the Outlet Pond at Westchester this morning. A week ago today, there was one seen in the same area. Last fall the flock swelled to between 25 and 30 and ranged from the Fish Creek estuary to Westchester. Also continuing in the Outlet Pond this morning were 7 Snipe and the kingfisher family. All else was extremely quiet at low tide. w keys Subject: Anchor Point, Kenai, & Kasilof Rivers Thur From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:04:23 -0000 Most notable, Marbled Murrelets, Rock Sandpipers, Western Sandpipers, Black Turnstones,& at least 1 Ruddy Turnstone at Anchor Point (it's amazing there was anything at all with the 4 wheeler traffic up & down the beach ...the folks riding the machines were purposely aiming and flushing the flocks birds) both Yellow-legs, Northern Harrier, & Sandhill Cranes at Kenai, Dowitchers & ducks way..way out on the mud flats at Kasilof...I've never seen the tide so low. One suicidal Spruce Grouse at Cooper Landing in the middle of the road. Steve W. Subject: Homer/Kachemak Bay Bird Hotline (235-PEEP): 8-18-10 From: "lani.raymond" <lani.raymond AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2010 19:10:30 -0000 On the 15th just after high tide the following were seen in Mud Bay: PACIFIC GOLDEN PLOVER (juv.), SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, WESTERN SANDPIPERS, LEAST SANDPIPER, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, MERLIN and BELTED KINGFISHER. On the 8th an OSPREY was seen at Beluga Lake. It stuck around for about half an hour. Also seen there were WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS. Out in the Bay "hundreds" of MARBLED MURRELETS and two KITTLITZ'S MURRELETS were seen on the way to Bear Cove this week. Most BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE chicks have fledged in the dock rookeries. Out on the Old East End Rd, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES were heard last week. Near Eveline Park many juvenile sparrows are being seen: WHITE-CROWNED, GOLDEN-CROWNED and FOX SPARROWS. Also ALDER FLYCATCHERS heard, CHICKADEES (sp?) and a NORTHERN GOSHAWK seen in that area. NORTHERN GOSHAWKS were also reported east of Miller's Landing and up on Skyline Drive this week. At the mouth of the Anchor River, YELLOWLEGS (mostly GREATER) and BONEPARTE'S GULLS were reported on the 13th. If you see or hear SANDHILL CRANES, especially any with colts or transmitters, please report them to the Crane Watch: 235-6262 or reports AT cranewatch.org. Subject: No Subject From: davidsonne AT aol.com Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2010 13:54:00 -0400 A friend, Bob Ake, is doing a big year and hasn't seen White-winged Crossbill yet. He'll be in town next week and going to Seward for the Kenai Fjords trip. Has anyone been seeing any crossbills?in Anchorage, Mat-Su or the Kenai Peninsula? You can respond to me and I'll let Bob know. David Sonneborn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Adak report From: "Isaac Helmericks" <isaac.helmericks AT alaskaair.com> Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2010 21:43:15 -0700 Lets put that boring old summer behind us! The fall migration starts on Adak..... I found a small group of 4 peeps in Clam Lagoon this afternoon. Turned out to be quite the variaty with a LITTLE STINT, 2 Bairds Sandpipers and a Western Sandpiper. All juveniles. Will have pictures up on my blog soon. Isaac Isaac J Helmericks www.adakbirding.com Adak, Alaska Subject: Seward Black Turnstones and a Whimbrel From: "c_griz" <c_griz AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2010 17:29:47 -0000 Yesterday, August 17, I visited the tidelands to verify the Ruddy Turnstone report. Instead I found 8 BLACK TURNSTONES, who were indeed, turning over small stones and gobbling down the goodies hidden underneath. They seemed fairly unconcerned about me clicking away, my two good dogs sitting nearby, and approached me, flipping rocks and feeding. Several took baths and preened about 20 feet away. When we left, I was pleased that they did not fly. A single WHIMBREL circled overhead, calling, before landing near the gulls at the edge of the tide. Two SNIPE flew together overhead, and a LINCOLN'S SPARROW popped out of the sedges to peer at me from a piece of driftwood. Happy Birding! Carol Griswold Sporadic Bird Report Reporter Subject: Bohemian Waxwings From: "ursus_8" <avocet AT gci.net> Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2010 05:56:09 -0000 Tonight at about 8:30 pm, 15 or so Bohemian Waxwings were seen near the Huffman Carrs. This seems early. Normally they feed on insects during the breeding season and then migrate downslope later in the fall and early winter to feed on berries. Tom Anchorage Tom Anchorage Subject: Surf scoter chicks along Glenn Highway From: "DIANNE TOEBE" <afdmt AT uaa.alaska.edu> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 19:43:08 -0800 4 Surf scoter chicks swimming in a pond between Sheep Mountain Lodge and Eureka today. Dianne Toebe Anchorage Alaska Subject: Mountain bluebirds along Alaska Highway From: "DIANNE TOEBE" <afdmt AT uaa.alaska.edu> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 19:42:31 -0800 On August 15, a group of 6 or 7 Mountain bluebirds were seen along the Alaska Highway in the vicinity of the junction with the Taylor Highway that goes to Chicken and Eagle. Four or 5 birds flew into a birch or aspen tree, while 2 more birds joined them, flying low across the highway and then up to perch with the others, giving us a short look in the binocs before they flew off. I was with a non-birder friend from Anchorage who saw that they were not Starlings or the familiar Waxwings. Dianne Toebe Anchorage Subject: Leach's storm petrel From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 19:57:21 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, On the cusp of the big ocean trip I went halibut fishing on sunday august 15th in the biggest swells,current,tide,rain and wind ever. We tried to fish near Granite Island close to  the Chiswell's but were forced back to Seward.  