Date: 5/10/26 8:03 am From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Festival: Saturday species +
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: SPECIES TALLY*
*Species seen Saturday, May 9th *
As of Saturday evening, we have had 131 species reported for the Festival.
(The average number of species in the last 25 years is 130). Some snow
yesterday, but birders out enjoying great birding, because *It’s Always a
Great Day to Bird*, as the Kachemak Bay Birders’ motto states.
*New species* seen Saturday: HORNED LARK at Mud Bay
*Numbers *as posted for Saturday evening at Mud Bay:
1000 WESTERN SANDPIPERS
500 DUNLIN
200 LEAST SANDPIPERS
30 SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS
25 HUDSONIAN WHIMBRELS
*Saturday locations:*
RED KNOT: Mud Bay
MARBLED GODWIT: Anchor Pt, Beluga Slough/Bishops Beach, Beluga Lake,
Louies/Green Timbers, Mariner Park
HUDSONIAN GODWIT: Anchor Point, Beluga Slough/Bishops Beach, Louies/Green
Timbers
PECTORAL SANDPIPER: Anchor Point, Beluga Slough/Bishops Beach, Beluga Lake
SPOTTED SANDPIPER: Mariner Park
RUDDY TURNSTONE: Mariner Park, Anchor Point
RED-TAILED HAWK: Beluga Slough/Bishops Beach
SHARP-SHINNED HAWK: Beluga Slough/Bishops Beach
SHORT-EARED OWL: Anchor Point
AMERICAN DIPPER: 6 miles up North Fork Rd.
(The BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW was not seen on Saturday.)
*Missing species:*
We do have 131 species on our list as of Saturday night, but we are missing
the following species which we would have expected to have on our list
already:
PACIFIC WREN
DOWNY WOODPECKER
HAIRY WOODPECKER
NORTHERN SHRIKE
No eiders or flycatchers yet and still only one warbler (ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLER)…
Date: 5/9/26 8:16 am From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] CORRECTION!!!
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: SPECIES TALLY*
*Species seen Friday, May 8th*
A BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW was seen in Mud Bay early Friday morning, in with
a group of nearly 60 HUDSONIAN WHIMBRELS! The flock was flushed by an
eagle, and the curlew was identified by its rump patch. No one was able to
relocate it later, unfortunately. Several other new species were found also
including SANDERLING, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, OSPREY, and some songbirds,
although only the one warbler so far, the orange-crowned, a ways east of
town has been reported. *It Was A Great Day to Bird!*
Date: 5/9/26 8:05 am From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Festival: Friday species
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: SPECIES TALLY*
*Species seen Thursday, May 7th*
A BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW was seen in Mud Bay early Friday morning, in with
a group of nearly 60 HUDSONIAN WHIMBRELS! The flock was flushed by an
eagle, and the curlew was identified by its rump patch. No one was able to
relocate it later, unfortunately. Several other new species were found also
including SANDERLING, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, OSPREY, and some songbirds,
although only the one warbler so far, the orange-crowned, a ways east of
town has been reported. *It Was A Great Day to Bird!*
Friday, May 8, 2026 FOS Dunlins, Marbled Godwit, Wandering Tattler
Seward, Alaska
The drizzle returned but delivered exciting First of Season birds including small numbers of bright breeding plumage DUNLINS sporting black bellies feeding among the WESTERN and LEAST SANDPIPERS.
The big excitement was a magnificent MARBLED GOTWIT strolling and feeding on the mudflats. The largest of the Godwits, it stands at 18” high, with a very impressive, long bi-colored bill. We heard its call, but did not find until it flew farther away. Great camo! The outstretched wings revealed distinctive cinnamon-colored linings.
A large flock of about 30 HUDSONIAN WHIMBRELS landed in the estuary pond to preen and probe. Other smaller flocks flew overhead.
About 20 DOWITCHERS, too far to determine species, clustered in the shallows, stitching away like mechanical sewing machines.
The single SAVANNAH SPARROW finally had company as a small pulse joined him to pluck sluggish flies from the beach sand.
ARCTIC TERNS flew back and forth from the tidewater to the shore, many carrying small fish including salmon smolt. A proud male seemed reluctant to relinquish his prize and teased his waiting lady as he paraded around and around, close then far, then close. She repeatedly opened her lipstick-red bill and begged before he finally forked it over. What a guy has to do!
Robin C alerted me to a FOS WANDERING TATTLER at Scheffler Creek south of the boat harbor Uplands by the pedestrian bridge. It took me a while, but I finally found one, poking along the edge and in the wrack-covered rocks.
The search was productive, however, as I found two or three Hudsonian Whimbrels stalking secretively through the rocks. One took offense at another and aggressively flew in to chase it away. This was interesting; all the other Whimbrels I’ve seen seemed to tolerate each other in close proximity.
Date: 5/8/26 11:17 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Wednesday, May 6, 2026 Swallows, Least and Western Sandpipers, Semipalmated Plovers, Merlin
Wednesday, May 6, 2026 Swallows, Least and Western Sandpipers, Semipalmated Plovers, Merlin
Seward, Alaska
Unexpected and much appreciated sunshine today! FOS 4 SWALLOWS swooped high above my yard, too far to ID or photograph. Fortunately, they are back in time to catch the slow-moving, recently emerged female mosquitoes.
At the head of the bay, the lone SNOW GOOSE persisted, with CACKLING GEESE and GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE.
Eight PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVERS stalked through the grasses.
In the shallow pond, smaller numbers of HUDSONIAN GODWITS and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS fed voraciously.
At the tidelands, a pulse of WESTERN and LEAST SANDPIPERS probed the rich intertidal. Up close, it was easy to compare the black legs and coppery rufous on the Westerns to the rather drab plumage of the leastest sandpiper with its yellowish legs. Most of these peeps were actively feeding, but at least one stole a much-deserved nap.
A few dapper SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS joined the peeps for mudflat treats.
I spied a MERLIN perched on a snag, also interested in the new arrivals. A few years ago, a friend reported their yard littered with shorebird parts from a nesting pair in the Forest Acres neighborhood. Not a pretty sight!