On both trips, out and in ,I had fairly good looks at Leach's storm petrel. In the end I saw 3 birds that day,,, thinking that this is a great omen for our adventure out in the BIG ocean! Joe [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Passerines from Unalaska From: Aaron Lang <birdingak AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:26:40 -0800 I had the opportunity to bird Unalaska/Dutch Harbor for a few hours yesterday and today (16-17 August) and as usual the highlights were found in the spruce trees on Strawberry Hill. Three adult sooty FOX SPARROWS were present both days. Today they were trumped by two YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS! The only previous records of Yellow-rumped Warbler from the island are from the fall 2009--1 on 22 September and 10 October, and two on 11 October 2009. Several flocks of COMMON REDPOLLS totaling about 40 birds included a few juveniles. Three BANK SWALLOWS yesterday and one today are on the later side of their migration. Good birding, Aaron Lang [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Anchorage notables Tuesday Aug 17 From: "tgtljo" <tgtljo AT gci.net> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 21:59:56 -0000 Had an imm Harlequin Duck in Ship Ck near the lowest bridge. The R St alley off the sw end of W 9th Ave had quite a few migrant passerines , incl at least 1 Juv Alder flycatcher. Mudflats had lots of gulls incl couple dozen Bonaparte's , and 20+ Semi Plovers, and a Killdeer near the north tunnel at Westchester (thanks Bill Tweit). Thede Tobish Subject: Homer -- Mud Bay From: Martin Renner <great.auklet AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 02:01:21 -0700 (PDT) On Sunday evening, the following shorebirds were at Mud Bay and Mariner Park just after high tide: Pacific Golden Plover 1 juv. Semipalmated Plover10 Greater Yellowlegs19 Western Sandpiper50 Least Sandpiper20 Long-billed Dowitcher 1 Also 1 Merlin and 1 Belted Kingfisher. Martin Renner [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: August Seward Sporadic Bird Report From: "c_griz" <c_griz AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 08:13:33 -0000 Seward, Alaska Sporadic Bird Report August 16, 2010 Sunrise 6:14 am, sunset 9:47 pm, length of day 15 hours, 33 minutes; tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 17 seconds shorter. While Alaskans mourn the chunks of time mercilessly lopped off every day, visitors marvel at how light it is "so late." It's all relative. Weather: While Fairbanks boasted a record 91º yesterday, South-Central's cool and wet weather continues with the thermometer stuck in the mid-50s. The grass grows greener, longer and longer, too wet to mow. Rivers rise higher and higher, churning brown with sediment. Exit Creek flooded over the road today, preventing vehicular access to the National Park. August: cloudy, foggy, misty, drizzly, rainy, stormy, gray, moody August. The highlights for the past two weeks of challenging spots and dots birding include: Saturday, July 31: Adult and speckled juvenile ROBINS feast on red elderberries, balancing precariously on the loaded branches. A FOX SPARROW and DARK-EYED JUNCOS scrabbled around the edges. Mixed flocks of warblers flit like bright sparks against the deep green alders: a family of TOWNSEND WARBLERS, an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, YELLOW WARBLER, and a WILSON'S WARBLER, joined by a RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. In the salt marsh pond, I am amazed and thrilled to hear and watch, once again and definitely for the last time this year, an ARCTIC TERN, hovering and diving for small stickleback and salmon fry. Mist rises off the beach like memories freed from the silent silt. A LEAST SANDPIPER is heard but not seen. Monday, August 2: MARBLED MURRELETS announce their commute from the forest to the sea for breakfast at 5 am. An excerpt of an excellent book, Rare Bird: Pursuing the Mystery of the Marbled Murrelet, by Maria Ruth can be read at http://www.mariaruthbooks.com. Wednesday, August 4: MARBLED MURRELETS overhead at 5:20 am. At a more reasonable hour, a HUMMINGBIRD was reported checking out a feeder in town during a pelting rain. The green bird could be a very late female or juvenile Rufous or possibly an Anna's. The reporter usually has four to five every summer, but this summer only had two. A feeder in Camelot, just north of Seward, has not had any hummers for the past two weeks, a more normal migration time. Just in case, I immediately cleaned and refilled my feeders but they remain untouched by that whirr of magic. Ava reported an invasion of four warbler species in her yard feasting on an unusually large crop of aphids attacking her trees. An alert hiker reported at least two NORTHERN BOBWHITE QUAIL on Lost Lake Trail in the evening. This bird was documented with a photograph in her yard just off Exit Glacier Road on July 13^th and continues to be a regular visitor. No one in the area is known to be raising this species. Keep your eyes peeled for unusual birds on Lost Lake and other trails and let me know! Photographs are greatly appreciated. Thursday, August 5: hard rain diminished to just grumpy. I saw many flying yellowish aphids and hoped they would become dinner before they multiplied exponentially. Too bad the swallows are long gone. Four DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS fished close to Lowell Point Road with one MARBLED MURRELET and one PIGEON GUILLEMOT. Saturday, August 7: SHARP-SHINNED HAWK along Tonsina Trail; youngsters shrieked from tops of spruce trees, possibly fledglings near a nest. What sounded suspiciously like a WINTER WREN's long breathless song heard in the Enchanted Forest at Tonsina Point. Sunday, August 8: a very light-headed, light-breasted adult HARLAN'S HAWK raised a ruckus by the Resurrection River, flying after RAVENS and then being chased by same, crying out its blood-curdling "KEEEE-URRRRR!" Thanks to Paul Fritz for his keen observations of my fuzzy photos. A MERLIN shot out across the meadow between two islands of spruce trees. Hen NORTHERN SHOVELER dabbled in the pond with GADWALL families of various ages. Monday, August 9: A KINGFISHER!!! first one I've seen or heard in months, rattled in a great loop around my neighborhood at 8:15 am. I believe habitat loss is responsible for their scarcity. Four or more YELLOWLEGS and six peeps spotted at salt marsh. Tuesday, August 10: cloud of GULLS rose as one at tidelands, possibly stirred into flight by an eagle. A GREATER YELLOWLEGS and DUNLIN without its black belly, likely a juvenile, fed together near the beach. Several SAVANNAH SPARROWS popped up from the beach rye and posed on the driftwood at the salt marsh. More warblers at Ava's and in my yard. Friday, August 13: MERLIN again spotted at airport meadows, HARLAN'S HAWK heard but not seen. Five WESTERN SANDPIPERS and one LEAST SANDPIPER probed the silty shallows for invertebrates. Saturday, August 14: SNIPE circled over airport meadow, YELLOWLEGS called from pond in the thick fog. Normally social TOWNSEND'S WARBLERS, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS, and JUNCOS chased each other through spruce treetops. ROBINS and RAVENS feasted on red elderberries but in their own style. The robins pluck the berries one by one and guzzle them down. The ravens snap off an entire bouquet of berries and haul them off to eat privately at a more exclusive dining location. Sunday, August 15: 1:30 am. Driving back from Anchorage through scattered showers, fog, and mist I was stunned to see the sky blazing with stars overhead in Seward. Cygnus the Swan flew southwest down the sparkling Milky Way, its long neck