Date: 5/8/26 9:48 am From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Festival: THURSDAY species
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: SPECIES TALLY*
*Species seen Thursday, May 7th*
The RED KNOT was seen at Mud Bay again today. Some firsts: ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLER just past the end of East End Rd, first warbler, and AMERICAN
THREE-TOED WOODPECKER at Calvin and Coyle, first woodpecker. Other notable
sightings today: SNOW GOOSE near the Harbor, POMARINE JAEGER in Chinitna
Bay, NORTHERN FULMAR near Ninilchik.
Date: 5/7/26 8:05 am From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Festival: Wednesday species.
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: SPECIES TALLY*
*Species seen Wednesday, May 6th*
Sunshine today at the Festival. A RED KNOT was seen at Green Timbers in the
afternoon sun, EURASIAN WIGEON and a CASPIAN TERN at Mud Bay, bright colors
in the sunshine. Many interesting birds. No Ruff was found. Yet.
As Kachemak Bay Birders always say, “It Was a Good Day to Bird!”. Especially
true during Festival time.
Date: 5/6/26 9:27 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Tuesday, May 5, 2026 Hudsonian Godwits, Long-billed Dowitchers, Whimbrels
Tuesday, May 5, 2026 Hudsonian Godwits, Long-billed Dowitchers, Whimbrels
Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 5:44 am, sunset 10:06 pm, for a total day length of 16 hours and 21 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 6 seconds longer.
The pattern of gray, overcast skies with light showers continued today, with temps ranging from 34 to 41. Thanks to the long hours of daylight, green spears poke ever higher among the dead grasses, pussy willows popped, and buds are swelling, but it’s still early Spring.
The songs of VARIED THRUSHES and ROBINS greeted me this morning; recent arrivals to the ’hood.
Robin reported two Surfbirds and two Black Oystercatchers at low tide at Spring Creek Beach. I failed to refind them in the drizzle, but found two FOS DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS at Fourth of July Beach and an impressive surf.
The rain lifted at the head of the bay where I enjoyed watching four gold-spangled PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVERS stop/start as they plucked invertebrates from the mud. A stealthy GREAT BLUE HERON cruised past. Skydiving WILSON’S SNIPE winnowed eerily, trying to impress hidden females.
A single SNOW GOOSE joined small flocks of continuing voracious GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE and CACKLING GEESE, even as more Geese arrived and others continued their narrated migration north.
To my great delight, two small flocks of SANDHILL CRANES bugled and circled before ultimately deciding to move on. HUDSONIAN WHIMBRELS trilled from the dead grasses, blending in perfectly.
In the shallows of the estuary pond, 7 FOS HUDSONIAN GODWITS and 7 smaller FOS LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS prodded and poked in the water.
The long bi-colored Godwit bills remained mostly submerged, but emerged briefly as if to take a breath before plunging underwater again. When they flew, their black tail and bright white rumps flashed and they revealed the diagnostic black underwings.
A flock of bright WESTERN SANDPIPERS swooped and swerved in synchrony to feed among the Godwits in exposed mud.
Pesky RAVENS roused the ire of SHORT-BILLED GULLS and ARCTIC TERNS, perhaps amused by the acrobatic challenge to avoid their sharp bills as they repeatedly invaded the nesting territories.
Back at the parking lot, a FOS RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET belted out his chipper song.
Later, around 11 pm, I again heard a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL beeping from Little Bear Mountain.
Though possible snow is still in the forecast, Winter is doomed with these beautiful and vocal harbingers of Spring.
Date: 5/5/26 10:42 pm From: Lani Raymond via groups.io <lanibirder...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Festival--Preliminary Report
*Our Festival begins tomorrow, May 6th. Hope some of you will be able to
come down and join us!*
*2026 Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival: Species Tally*
*PRELIMINARY REPORT (May 3rd-5th)*
The Shorebird Festival is off to a great start. An adult male RUFF was
spotted at the Anchor River on the 3rd and also seen on the 4th. He sure
got a lot of birders out to see this beautiful bird, and he became an early
herald for our Festival. No further reports, however, as of the evening of
the 5th, but hope he’s still around and folks will find him again soon!
Many shorebirds and other species are already here. SANDHILL CRANES can be
found all over town. Snipe winnowing, VARIED THRUSH and FOX and SONG
SPARROWS heard singing. Not too many songbirds yet, but more each day. A
list of some of the species seen May 3-5 below.
A largest number of ‘peeps” seen so far was on the 4th at Green
Timbers/Louie’s Lagoon: 1000 WESTERN SANDPIPERS.
*Anchor River*: RUFF* (seen 3rd and 4th) *HUDSONIAN WHIMBREL, EURASIAN
WHIMBREL, HUDSONIAN GODWIT, MARBLED GODWIT, BLACK TURNSTONE, both
DOWITCHERS, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, PACIFIC
GOLDEN-PLOVER, COMMON EIDER, RED-THROATED LOON, PARASITIC JAEGER
Date: 5/3/26 5:57 pm From: George Matz via groups.io <geomatz41...> Subject: [AKBirding] Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Session #5
Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Project
2026 Session #5
Many New Arrivals
On Friday, May 1 the Kachemak Bay Birders had its fifth of nine scheduled
shorebird monitoring sessions for this year. Our sessions last two hours.
This session started at 5:00 PM. For consistency, starting time is when the
outgoing tide approaches 15.0 feet, or high tide if less than that. This
morning when we started monitoring, the high tide was 15.2 feet. High tide
was 17.4 feet at 3:33 PM. This is our 18th consecutive year of monitoring,
following the same protocol each year. Because our monitoring dates try to
bracket the spring shorebird migration, the first and last sessions tend to
have just a few shorebird sightings. All observations are submitted to
eBird and the ISS portal.
This session we had 14 birders at Homer Spit sites, 4 at Beluga Slough, 5
at the Anchor River, 3 via boat across the bay on Saturday morning when the
small craft warning lifted, and 2 at the Kasilof River. Due to small-craft
warnings no monitoring was attempted at Seldovia. A total of 28 birders
participated in this session. Pretty good considering the weather.