outstretched. Cassiopeia sat on her royal throne with Pegasus nearby. The giant globe of Jupiter beckoned like a porch light left on to welcome me home. I haven't seen the sky in so long, day OR night! I wandered around in a daze, getting a bad case of warbler neck, gazing in wonderment. I heard sleepy twitters from the nearby spruce, perhaps the Townsend Warbler family. It was a marvel! The gloomy clouds shuffled in by morning to reclaim their accustomed space and hide our lonely day star. A lone BRANT was reported at Fox Island spit. This small sea goose is not common in this area, and is usually with at least a few others. Random and ephemeral silt tattoos discovered, created by the probing quick bills of peeps, likely WESTERN or LEAST SANDPIPERS, their tell-tale tracks lightly imprinted as they bustled along. Jerry O reported ten RUDDY TURNSTONES and one WANDERING TATTLER at the tidelands! Exciting discoveries along with a SNIPE and several YELLOWLEGS. Monday, August 16: Alarming report of a COMMON LOON attacking a juvenile RED-NECKED GREBE at Bear Lake. While the loon family does have one almost-grown chick to guard, a young grebe is not a threat. This behavior seems very unusual. If you have observed loons attacking other birds in their rather large territory, especially non-threatening species like a grebe, please send me an email with details. Thanks to the wonderful staff at the Alaska Sealife Center for caring for the grebe. Their number, the Stranded Hotline, is 1-888-774-7325. Donations to this worthy cause are always welcomed. Who knows what this next storm might deliver? Keep your raincoats and boots handy; you'll be needing them for at least a few more days. Happy Birding! Carol Griswold Sporadic Bird Report reporter www.sewardbirdhouse.com Seward, Alaska Cat Bib saves birds! Check it out at http://www.catgoods.com/product.html Subject: Anchorage - Tour of Anchorage Trail From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 16 Aug 2010 22:22:17 -0000 Location: Tour of Anchorage Trail & Moose Track Trail AT BLM Campbell Creek Science Center Observation date: 8/16/10 Number of species: 9 Black-capped Chickadee 25 Boreal Chickadee 4 Red-breasted Nuthatch 3 Golden-crowned Kinglet 2 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2 American Robin 35 Yellow-rumped Warbler 15 Wilson's Warbler 3 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Steve W. Subject: The Birding Smackdown Report From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Mon, 16 Aug 2010 18:30:14 -0000 The 2nd Annual Westchester Lagoon-A-Thon Birding Smackdown was another Triumph for Twitchers—primarily because the Sun actually came out for most of the event on Saturday morning. Three teams competed for the coveted trophy. The Spamhill Cranes won bragging rights after coming in a consistent last in most previous Smackdowns, and the Twisted Listers and Quick Three Broads put up a valiant effort. In four hours (9am—1pm) on the trails surrounding the Westchester Lagoon, Spenard Crossing, and the Coastal Trail, a total of 49 species were sighted. The winning team spotted a whopping 88% of that total seen with 43 species. Every team saw 55% of the total species seen on Saturday (27 species), and once again EVERY TEAM saw birds that no other team saw. This amounted to 14 birds or 29% of the total birds seen. This continues to be the most consistent finding of every Anchorage Audubon birding competition: A significant percentage of birds seen on any outing depends on being in the right place at the right time. The dumb luck factor is huge! Birds seen by only one team included Gadwall, Surf Scoter, Merlin, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Rock Dove, Alder Flycatcher, Boreal Chickadee, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Swainson's Thrush, Yellow Warbler, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, and Pine Siskin. Every team obviously spent a lot of time scanning the island in the lagoon, and one team just happened to be looking when the scoter swam into the open from behind the island. No other team ever saw it. Species seen by everyone were: Red-necked Grebe, Canada Goose, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Shoveler, Am. Wigeon, Greater Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Gtr. Yellowlegs, Lsr. Yellowlegs, Short-billed Dowitcher, Spotted Sandpiper, Wilson's Snipe, Mew Gull, Bonaparte's Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Arctic Tern, Downy Woodpecker, Kingfisher, Magpie, Raven, BC Chickadee, Nuthatch, Robin, Orange-Crowned Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Dark-eyed Junco. Species seen by two teams were: Barrow's Goldeneye, Bald Eagle, Semi-palmated Plover, Solitary Sandpiper, Hudsonian Godwit, Herring Gull, Steller's Jay, and Common Redpoll. Interestingly, NO team spotted any of the Sandhill Cranes that have regularly made the mudflats their home for weeks. They did not venture into the "legal Smackdown area" on Saturday. Similarly, a Rusty Blackbird and Wilson's Warblers seen on Friday near the outfall bridge did not make an appearance during the competition. There was sunshine!, oodles of birds, and a Potluck picnic that was ultimately scrumptious. By the power vested in me by the Anchorage Audubon Society, I hereby pronounce Saturday's Smackdown a Big Fat Success!! w. keys commander-in-chief Subject: Glenn Hwy late Sat - Denali Hwy Sun From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 16 Aug 2010 18:22:57 -0000 Large numbers of sparrows, mostly American Tree, White-crowned, & Savannah with a few Fox Sparrows & Juncos. Also, at least 6 Arctic Warblers ( mostly west of Tangle Lakes) 3 Pergrine Falcons, a couple of Merlins, 3 Northern Shrikes, and noticably absent - longspurs & shore birds, not even a phalarope. It's hunting season now, and there were more vehicles and berry pickers than I've ever encountered. Black files are bad out of the wind. Lot's of animals...moose, caribou, porcupine.... Steve W. Location: Glenn Highway Tazlina Area Observation date: 8/14/10 Number of species: 12 Trumpeter Swan 6 American Wigeon 2 Northern Shoveler 2 Northern Pintail 4 Lesser Scaup 4 Red-throated Loon 2 Red-tailed Hawk 2 Merlin 1 Northern Flicker 1 Gray Jay 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch 1 Rusty Blackbird 1 Location: Denali Highway Mile 13 Observation date: 8/15/10 Number of species: 13 Trumpeter Swan 6 Northern Shoveler 2 Northern Harrier 3 Merlin 2 Peregrine Falcon 1 Northern Shrike 2 Gray-cheeked Thrush 1 American Robin 1 Yellow Warbler 1 Wilson's Warbler 6 American Tree Sparrow 300 ....severely conservative estimate Savannah Sparrow 50 White-crowned Sparrow 100 Location: Denali Highway McClaren River Area Observation date: 8/15/10 Number of species: 36 Trumpeter Swan 15 Tundra Swan 2 Gadwall 2 American Wigeon 12 Mallard 8 Northern Shoveler 10 Northern Pintail 6 Green-winged Teal 8 Lesser Scaup 8 Bufflehead 10 Common Goldeneye 2 Red-throated Loon 2 Common Loon 1 Red-necked Grebe 4 Bald Eagle 1 Northern Harrier 2 Merlin 2 Peregrine Falcon 2 Herring Gull 6 Alder Flycatcher 1 Northern Shrike 1 Gray Jay 2 Common Raven 25 Cliff Swallow 1 Arctic Warbler 6 Varied Thrush 1 American Pipit 12 Yellow-rumped Warbler 6 Wilson's Warbler 6 American Tree Sparrow 50 Savannah Sparrow 12 Fox Sparrow 15 White-crowned Sparrow 20 Golden-crowned Sparrow 1 Dark-eyed Junco 8 Common Redpoll 8 Subject: Anchorage Huffman & Birch Area Saturday Morning From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2010 16:52:09 -0000 Very active mixed flock - Black-capped Chickadee 30 Boreal Chickadee 5 Red-breasted Nuthatch 6 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1 Orange-crowned Warbler 25 Yellow Warbler 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler 20 Townsend's Warbler 4 Wilson's Warbler 6 Dark-eyed Junco 10 Common Redpoll 2 Steve W Subject: Anchorage Fri Mid day/Mid town From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2010 14:21:53 -0000 imm Northern Shrike near 3300 Fairbanks St. (behind Moose's Tooth) Steve W. Subject: Get Ready To Rumble From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2010 02:06:33 -0000 The Smackdown at the Lagoon is TOMORROW morning. The nation's premier In-Your-Face birding event begins with team registration at 8:30am, and will be followed by Ornithological Trash Talk starting at 8:31!! Rumor has it that the Valley is NOT fielding a team because they are terrified of the Anchorage teams. When I personally called Peregrine Joe and asked him if he wanted to be on the winning team, he replied, "Yes I do--I'll call Kenna Sue!!" It has gotten so ugly that teams are talking trash about their OWN TEAMS. If you haven't got a team, just show up and we'll put a team together or find a spot for you on an existing team. Just bring binos, rain gear, a bad attitude towards your fellow birders, and a dish to share at the potluck awards ceremony to be held immediately after the smackdown at 1:00pm. Complete rules were posted on this site a few days ago. If you're not capable of scrolling down the messages, you're not ready for the anti-social birding event of the year. Last year, the winning team spotted 37 birds between 9:00am and 1:00pm. Today, a recon team of one person found 36 in 3 hours. This could be a record year. Westchester Lagoon north parking lot by the cafe at 8:30am. See you there. w keys Commander in Chief Anchorage Audubon Society. Subject: Big Ocean Update From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:28:01 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, Here is tonight's post.  If the boat trip is cancelled on friday we wait for the 4:00pm marine forecast and make the call by 4:15 pm on wether saturday is a go.  If saturday is also a no-go then everyone will get their money back and we shoot for a different trip altogether. Here are some phone numbers for local motels,,, Murphy's Motel 224-8090    Breeze Inn 224-5237   Holiday Inn Express  224-2550 all are area code 907  If anyone, for any  unknown reason to them, must back out at the last minute, I have one very patient back-up that will fill that seat. I trust that we need not go there, but no one ever knows what will come up.  Your questions are always appreciated and I will try to get them all answered. PJ  [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: BIG OCEAN TRIP From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 21:30:18 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, Today I met with Ron Long who is incharge of the boat we are taking. Here is an update as where we stand. We are taking the vessel View Finder, a 58 foot boat that is being fitted for an open ocean voyage. The USCG is charge of the requirements that Major Marine Tours abide by. This will be a FULL boat and all of us must use some sort of manners, as when the conditions deteriorare the inside cabin will be,let say, cozy. Brad and Ron want to leave early, as in 7:00ish to use both the daylite and calmer seas. Everyone must bring food for the day, but Ron is allowing me to bring aboard a large croc-pot along which will have warm dish to have in the latter part of the day. Coffee and hot water for tea and chocalate will be on all day. Everyone is smart enough to wear layers and good footware,,, I hope. For lodging it looks like Murphys Motel has a good price, Iwill post their # tomorrow when I find it. PJ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Denali Hwy Northern Wheatears From: "trapperdan1" <trapperdan AT hotmail.com> Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 03:13:58 -0000 We birded the Paxson end of the Denali Hwy yesterday and today. We seen 2 Northern Wheatears about 1 mile east of MacLaren River Ridge in a Gravel Pit this morning about 9am. They were in thier winter plumage. Several Artic Warblers calling and nice flocks of American Tree Sparrows buzzing around. No Longspurs sighted in usual haunts but several Northern Harriers sighted. Dan Wasilla,AK 240-6653 Subject: Kenai Wildlife Viewing Platform - From: "kennethtarbox" <tarbox AT ptialaska.net> Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 03:59:10 -0000 The birding is still very good at the Kenai Wildlife Birding Platform and the Kenai estuarine area. Today the peregrine falcons were still there hunting. Black - bellied plovers were on the river bank, Hudsonian godwits were with them along with a variety of waterfowl. Warblers are in the woods near the entrance to the Public Boat launch road. The parasitic jaegers are still off from the Kenai Special Management sign near the Warren Ames Bridge (north side). On Sunday a local birding family recorded 45 species on the flats with most observations near the viewing platform. There were solitary sandpipers, pectoral sandpipers, and other shorebirds in the small ponds. Subject: big ocean update From: joe staab <staabjoe AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 9 Aug 2010 20:03:02 -0700 (PDT) Greetings all, Everyone that is signed up for the trip has paid their upfront fee of  $167.50 and now I will put the deposit down to Major Marine Tours. I am meeting with the operations manager tomorrow to discuss the little things about the boat and the trip,, I will send an update that should answer most questions but not all. My offer on opening up the B&B to travelers that need help with lodging has filled my house, glad that I could help. I am going to see if I can swing a deal with local motels about an offer for lodging.  