Conditions were quite gusty, especially earlier in the day. The wind
affected waterfowl and shorebirds; most stayed on the ground and foraged.
According to the NWS station at the Homer Airport (
https://forecast.weather.gov/data/obhistory/PAHO.html ), at 4:53 PM winds
were from the S at 8 mph, the sky was overcast with light rain, the
temperature was 41°, and the barometric pressure was 29.45”. At 6:53 PM.
the wind was variable 5 mph, light rain continued, the temperature was
still 41°, and the barometric pressure rose to 29.51”. However, just before
monitoring began winds at the airport (which are less than the Spit) were
from the E at 15 mph with gusts to 26 mph. During monitoring the wind
shifted to SE at 9 mph with gusts to 20 mph. The average high for this
date is 51° and the low is 36°.
Despite the winds, we had good birding and we are definitely getting into
the peak of the migration (just in time for the shorebird festival). We saw
18 species of shorebirds this session, compared to only 12 last session.
Plus, many more of the common shorebirds. One species we didn’t see this
session is the Wilson’s Snipe, which really isn’t a shorebird and common in
wet, marshy woods around Homer. New species include Semipalmated Plover,
Hudsonian Godwit, Long-billed Dowitcher (though no yet confirmed), Ruddy
Turnstone, Surfbird, Least Sandpiper, and Ruff. The Ruff is the big news.
It’s a bizarre looking Eurasian bird that is rare to all of North America.
It’s on the Kachemak Bay Birders checklist (so I assume it has been seen
here before) and listed as accidental.
Here are the species we saw this session, plus the count by site.
· Black Oystercatcher – Islands and Islets (2).
· Black-bellied Plover – Mud Bay (1), Louie’s Lagoon (16), Green
Timbers (18), Outer Spit (1). Anchor Point (59), Kasilof (27).
· Pacific Golden-Plover – Louie’s Lagoon (2), Green Timbers (1),
Outer Spit (1), Anchor Point (1). Kasilof (1).
· Semipalmated Plover – Louie’s Lagoon (3), Green Timbers (9),
Anchor Point (6), Kasilof (1).
· Hudsonian Whimbrel – Mud Bay (2), Louie’s Lagoon (4), Outer Spit
(1), Anchor Point (2), Kasilof (12).
· Marbled Godwit. – Mud Bay (8).
· Hudsonian Godwit – Mud Bay (3), Kasilof (11).
· Greater Yellowlegs – Mud Bay (1), Mariner Park Lagoon (3), Beluga
Slough (7), Anchor Point (27), Kasilof (33).
· Lesser Yellowlegs – Anchor Point (4), Kasilof (7).
· Ruff – Anchor Point (1).
· Short-billed Dowitcher – Mud Bay (12), Louie’s Lagoon (3), Green
Timbers (7), Kasilof (65).
· Long-billed Dowitcher; Anchor Point (3).
· Ruddy Turnstone – Louie’s Lagoon (3), Green Timbers (1).
· Surfbird – Islands and Islets (72).
· Dunlin – Mud Bay (1), Louie’s Lagoon (16), Green Timbers (6),
Anchor Point (5), Kasilof (11).
· Least Sandpiper- Louie’s Lagoon (54), Anchor Point (6).
· Western Sandpiper – Mud Bay (23), Louie’s Lagoon (36), Green
Timbers (12), Anchor Point (34), Kasilof (140).
· Peep – Louie’ Lagoon (200), Green Timbers (2), Outer Spit (25),
Beluga Slough (8), Anchor point (40).
· Rock Sandpiper – Islands and Islets (2).
Below are the non-shorebird species reported for the fifth session. New
species include;
The big news is the Garganey that was reported at the Anchor River. That’s
two biggies for the Anchor River team this session. However, I caution, it
has not yet been confirmed. It is not on our checklist.
Audubon says the Garganey is a “A long-distance migrant in the Old World,
the Garganey sometimes goes off course, and might turn up almost anywhere
in North America. Most likely to be seen in spring, on marshy ponds of the
sort favored by Blue-winged Teal. In the western Aleutian Islands, Alaska,
occurs as a rare migrant in spring and very rarely in fall.”
It seems there were more raptors present, especially Merlin. Big flocks of
shorebirds look appetizing to them. Also, a Eurasian Wigeon at Anchor Point
is recent, though some have been reported earlier. An Arctic Tern at the
Kasilof is a FOS for this project..
Date: 4/29/26 11:57 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Wednesday, April 29, 2026 Semipalmated Plover, Western and Least Sandpipers, and more!
Wednesday, April 29, 2026 Semipalmated Plover, Western and Least Sandpipers, and more!
Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 6:01 am, sunset 9:51 pm for a total day length of 15 hours and 50 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 15 seconds longer.
Winter and Spring continued to battle out the last few days of April with hard rain, sleet showers, drizzle, sprinkles, chilly winds, then a surprise blast of warm sunshine, and repeat. Temps ranged from 27 to 38 with more rain and even snow in the forecast.
The turbulent weather did not seem to deter migrating birds and many First of Season (FOS) species arrived this week, along with more flocks of GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, CACKLING GEESE, and ducks. ARCTIC TERN numbers increased every day, several toting Stickleback gifts for courting.
On Saturday, April 25, I heard the growly voices of BONAPARTE’S GULLS and photographed two with their distinctive black hoods looking petite next to SHORT-BILLED GULLS. One tired migrant enjoyed a well-deserved a nap.
On Sunday, April 26, I found a single BRANT, a male and female NORTHERN HARRIER, and heard the complaint of a WILSON’S SNIPE.
On Monday, April 27, I flushed a Snipe from the side of the road by Dairy Hill. Tasha reported five BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS at Spring Creek Beach. Ten SNOW GEESE lingered at the head of the bay.