PJ  [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Homer/Kachemak Bay Bird Hotline (235-PEEP): 8-8-10 From: "lani.raymond" <lani.raymond AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 09 Aug 2010 15:40:39 -0000 On the 8th many BLACK TURNSTONES were seen at Mariner Park and in Mud Bay. Also seen there were YELLOWLEGS (sp?), ARCTIC TERNS, and BRANT. On the 1st out on the Bay about 25 miles, a fisherman reported 400-500 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES near to his boat, with estimates of over a thousand in the general area! Also PARASITIC JAEGER and FORK-TAILED STORM PETREL were seen. One very positive report from about 5 miles out East End Rd. of: BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEES, COMMON REDPOLLS, PINE SISKINS, TOWNSEND'S WARBLERS, FOX and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS. Nearby at Seaside Farms also YELLOW, YELLOW-RUMPED, and WILSON'S WARBLERS. Farther out on Portlock St., LINCOLN SPARROWS, BLACKPOLL WARBLERS, and AMERICAN ROBIN were also reported. A few ALDER FLYCATCHERS and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS still singing east of town. CRANES sounding off and of course the PHEASANTS still being noisy. There are still a few BANK SWALLOWS east of the Miller's Landing area. Some CLIFF SWALLOWS reported near the end of the Spit. A report of "almost total absence" of swallows this year from Skyline. Where usually 50-70 Tree and Violet-green would be there daily, they had only a few on only a few days. A report from another area of town of not even one swallow box used this summer. Too few insects in this cool summer or something else? On the 7th at the mouth of the Anchor River the following were seen: WHITE-WINGED, SURF, AND BLACK SCOTER; LESSER and GREATER YELLOWLEGS; PECTORAL SANDPIPER; RUDDY and BLACK TURNSTONES; PEREGRINE FALCON, WHIMBREL, SURFBIRDS, WANDERING TATTLER, PACIFIC and COMMON LOON; HORNED AND TUFTED PUFFIN; HARLEQUIN DUCKS; SHORT-TAILED and SOOTY SHEARWATERS; MARBLED MURRELET; COMMON MURRE; PELAGIC CORMORANT; RED-NECKED GREBE; ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER; DARK-EYED JUNCO. At Eagle Lake (20+ miles east of town) PACIFIC LOONS (2) apparently without chicks and a family of RING-NECKED DUCKS were reported last week. If you see or hear SANDHILL CRANES, especially any with colts or transmitters, please report them to the Crane Watch: 235-6262 or reports AT cranewatch.org. Subject: Homer/Kachemak Bay Birders' First Saturday trip to the Anchor River: 8-7-10 From: "lani.raymond" <lani.raymond AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 08 Aug 2010 06:26:04 -0000 The Kachemak Bay Birders' First Saturday trip was to the mouth of the Anchor River this morning, and we found plenty in a little over an hour of birding. Many shorebirds flew in and out periodically and were feeding very close, and interesting groups of half a dozen or so Horned Puffins flew by a short ways out over the water heading south. The grand finale was the peregrine which flew right by us just as we were getting ready to leave. And even the weather was OK--somewhat windy but the rain held off until we were finished. We all agreed this was top-notch birding! PEREGRINE FALCON LESSER YELLOWLEGS GREATER YELLOWLEGS BLACK TURNSTONE RUDDY TURNSTONE PECTORAL SANDPIPER WHIMBREL WANDERING TATTLER SURFBIRD PACIFIC LOON COMMON LOON TUFTED PUFFIN HORNED PUFFIN HARLEQUIN DUCKS BLACK SCOTERS SURF SCOTERS WHITE-WINGED SCOTER SHORT-TAILED SHEARWATER SOOTY SHEARWATER MARBLED MURRELET COMMON MURRE PELAGIC CORMORANT RED-NECKED GREBE MEW GULL GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE BALD EAGLE BLACK-BILLED MAGPIE NORTHWESTERN CROW DARK-EYED JUNCO COMMON RAVIN ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER Subject: Cliff Swallows From: Aaron Lang <birdingak AT gmail.com> Date: Sat, 7 Aug 2010 09:15:07 -0800 Three CLIFF SWALLOWS hawking bugs at Land's End, Homer Spit yesterday (8/6) are on the late side and just a few days shy of the latest I've seen them here. There have been a few FORK-TAILED STORM PETRELS near the end of the spit during the last week as well. Good birding, Aaron Lang Homer [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Birds of Deadhorse AK 20100802-20100806 From: Elias Elias <fabflockfinder AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 6 Aug 2010 23:12:08 -0800 Hi everyone, The tundra is still growing young; just today, I saw a couple of 60% grown sandpiper chicks (unknown species) and the geese are also about that size too (60%). I've been super limited in my travels hence the short list. Basically restricted to the parking lot behind the Arctic Caribou Inn near the airport in Deadhorse. I stand in the parking lot for at least 15 minutes a day. I'm entering my sighting data into eBird. Below is a summary of what I've seen so far. 1 Common Raven Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 2 Eastern Yellow Wagtail Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 3 Semipalmated Sandpiper Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 4 Semipalmated Plover Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 5 Savannah Sparrow Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 6 Red-necked Phalarope Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 7 Pectoral Sandpiper Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 8 Glaucous Gull Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 9 Greater White-fronted Goose Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 10 Lapland Longspur Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 11 Pacific Loon Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 12 Least Sandpiper Delta Camp US-AK 03 Aug 2010 13 Snow Bunting Delta Camp US-AK 03 Aug 2010 14 Tundra Swan Delta Camp US-AK 03 Aug 2010 15 Sandhill Crane Delta Camp US-AK 06 Aug 2010 16 Stilt Sandpiper Delta Camp US-AK 06 Aug 2010 17 Parasitic Jaeger Delta Camp US-AK 06 Aug 2010 18 Long-tailed Jaeger Delta Camp US-AK 02 Aug 2010 Elias Elias Arcata CA/Deadhorse AK 707-633-8833 walkie-talkie Subject: Smackdown Rules From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Sat, 07 Aug 2010 05:23:51 -0000 Saturday, August 14, 8:30am Teams may consist of 2-6 people. The team must remain within voice or sight contact. Teams must be human powered on bicycles or on foot. Species may only be counted if they are seen or heard by the entire team (Exceptions: 6-person teams may count birds seen by 5 members, and 5-person teams may count birds seen by 4 members.) Check-In is at 8:30 am near the parking lot at the north end of the Westchester Lagoon. Teams will be given a check list and an area map on which to log the location of special species seen. At the end of the contest, species locations will be plotted on a gigantic master map to allow all participants to re-locate desired species. Entry fee is $20.00 per team. Exact Change is required. The Official Smackdown ends precisely at 1:00 pm. Teams will be penalized one species per minute late. Birds may be counted Only if seen from designated roads and trails in the Westchester area. Birds may be counted from bicycles or on foot. Birds seen in non-designated areas may be counted if the observers