On Tuesday, April 28, two SANDHILL CRANES continued their flight north while another pulse of AMERICAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL dabbled along the beach. A drake EURASIAN WIGEON mingled with the Teal, AMERICAN WIGEON, MALLARDS, GADWALL, NORTHERN PINTAILS, and NORTHERN SHOVELERS.
I heard the SAW-WHET OWL beeping from Little Bear Mt around 11 pm.
This morning, I heard the haunting flight call of a COMMON LOON heading north though the clouds. A single PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVER called as it circled high in the sky; it was a challenge to photograph the speck!
FOS GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS sang their plaintive “Oh, dear me” song at Lowell Point Beach.
The evening, the FOS SEMIPALMATED PLOVER arrived, hanging out with a dozen peeps including LEAST and WESTERN SANDPIPERS.
More shorebirds and songbirds are on their way. Clean and fill your hummingbird feeders for the Rufous Hummers!
Date: 4/28/26 12:03 am From: George Matz via groups.io <geomatz41...> Subject: [AKBirding] KBay Shorebird Monitoring Session #4
Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Project
2026 Session #4
New Songbirds
On Sunday, April 26 the Kachemak Bay Birders had its fourth of nine
scheduled shorebird monitoring sessions for this year. Our sessions last
two hours. This session started at 11:30 AM. For consistency, starting time
is when the outgoing tide approaches 15.0 feet, or high tide if less than
that. This morning when we started monitoring, the high tide was 14.7 feet.
High tide was 14.7 feet at 11:42 AM. This is our 18th consecutive year of
monitoring, following the same protocol each year. Because our monitoring
dates try to bracket the spring shorebird migration, the first and last
sessions tend to have just a few shorebird sightings. All observations are
submitted to eBird and the ISS portal.
This session we had 20 birders at Spit sites, 4 at Beluga Slough, 6 on a
boat across the bay, 7 at the Anchor River, and 2 at the Kasilof River. Due
to small-craft warning conditions no monitoring was attempted at Seldovia.
The total was 39 Homer birders.
Again, cooler than normal weather conditions prevailed. According to the
NWS station at the Homer Airport (
https://forecast.weather.gov/data/obhistory/PAHO.html ), at 10:53 AM winds
were from the S at 3 mph, the sky was overcast, the temperature was 42°,
and the barometric pressure was 29.96”. At 1:53 PM. the wind was SE at 10
mph, the sky was still overcast, the temperature was 45°, and the
barometric pressure was 29.91”. The average high for this 50° and the low
is 35°.
I had expected that some of the sandpipers would show up this session, but
it barely happened. We did have 12 species of shorebirds, which is better
than just four species that we had last session. Here is what we had.
· Black Oystercatcher – Islands & Islets (6).
· Black-bellied Plover – Mud Bay (3), Louie’s Lagoon (1), Anchor
River (3),
· Pacific Golden-Plover - Anchor River (1).
· Marbled Godwit. – Mud Bay (2).
· Hudsonian Whimbrel – Anchor River (1).
· Greater Yellowlegs – Mud Bay (1), Mariner Park Lagoon (2), Beluga
Slough (6), Anchor River (22). Kasilof River (22).
· Lesser Yellowlegs – Kasilof River (1),
· Short-billed Dowitcher – Louie’s Lagoon (1).
· Dunlin – Mud Bay (10), Green Timbers (2),
· Western Sandpiper – Mud Bay (9), Kasilof River (1).
· Rock Sandpiper – Islands and Islets (3), Kasilof River (2).
· Wilson’s Snipe – Kasilof River (2).
Listed below are non-shorebird species seen during session #4. Some new
birds are Snow Goose, Northern Shoveler, Belted Kingfisher,
Double-crested Cormorant, Tufted Puffin. Bonaparte’s Gull, Parasitic
Jaeger, and Horned Lark.
Date: 4/26/26 10:54 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Saturday, April 25, 2026 Crane Day!
Saturday, April 25, 2026 Crane Day!Seward, Alaska
Flock after flock of bugling SANDHILL CRANES streamed across the gray skies this afternoon. Most were dark specks flying high in Vs and bows and undulating transformations. They cruised along the face of the snowy western mountains cradling Resurrection Bay then veered west into the Resurrection River valley.
I drove over to Exit Glacier Road and parked at the large pullout before the closed Box Canyon gate. There, I could watch them approaching head-on along the mountainsides and then turn into the valley. Wave after wave. There were easily over a 1000. It was thrilling!
Just before 6 pm, after a long pause, I heard Cranes calling directly overhead and close. I leaped out of the car and saw a magnificent finale as over 200 Cranes created a fantastic mountain design of overlapping Vs. This group won the grand prize for Originality and Best of Show.
From singles to hundreds, each and every one was a winner!
Date: 4/24/26 9:56 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Friday, April 24, 2026 Spring Has Sprung! Sandhill Cranes, Pacific Golden-Plovers, Black-bellied Plover, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck!
Friday, April 24, 2026 Spring Has Sprung! Sandhill Cranes, Pacific Golden-Plovers, Black-bellied Plover, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck!
Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 6:15 am, sunset 9:38 pm for a total day length of 15 hours and 23 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 20 seconds longer.
Rain it did, 1.5” in town and snow out of town but the hard rain was mostly after 6 pm. Buckets more precip in the 10-day forecast. The clouds concealed the migrants until Vs and bows of SANDHILL CRANES and CACKLING GEESE pushed through, flying high and crying joyously on their way north.
Yesterday morning, four FOS PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVERS, including one female, hunted in a mowed field for invertebrates. These beautiful and incredible flyers migrated from Hawaii, a non-stop 88-hour flight, or even farther from New Zealand, Australia or even Southeast Asia and the Horn of Africa.
I checked out Afognak Beach and found about 75 GREEN-WINGED TEAL dabbling in the intertidal puddles and streams.
Scanning across the tidelands, I saw a line of suspicious-looking snowballs strung out below the berm in the distance. Suddenly, they took flight and morphed into 80 SNOW GEESE! The flock split as some headed north while others circled, undecided. One looked suspiciously small; could it be a ROSS’S GOOSE?
The ice on Preacher Pond was mostly gone. A very handsome RING-NECKED DUCK napped in the company of a few COMMON MERGANSERS, BUFFLEHEAD, and two BARROW’S GOLDENEYES.
Much to my delight, a stunning drake REDHEAD joined them. He dove and quickly emerged with bright green pond vegetation dangling from his bill. He wolfed it down, cheeks bulging, and dove for more.
I took the trash I collected at the beach to the dump and in exchange got some great photos of an adult BALD EAGLE watching his buddy rummage around in the bin below. More than fair trade!
Today, I found my FOS BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, a dapper male with a distinguished white hairdo and white undertail coverts feeding in the intertidal zone.
A bright EUROPEAN WIGEON drake paddled along the shore with Green-winged Teal, Mallards, and Gadwall.
Over at the Mile 1 Nash Road wetlands, only one pair of TRUMPETER SWANS remained, possibly the victors of a territorial struggle. The nest site was almost submerged even though the ice has not completely thawed.
Far back on the east side, I refound the pair of HOODED MERGANSERS that Jonah discovered yesterday. Both were actively diving and fishing. It’s wonderful that they returned again this year.
Around 1 pm, I stepped outside and heard the bugling of 77 Sandhill Cranes! I dashed to the street to watch them flying north in a ragged V.
Around 2:30 pm, 59 Cackling Geese circled high, but did not land. It’s hard to be inside while all this action is happening day and night!
Date: 4/23/26 11:17 pm From: rainyday via groups.io <c_griz...> Subject: [AKBirding] Sunday, April 19- Wednesday, April 22, 2026 FOS Savannah Sparrow, Vs of Geese and Cranes, FOS Northern Shovelers
Sunday, April 19- Wednesday, April 22, 2026 FOS Savannah Sparrow, Vs of Geese and Cranes, FOS Northern Shovelers
Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 6:20 am, sunset 9:33 pm, for a total day length of 15 hours and 12 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 22 seconds longer
Temperatures remained chilly with overnight lows in the mid-20s and daytime highs in the mid-30s. Frost and frozen puddles greeted the mornings this week, but soon melted by midday despite the cold south wind. Rain, heavy at times, forecast by Wednesday and continuing for the next 10 days.
Sunday, April 19: Showers. FOS SAVANNAH SPARROW with a bright yellow eyebrow found flitting though the dead beach ryegrass, very hard to spot! Frost-nipped spears of green ryegrass poking through. A flock of 20 CACKLING GEESE circled from north and landed.
Monday, April 20: Partly sunny. 3 SNOW GEESE lingered, also circling and landing to feed. Five ARCTIC TERNS patrolled along the tide’s edge, at least one carrying a small fish and bragging about it.
SANDHILL CRANES reported flying north.
Lots of BALD EAGLE interaction between adults and immatures, and sorties to activate clouds of noisy Gulls including BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES at tide’s edge.
SAW-WHET OWL heard beeping away on Little Bear Mountain around 11 pm.
Tuesday, April 21: Sunny. Briefly heard Cranes flying north by Mt Alice. Ice finally gone from estuary pond revealing mostly mud and shockingly shallow. Arctic Tern overhead, what a beauty!
Wednesday, April 22: Happy Earth Day! Sprinkles then lashing rain by 6 pm. Pulse of GREATER YELLOWLEGS and GREEN-WINGED TEAL arrived overnight ahead of storm. FOS NORTHERN SHOVELERS.
Vs of CACKLING GEESE, 54 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, small flock of SANDHILL CRANES. Three TRUMPETER SWANS honked faintly in the distance as they flew high overhead heading north.
Date: 4/23/26 11:54 am From: George Matz via groups.io <geomatz41...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Monitoring 2026 Session #3
Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Project
2026 Session #3
Thaw is Over at Homer Spit
On Tuesday, April 21 the Kachemak Bay Birders had its third of nine
scheduled shorebird monitoring sessions for this year. Our sessions last
two hours. This session started at 7:30 AM. For consistency, starting time
is when the outgoing tide approaches 15.0 feet, or high tide if less than
that. This morning when we started monitoring, the high tide was 15.3 feet.
High tide was 20.0 feet at 5:46 AM. This is our 18th consecutive year of
monitoring, following the same protocol each year. Because our monitoring
dates try to bracket the spring shorebird migration, the first and last
sessions tend to have just a few shorebird sightings. All observations are
submitted to eBird and the ISS portal.
This session we had 16 birders at Spit sites, 3 at Beluga Slough, 7 at the
Anchor River, and 2 at the Kasilof River. Due to small-craft warning
conditions there was no monitoring at Seldovia or across the bay. The total
was 28 hardy Homer birders.
Monitoring started this year with winter still in charge. But by the second
session, high temperatures for the day were in the 30’s and low 40’s and
the snow and ice were rapidly melting. This session continued the thaw.
According to the NWS station at the Homer Airport (
https://forecast.weather.gov/data/obhistory/PAHO.html ), at 6:53 AM winds
were from the W at 13 mph with gusts to 24 mph, the sky was overcast, the
temperature was 37°, and the barometric pressure was 29.97”. At 9:53 AM.
the wind was variable at 6 mph, the sky was fair, the temperature was 41°,
and the barometric pressure was 30.0 ”. The average high for this date is
49° and the low is 34°. Attached are shots from the Mariner Park Lagoon
taken on the first and third sessions, illustrating the difference. This
site is where the observation platform used to be. The property is now
owned by Doyon who has been quite cooperative in agreeing to our being on
the site.
The blustery winds kept the ducks and geese on the ground, foraging on the
vegetation that had been covered with ice for months. While the weather may
have slowed down the migration, it still moved ahead. Shorebirds that were
seen include the following.
· Black-bellied Plover – Green Timbers (8), Louie’s Lagoon (8),
Anchor River (1).
· Greater Yellowlegs – Mud Bay (12), Mariner Park Lagoon (11),
Green Timber (9), Louie’s Lagoon (1), Beluga Slough (8), Anchor Point (60),
Kasilof River (41).