are standing within a designated area. Birds Heard may be counted. SPECIAL SAFETY RULES: DO NOT BLOCK bike trails under any conditions. Blocking trails in a manner that impedes traffic on the trail will result in a penalty of 15 species. LEGAL BIRDING AREAS: The Coastal Trail from the Fish Creek Benches to Elderberry Park; The area surrounding Westchester Lagoon; The bike trail between Westchester and Spenard Crossing; The parklands surrounding Eastchester Lagoon; The bike trail upstream from Spenard Crossing to Arctic Blvd; The Nature Park upstream and across Spenard Road from Spenard Crossing; and the Nature Park trail upstream from there to Arctic Blvd. A Map of legal birding areas will be provided. In case of a tie, a sudden death Bird-Off will be held. A potluck and Awards Ceremony will be held at 1:00pm following the smackdown. Please bring a dish to share. Subject: Westchester Lagoon-A-Thon Birding Smackdown From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Sat, 07 Aug 2010 05:20:33 -0000 Saturday, August 14, Anchorage Audubon Society presents The 2nd Annual Westchester Lagoon-A-Thon: A Birding Smackdown! Get your team together today, because once again the sport of Birding in Alaska will turn Ugly!! June's Potter Marsh-A-thon was so hilarious, we're throwing another competition in the middle of town. Who can find the most species in 4 hours? Who's team has the best name? Who will make all other birders eat crow even if no crows are found? All birders are welcome from beginners to experts—all you need is an in-your-face attitude, a team of 2-6 fanatics, and a $20 entry fee (per team.) Sign-in is at 8:30am. The Smackdown will begin at 9:00, will end at 1:00 pm, and will be followed by a potluck tailgate party and Awards Ceremony. High tide is a HUGE 31 footer at 10:58am which will bring the birds up close and personal. At the end of the birding competition, we'll plot all birds that are even remotely unusual on a map so that everyone can then go find anything they missed during the morning of birding. Everybody is welcome, so assemble your team, whip up a dish to share, and meet us Saturday Morning at 8:30 for an outrageous birding field trip with Fabulous Prizes! Birding will be limited to the Westchester Lagoon area and adjacent bike trails. All birding must be ON FOOT or ON BICYCLES, and who knows what rarities will show up when there are birders combing every inch of an area that usually just gets the once-over. Will Audubon Alaska get their clock cleaned by Anchorage Audubon? Can members of the Mat-Su Birders hang with the guys from the big city? If you don't have a team, show up anyway and we'll force somebody to let you be on their team! It's the anti-social event of the ornithological season. If another team won't tell you where they just saw a Pectoral Sandpiper, you are totally allowed to use "enhanced interrogation techniques." This is not your Mother's Birding Contest. There has even been talk from the Mat-Su about carrying "our club's banner into battle against those Anchorage lowlifes masquerading as birders." Ouch! We hope to see you Saturday, August 14, and if your team would like to register their name early, send it to flybynightclub AT gci.net Full Rules will follow in another post, and a jpg map of the legal area will be in the wkeys photo album. Full details are at www.anchorageaudubon.org w. keys President for Life or until somebody else agrees to take the job, Anchorage Audubon Society. Subject: Anchorage Coastal Trail Thur Eve From: "ak_zukes" <swinak AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 06 Aug 2010 09:25:43 -0000 Northern Shrike near the recycle center Sandhill cranes, semipalmated Plovers, godwits & dowitchers on the mud flats Steve W. Subject: Homer/Kachemak Bay: 8-5-10 From: "lani.raymond" <lani.raymond AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 06 Aug 2010 05:13:27 -0000 I took my hiking shoes to the Spit this evening instead of my scope. Big mistake! We saw ARCTIC TERNS, BRANT, BLACK TURNSTONES, and YELLOWLEGS (sp?). And, some smaller shorebirds (maybe 25-30+)and some larger dark shorebirds... Maybe someone else was out there this evening? Or, for sure I'll be there tomorrow with my scope!! Subject: Kayaking/birding Wood Tikchik State Park From: "George Matz" <geomatz AT alaska.net> Date: Thu, 5 Aug 2010 16:01:56 -0800 Kayaking/birding Wood Tikchik State Park Wood Tikchik State Park, the largest state park in the U.S. at 1.6 million acres, provides great opportunity for wilderness adventure and birding. My wife (Jeannie) and I recently flew to Dillingham with our Nautiraid collapsible kayak and then on Tikchik Airventures in a Cessna 185 floatplane to Lake Kulik, the most remote of the five lakes in the Wood River lake system. These long, narrow lakes form a zigzag pattern and are connected by short Class II rivers. What is unique about these lakes is that the western sides are like fiords that poke into the U-shaped valleys of the serrated Wood River Mountains, the middle of the lakes cut through mostly alder-clad foothills, and the eastern side has a rolling boreal forest landscape. We took 9 days and 8 nights to paddle 90 miles through the lake system to the small village of Aleknagik, the only community anywhere near the park, which is connected by a 25 mile road to Dillingham. We spent two nights at Lake Kulik, enjoying the outstanding scenery and watching for wildlife. In terms of mammals, when only saw brown bear tracks following the shore. A nearby rocky island had about a dozen Arctic Terns that seemed to be nesting there. Several Glaucous-winged Gulls were constantly harassing the terns, perhaps trying to prey on their chicks. We did see an immature Bald Eagle land and poke at something with its beak, perhaps a tern chick. Families of Common Loons were spaced throughout the lake as well as Red-breasted Mergansers. The dense alder/willow/birch/spruce forest had Golden-crowned Sparrows, Common Redpolls, Hermit Thrush, Alder Flycatcher, and Common Raven. We didn't venture too far into the forest because it was a jungle. The herbaceous plants included many that are common in the Cook Inlet area. After nearly two days of seeing no one else but a distant plane, we paddled across Lake Kulik to where the Windy River starts, which, being sort of a wind tunnel with the next lake (Mikchalk Lake) lived up to its name. We had an exciting ride trying to paddle an ocean kayak (with rudder removed) like a canoe. At one rapid, our bow got stuck on a rock so we did a 180, which pushed us off, and then another 180 so we could face downstream. While our attention was more on reading the water than looking for birds, I did notice a Spotted Sandpiper and a family of ducks that looked like scaup. We continued down the Peace River, which was comparatively easy, and on to Lake Beverly where we camped between the scenic Golden and Silver Horn fiords. The next day could have been another beautiful day in paradise if paradise hadn't taken the day off. In what alternated between a drizzle and a downpour, we paddled 14.25 miles (according to my GPS) across Lake Beverly to where the famous (with fly fisherman) Agulukpak River begins. Birds we saw continued to be clusters of Arctic Tern, Glaucous-winged Gulls, Red-breasted Mergansers, as well as Common Loons and Bald Eagles. From the kayak, we saw a brown bear on the shore. But when it looked up and saw this long, two-headed, four-legged, huge pawed creature swimming towards it, it did an about-face and disappeared into the thick alders. At the Agulukpak we meet several fly fishermen camping there and a friendly crew of volunteers who were building a two story cabin for the Division of Parks to replace the small cabin they presently use. Late that afternoon the sun came out, allowing us to dry off our gear. The sun also brought out some songbirds, including Common Redpoll, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Hermit Thrush, American Robin and some warblers I heard but couldn't identify. There was also a Spotted Sandpiper on the shore. I did this same trip 20 years ago and saw an Osprey at this site. We didn't see any this time, but the crew says they frequently see Osprey diving for fish. The next morning we took the rudder off the kayak and floated the Agulukpak River without incident. When we got to the other end and landed to put the rudder back on there was a family of Black-billed Magpies and Greater Scaup as well as a Red-throated Loon. Paddling west on Lake Nerka towards the mountains, I saw a Mew Gull with some Glaucous-winged Gulls and later we started seeing Bonaparte's Gulls. This was the only day on the trip that it didn't rain. After paddling three more days and 33.62 miles, and seeing only a couple of distant motorboats and floatplanes, we arrived at the other end of Lake Nerka where the Agulowak River begins. We camped near a rocky spit that attracted lots of Arctic Terns and Bonaparte's Gulls. Bill, the park ranger, was passing in a skiff and stopped to talk. He said that the terns and gulls were feeding on the salmon smolt headed out to sea. He also said that only about 10 parties a year do all five lakes. Also saw a Wilson 's Snipe there. The next day we floated the Agulowak River, which turned out to be eventful. Towards the end, before entering Lake Aleknagik, we apparently scrapped a rock that put two big gashes in the hypalon hull of the kayak. Fortunately, because of the Nautiraid's air tubes, we didn't sink. We went through another set of rapids and then pulled out on a narrow spit where the river runs into the lake. We needed to dry out the kayak before attempting to patch it with Gorilla tape and glue. As if by wish, the sun came out and we spread out our gear and kayak to dry. While waiting, we hiked around and noticed a lot of very fresh bear trails. But not being able to use the kayak for a couple of hours, we had no choice but to camp there. Frequent boat traffic on the Agulowak gave us a false sense of assurance. That evening, I thought I'd try some fishing and went to the end of the spit with rod, reel, bear spray, and whistle. I thought I'd try the whistle. When I did a brown bear jumped out of the alders on the other side of the river and ran upstream. Wow. It really works. About a half hour later while fishing, I had this funny feeling and turned around. About 100 feet away in the grass was a male brown bear, with the head the size of a bushel basket, looking at me. Apparently, I was in his spot. Sounding like a traffic cop, I quickly blew the whistle again, and he spun around and went into the woods. The bear spray was about 10 feet away, which would have been too far if actually needed. After that, knowing that bears are attracted to fish splashing in the water, I decided this wasn't the time to be fishing. As we retired to our sleeping bags, Jeannie said I should wear the whistle around my neck so that I can easily find it if I need to. Then she put in ear plugs so she wouldn't be disturbed by any bears prowling around. It was up to me to be her valiant prince and ward of the bears that night. Sure enough, about 3 am, I heard heavy footsteps approaching the tent. Out came the whistle. I blew hard and heard the footprints head away from the tent. Needless to say, we got an early start the next morning. The kayak patches seemed to hold and we headed down Lake Aleknagik to the village of Aleknagik, 15 miles away. I know this is a birding list and some may think that stories about bears may not fit. But for all of us birding in Alaska, there is the chance of having a bear encounter. While bear spray has proven effective, it takes time to get out and may have marginal effectiveness in wind or rain. Based on my recent experience, I would recommend having a loud, marine type whistle around your neck and to use this as your first line of defense. It has longer range than beat spray. It worked for me. But I should also caution that the bears in Wood Tikchik are not habituated and more wary of people than the bears in Chugach State Park. Also, the effectiveness of a whistle may wear off if bears hear it too often. The morning paddle to Aleknagik was pleasant for the first couple of hours, but then turned challenging as we picked up a brisk head wind. At times we had to put everything in to it to keep from losing ground. Saw a Greater Yellowlegs as we were nearing Aleknagik. Finally, after 10 hours of paddling, we pulled into the village boat launch. Dragging our sour butts out of the kayak, we went to the nearby park ranger's office/house seeking advice about where to stay for the night. Fortunately, Bill was in and called the Aleknagik Schoolhouse Inn, the only B&B in town. Not only did they have a room, but also a hot tub, shed for drying gear, washer and dryer, and even a boot dryer. What a soft way to end a trip. I slept solidly that night, not having to worry about bears. However, the next morning, Carolyn Smith, the B&B owner said that about midnight, the guy next door was chased into his house by a black bear. Then, the bear just stood at the door. In talking to Carolyn, it turns out she is an avid birder. One of the interesting things she mentioned is that a couple hundred Tundra Swans spend weeks every spring in front of their place, which is where Lake Aleknagik flows into the Wood River and remains ice free through the winter. Apparently, she has been keeping count for the last several years. If anyone is interested in this data, contact Carolyn at (www.visitbristolbay.org/aleknagikschoolhouseinn/). Also, we heard some Sandhill Cranes that nest in a nearby muskeg meadow. Tikchik Airventures will also pick you up in Aleknagik (for a fee). In driving back to Dillingham with Denise we saw some Spruce Grouse next to the road, which