· Rock Sandpiper – Green Timbers (1), Fishing Hole to Boat Harbor
(102).
· Peeps -Louie’s Lagoon (3)
This was the Greater Yellowlegs session. As you can see from the data
above, the Spit had some good counts. All of these sites are close together
and GRYE do move around, so there may be some double counting. However,
because of the gusty winds, there wasn’t much movement of birds that
morning. Also, I got an interesting email from Toby about the large number
of GRYE he and Lauria saw.
“Along Bridge Access Road on the more vegetated east side (with ephemeral
snowmelt ponding) we had a very concentrated flock of 150+ Greater
Yellowlegs (and one Pacific Golden Plover). I only bring this to your
attention as I noticed on eBird that Anchor River had 60 GRYE, Kasilof
River 41, and Bridge Access (Kenai Flats) 150+. It seems there was quite
the concerted movement of Yellowlegs yesterday.”
To provide some perspective, I thought it would be useful to show our GRYE
data for the Homer Spit area sites for the past 17 years (see attachment).
I think this data illustrates the usefulness of having a monitoring network
that is all out in the field at the same time, though the Kasilof monitors
at a different time than Homer Spit monitoring times due to differences in
tides.
It’s also interesting to note that a few Rock Sandpipers are still around.
I think their late departure from Kachemak Bay is because of wintery
conditions well into what would normally be spring in recent years. To me,
this demonstrates that unlike most shorebirds, Rock Sandpiper migration is
somewhat dependent on weather conditions. This seems to be verified with
our data from when we had some really warm springs and hardly any Rock
Sandpipers when we started monitoring.
Listed below are non-shorebird species seen during session #1. A highlight
is the number of Brant we have been seeing. The Louie’s Lagoon team counted
46. The day before, Randy Weisser posted on eBird a shot of 54 Brant flying
over the Spit.
Sunrise 6:32 am, sunset 9:23 pm for a total day length of 14 hours and 51 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 24 seconds longer.
As expected, it did not snow as forecast, but rain and snow are predicted for Sunday and Wednesday with over an inch of rain on Thursday. April showers?
I checked out the Mile 1 Nash Road wetlands yesterday. To my delight, seven adult Swans were very close to the road. Another 5 were in the back under the watchful eyes of two adult Bald Eagles. A dozen Swans!
In between the noise of traffic whizzing by, it was so quiet I could hear their bills smacking the water as they slurped up the recently thawed vegetation soup. All were feeding ravenously, except for one. That one, in classic Swan yoga-style, napped with head tucked under wing while standing on one leg.
As I admired the Swans, I began to look more closely. One had a bit of yellow on the bill! A TUNDRA SWAN! I checked the other five; another had even more yellow on the bill! Then, the napping Swan unfurled its head and revealed even larger yellow patches shaped like mirror-image lightning bolts. Three of the seven were Tundra Swans!
For these wild Tundras to hang out with Trumpeters was surprising to me. For one, there’s a good chance the Trumpeters are residents and have become habituated to cars over the years. Then, to have Tundras who never spent much time at this wetlands ever, to also tolerate traffic and the presence of the larger Trumpeters… Just amazing.
Today, the Swans were farther back, and the Tundras were still there with the Trumpeters.
Yesterday, 25 FOS CACKLING GEESE landed in the intertidal zone. Though they were far away, some showed the white neck ring of the Aleutian subspecies. Several were napping, doing Goose yoga. One Goose stood much taller, possibly a CANADA GOOSE.
Though the Cackling Geese did not linger, I spotted 11 wary SNOW GOOSE heads peeking above the grass from a swale like white periscopes. I did not see them today. Moving on!
At 10 pm, a SAW-WHET OWL beeped from Little Bear Mountain in the dusk. The stars are already vanishing like the Cheshire Cat’s grin, another sign of Spring.
Date: 4/17/26 11:32 pm From: George Matz via groups.io <geomatz41...> Subject: [AKBirding] Shorebird Monitoing Session #2
Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Project
2026 Session #2
The Thaw Begins
On Thursday, April 16 the Kachemak Bay Birders had its second of nine
scheduled shorebird monitoring sessions for this year. Our sessions last
two hours. This session started at 4:30 PM For consistency, starting time
is when the outgoing tide approaches 15.0 feet, or high tide if less than
that. This morning when we started monitoring, the high tide was 15.2 feet.
High tide was 18.9 feet at 2:46 PM. This is our 18th consecutive year of
monitoring, following the same protocol each year. Because our monitoring
dates try to bracket the spring shorebird migration, the first and last
sessions tend to have just a few shorebird sightings. All observations are
submitted to eBird and the ISS portal.
Despite the cold drizzle, once again the intrepid Kachemak Bay Birders
showed up for the count! We had 18 birders at Spit sites, 3 at Beluga
Slough, 1 at Seldovia, 5 on a boat across the bay, 5 at the Anchor River,
and 2 at the Kasilof River. We cover most of the Cook Inlet side of the
Kenai Peninsula. The total was 34 birders, which included 3 from KBC’s
Semester by the Bay Program.
With temperatures in the 30’s and low 40’s most of the past couple of days,
plus some light rain, ice in the intertidal areas is quickly melting away,
exposing grassy areas that foraging waterfowl are attracted to. According
to the NWS at the Homer Airport at the base of the Spit (
https://forecast.weather.gov/data/obhistory/PAHO.html ), at 3:53 PM winds
were calm, the sky was overcast with a light rain, the temperature was 43°,
and the barometric pressure was 29.79”. At 6:53 PM, there was a light wind
from the W at 6 mph, the overcast skies and drizzle continued, the
temperature was 42°, and the barometric pressure dropped a bit to 28.78”.
One of the objectives of this project is to note disturbances to shorebirds
as well as waterfowl. During our two-hour observation period, there were a
couple of times that the entire flock of ducks (about 250) took flight, as
if they were trying to evade an avian predator. We searched the sky but
didn’t see any. Two Bald Eagles that were in the area were still sitting in
their trees. Then, just as the session was ending, all the ducks took
flight once again and a Northern Goshawk landed on the top of a small
spruce not far from where we were sitting. It certainly appeared as if it
were responsible for the ducks taking flight. It could have been
responsible for the other flights.