started a discussion about birds. She mentioned that last September she had a hummingbird at the feeder outside her office window and took photos. I asked to see the photos, which appeared to be that of a juvenile, female Anna's Hummingbird. She sent me the photos by email which I forwarded to Aaron Lang. He said that the hummingbird is way out of its range and submitted the photos to the University archives. If anyone else is interested in seeing these shots, email me a request. A feeder at her office was buzzing with birds which included Black-capped and Boreal Chickadees, Common Redpoll, Pine Grosbeak, Pine Siskin, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and White-crowned Sparrow. We spent the next night at the Kingfisher House B&B, which is in a forested area a few miles outside of Dillingham. From the deck I spotted a flock of birds which included Yellow-rumped Warblers, Black-capped and Boreal Chickadees, American Robin, and an Arctic Warbler. At first I thought the Arctic Warbler might be a rarity, but a Togiak NWR checklist I had just picked up at the refuge headquarters in Dillingham says that it is common in the spring, summer and fall. Well, this may be a longer report than most posted on this list, but it's about an interesting area that doesn't get much coverage. Hopefully, you have found it interesting. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: 51ST SUPPLEMENT TO AOU √LIST OF N.A. BIRDS From: Bob Winckler <winckler AT mtaonline.net> Date: Wed, 4 Aug 2010 10:34:54 -0800 Hi Birders, The 51st Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union CHECKLIST OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS is now available at: There are a couple of errors in the 51st Supplement and you can find those mistakes discussed and the corrective actions to be taken at: Amongst other changes, it looks like our Winter Wren is now Pacific Wren. Thanks to Gwen Baluss and Beth Peluso for their 51st Supplement tips on EagleChat. Cheers, Bob W. Subject: Seaside Farm report From: seasidefarm <seaside AT xyz.net> Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2010 19:35:24 -0800 Yes, fall is definitely in the air, bird wise and weather wise! Lots of warblers (wilson's, orange crowned, yellow rumped, yellow) flocking up, along with dozens of golden crowned and fox sparrows. The cranes are also beginning to call each other daily. Alder flycatchers still singing in the a.m. Am curious which day will be their last to sing and date of departure--they are usually among the first to go. Have not seen any swallows in a month, not one nest box used this summer! --are there any swallows still around Homer? Mossy, Homer Subject: Birds on the move From: Aaron Lang <birdingak AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2010 11:46:34 -0800 Portlock Drive, mile 6.5 East End Road, Homer: The neighborhood flock of the usual warblers and sparrows seems to be swelling and this morning contained a couple of LINCOLN'S SPARROWS and a female BLACKPOLL WARBLER. The only Blackpoll Warblers I've seen in Homer have been August yard birds. Also, a flock of 15 AMERICAN ROBINS worked its way through the elderberries this morning. Yesterday from the porch I watched two SOLITARY SANDPIPERS fly over the house calling. The long and wonderful season of fall migration is on. Aaron Lang Homer, AK [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: air force snipe & Potter Marsh From: Beth Peluso <bpeluso AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2010 11:49:23 -0700 (PDT) I may have been the only person watching the Blue Angels at Elmendorf on Saturday who also spotted a snipe come in low and land in a fenced-off field. It didn't seem to mind the sonic booms.  At Potter Marsh Monday night: a loud flock of about a dozen greater yellowlegs 1 or 2 lesser yellowlegs at least half a dozen snipe flying around squeaking constantly kingfisher 2 bald eagles 1 harrier green-winged teal mixed flock of warblers, mostly yellow-rumped but possibly one orange-crowned downy woodpecker black-capped chickadees Beth Peluso Anchorage [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Changing seasons! From: "jmh_tk" <jmh_tk AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:11:54 -0000 More birdy indicators that fall is on the way. Last two nights are the first I've heard our fall/winter Great Horned Owl calling on his favorite tree. Yesterday had the spring/fall feeding Northern Flicker in the garden after ants and just saw the first large chickadee flock, around 17 feeding together. Cheers, Joanna Subject: Homer/Kachemak Bay FIRST SATURDAY birding field trip announcement From: "lani.raymond" <lani.raymond AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:12:58 -0000 The Kachemak Bay Birders' FIRST SATURDAY birding trip will be August 7th at the mouth of the Anchor River. Meet at the Islands and Ocean Visitor Center parking lot at 9:00 am to carpool. Many shorebirds are passing through right now, and we should see many interesting species. This trip is cosponsored by the Kachemak Bay Birders and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The leader will be Michael Craig and for more information give him a call (235-0631). Everyone is welcome to attend. Subject: ANOTHER Solitary From: "w" <wkeys AT gci.net> Date: Tue, 03 Aug 2010 04:35:36 -0000 This morning (Monday) the Solitary was still in the little pond by the North Tunnel just after high tide. We rode up the trail to the little park upstream (and across Spenard Road) from Spenard Crossing and there was ANOTHER Solitary out in the wide spot on the creek. On the way back, we checked into the original tunnel pond to see if the first Solitary had just flown upstream, but he was still there. So there are 2. One additional incredible curiosity--there was a medium-sized tree felled by beavers in the parking lot of the little park on 19th. But right next to that is a tree that has been gnawed by beavers and is still standing. This tree is decently large, but the only thing that is holding it up is a core that is only a couple of inches in diameter. The rest of the trunk is gone. It's a pretty extreme visual that's definitely worth a look if you're in the neighborhood. (Access might have to be from Arctic on 19th because Spenard is under construction at Spenard Crossing.) w keys Spenard Subject: Kachemak Bay From: Martin Renner <great.auklet AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 2 Aug 2010 09:25:32 -0700 (PDT) In the fog between Homer and Seldovia we saw the following birds of note: White-winged Scoter1 Red-necked Phalaropes100 Sooty Shearwater50 (one partially leucistic bird with a white head) Fork-tailed Storm Petrel3 Parasitic Jaeger1 ad, dark morph Arctic Tern20 Marbled Murrelet30 Didn't see any Kittlitz's Murrelets or Aleutian Terns this time. Martin Renner [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]