An earlier disturbance we observed is when the ducks and geese that were
foraging on the grassy areas took flight each time a C-130 did a touch and
go (about 3 times) at the airport. The go (departing) part of the flight
was right over Mariner Lagoon. These planes are much noisier and disturbing
than the single engine and prop-jet planes, which are the usual traffic for
Homer Airport. Based on my observations at Mariner Park Lagoon over the
last 17 years, I haven’t seen that the typical airplane traffic, which
follows a predictable flight pattern, has triggered much disturbance to
waterfowl or shorebirds. However, helicopters are an exception. A safety
issue that may need to be looked into is whether these C-130's should be
taking off (when the engine noise is much greater) going to the west. The
plane wasn't that much above the ducks and geese. In fact, some of the
earlier duck flights would have been right in the flight of this plane. It
might not be an issue if the plane landed from the west and took off to the
east over water. Another solution to this risk is to not schedule these
training flights during spring migration.
A few years ago, I tried to connect with the FAA about another potential
Homer Airport aircraft risk. I was standing at the observation platform on
Beluga Lake watching a flock of about 300 Greater White-fronted Geese come
in for a landing at Beluga Lake. Then I noticed a small plane on almost the
same flight pattern, but fortunately a few hundred feet parallel. I tried
contacting the FAA about this but got nowhere past their automated-reply
system. Frankly, I was interested in getting the FAA to detect and record
migrating birds. I mentioned this to a friend of a friend who was an
engineer that designed small airports. He said that the FAA was well aware
of birds near airports but found the bird radar signal was confusing to
pilots, so they squelched their signal, making it not noticeable. Based on
the difficulties I was having trying to contact the FAA, I gave up. But
maybe it needs to be resurrected. If anyone knows how to raise this issue
with the FAA, or maybe the military who owns these ancient C-130’s, have at
it.
Our Mariner Park Lagoon monitoring site is a stationary site. Basically, we
are probably going to see more birds by just sitting in an advantageous
spot (like the Doyon property) and watch for whatever comes and goes. This
gives time to just sit and talk. So, Thursday, during a lull, we were
resolving worldly issues and I thought, being an observer of the incredible
athletic ability of birds, about a probing question. I asked that if God
appointed you, when mammals were just evolving, to the Homo
sapiens evolution committee and wanted your opinion as to whether humans
should have wings or arms, what would be your choice. Because they have
wings, birds live in a 3-dimension world, rather than the 2-dimensional
world that humans are limited to. Also, they fly much faster than we can
walk or run. And, in going through the woods they don’t trip on logs or
slip on ice. It's a close call. Which would you prefer?
Getting back to shorebirds, those seen during session #2 include the
following. Numbers indicate the count for the respective site.
· Black Oystercatcher; Islands and Islets (1), Seldovia (2), Anchor
River (3).
· Black-bellied Plover; Mud Bay (9), Green Timbers (11), Louie’s
Lagoon (6). The FOS report was just a couple of days earlier.
· Rock Sandpiper; Mud Bay (260), Green Timbers (153), Louie’s
Lagoon (120). This is still a high count, indicating a slow start for their
spring migration, probably because of still wintery conditions on breeding
grounds.
· Surfbird: Islands and Islets; (3). FOS. We should learn a lot
more about this species when F&WS continues their capture and tagging
project they started in Kachemak Bay last year.
· Greater Yellowlegs; Mariner Park Lagoon (1), Green Timbers (1),
Beluga Slough (12), Anchor River (24), Kasilof River (10). Migration in
full force for this shorebird.
· Sanderling; Louie’s Lagoon (1).
Listed below are non-shorebird species seen during session #1.
Sunrise 6:38 am, sunset 9:18 pm, for a total day length of 14 hours and 40 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 25 seconds longer.
Temps slightly warmer with a low of 30 and a high of 35.
Though snow was in the forecast, the gray blanket covering the sky only delivered light sprinkles, a southerly whisper of wind, and new spring migrants.
On Monday, a FOS SHORT-EARED OWL shot out of the grasses about 20 feet ahead of me. The AMERICAN CROWS and RAVENS soon found him/her and escorted poor owl out of sight.
Yesterday, FOS flock of SANDHILL CRANES was reported flying over town at 7 am. Later, while watching the clouds of screaming Gulls at the beach, I heard the exciting “chip! RRRRRZZZZZZ!” of a FOS ARCTIC TERN and found the single buoyant flyer high in the sky heading over the bay.
Four GREATER YELLOWLEGS dashed after prey in the creeks and intertidal puddles, their numbers slowly increasing.
This afternoon,17 FOS SNOW GEESE landed in the soggy sedges of the estuary accompanied by a lone FOS GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE! The aptly named Snow Geese looked like snow drifts against the brown vegetation as they eagerly devoured the goodness hidden in the plant roots.
Ice still covers area ponds, lakes, and the Lagoon, but leads are widening and the softening ice is blue-gray. With the gentle but persistent light rain and warming temperatures, the ice is doomed.
Keep your eyes and ears to the sky for the oncoming waves of Cranes, Geese, and Swans. Spring is!
Date: 4/13/26 1:33 pm From: George Matz via groups.io <geomatz41...> Subject: [AKBirding] KBay Shorebird Monitoring Session #1
Kachemak Bay Shorebird Monitoring Project
2026 Session #1
After a Deep Freeze Winter, Spring Migration is Underway (sort of)
On Saturday, April 11 the Kachemak Bay Birders had its first of nine
scheduled shorebird monitoring sessions for this year. Our sessions last
two hours. This session started at 10:00 AM For consistency, starting time
is when the outgoing tide approaches 15.0 feet, or high tide if less than
that. This morning, the high tide was only 12.5 feet, one of the lowest
high tides of the year. This is our 18th consecutive year of monitoring
following the same protocol each year. Because our monitoring dates try to
bracket the spring shorebird migration, the first and last sessions tend to
have just a few shorebird sightings. All observations are submitted to
eBird and the ISS portal.
We had a good turnout of birders for our first session with 19 volunteers
covering the five Spit sites, five covering Beluga Slough, one in Seldovia,
and two each at the Anchor and Kasilof Rivers for a total of 29 volunteers.
This includes six KBC Semester by the Bay students.
It was an old-timer winter for Homer (as well as the whole State of
Alaska). Google says. “Based on data from the Homer Municipal Airport,
comparing the December 2025 to April 2026 period against long-term averages
(1932–2025/26), this winter and early spring was generally colder than
normal, with extreme cold in December and March.” Google also said; “For
the last two weeks (approx. March 28 – April 12, 2026), Homer, AK
experienced temperatures with an average around 28° F, featuring highs near
43° F and lows near -6° F. This is slightly colder than the typical
late-March/early-April average, where highs are usually in the upper 30s to
low 40s F and lows are above 20° F.” On shorebird monitoring day, according
to Airport records, at 9:53 AM the temperature was 35.1° F, the wind was
calm, the sky was overcast, and the barometric pressure was 30.06 inches.
At 11:53 AM, the temperature shot up to 36.0° F, winds were variable at 5
mph, skies were still overcast, and the barometric pressure had dropped
slightly to 30.03 inches. As illustrated by the attached photos of the
Beluga Slough and Mariner Park Lagoon Teams, there is still substantial ice
in the intertidal areas.
Our cold weather earlier this winter and the lingering ice even now didn’t
seem to affect the arrival of Greater Yellowlegs the past couple of days.
Greater Yellowlegs are one of Kachemak Bay’s earliest spring shorebird
arrivals and a mid-to-long-distant migrant that wouldn’t be aware of
weather conditions here when it began its migration north. Looking back at
our 17 years of records, their arrival date seems to be pretty consistent
from year-to-year. On the other hand, Rock Sandpipers, which overwinter in
Kachemak Bay, are just starting their spring migration. According to our 17
years of monitoring records (which includes weather data) this is the most
ROSA we have had for our first session. Perhaps that is because Kachemak
Bay has essentially the same climate as the Bering Sea region where Rock
Sandpipers nest. They may know that if there is still an abundance of ice
here, it is even more so in the Bering Sea. Why go from bad to worse.
Shorebirds seen during this year’s session #1 include the following.
· Black Oystercatcher; Seldovia (6).
· Rock Sandpiper; Mud Bay (467), Louie’s Lagoon (284), Green
Timbers (1,000), Fishing Hole to Homer Harbor (3), Kasilof (1). Monitors on
the Homer Spit said in their report that the Rock Sandpipers they saw were
foraging and fairly stationary, indicating the total count for the Spit
area was about 1,754. A photo taken April 10 (see attached) on the Spit may
have included most of the entire flock in flight, which verifies that many
are still here. Previous highs for this species were 597 in 2020, 688 in
2021, and 506 in 2024. I believe these were also cold springs. Now that
spring (above freezing temperatures) has arrived, the next session report
will be interesting; how may are still here ?
· Greater Yellowlegs; Mariner Park Lagoon (1), Green Timbers (1),
Beluga Slough (1), Anchor Point (2), Kasilof (3). Sightings at Mariner
Parka and Beluga Slough may have been the same bird which was moving about.
· Sanderling; Mud Bay (1), Green Timbers (1). The same bird may
have been at both sites.
· Dunlin; Green Timbers (3).
Listed below are non-shorebird species seen during session #1. Highlights
are;
· Eurasian Wigeon were numerous with 7 at Mud Bay and 1 at Mariner
Park
· Storm Wigeon at Mud Bay which is a color variation of an American
Wigeon. If you want to learn more Google storm wigeon and you should get
several articles.
· Trumpeter Swan at Mariner Park Lagoon. This is the first time I
have seen these swans at this site. They could be the pair that normally
nests at upper Beluga Lake but waiting for more open water.
· Brant at couple Spit sites.
*Homer Spit*
Waterfowl: Trumpeter Swan, Tundra Swan, Brant, Eurasian Wigeon, American
Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Harlequin Duck,
Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Long-tailed
Duck, Bufflehead, Common Goldeye, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser.
Loons and Grebes: Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Pacific Loon,
Red-throated Loon, Common Loon.
Gulls: Black-legged Kittiwake, Short-billed Gull, American Herring Gull,
Glaucus-winged Gull.
Raptors; Bald Eagle.
Misc; Rock Pigeon, Belted Kingfisher, Pelagic Cormorant.
Songbirds; Black-billed Magpie, American Crow, Song Sparrow, Black-capped
Chickadee, Pine Siskin.
*Beluga Slough and Bishops Beach*
Waterfowl; American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal,
Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Bufflehead, Common
Goldeneye,
Gulls: Short-billed Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull.
Misc.; Ring-necked Pheasant, Rock Pigeon,
Loons and Grebes: Horned Grebe.
Raptors: Bald Eagle.
Songbirds; Black-billed Magpie, American Crow, Black-capped Chickadee,
Goldene-crowned Kinglet, Redpoll, Pine Siskin, Song Sparrow.
*Seldovia*
Waterfowl; Harlquin Duck, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Long-tailed
Duck, Bufflehead
, Common Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser.
Gulls: Glaucous-winged Gull.
Loons and Grebes: Common Loon.
Raptors; Bald Eagle.
Misc.; Pigeon Guillemot, Belted Kingfisher.
Songbirds; Black-billd Magpie, American Crow.
*Anchor Point/River*
Waterfowl; Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Common Eider, Harlequin
Duck, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Long-tailed Duck,
Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser.
Loons and Grebes: Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Pacific Loon, Common Loon.
Gulls; Short-billed Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull.
Misc.: Pelagic Cormorant.
Raptors; Bald Eagle.
Songbirds; Black-billed Magpie, American Crow, Song Sparrow.
*Kasilof River*
Waterfowl; Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail,
Green-winged Teal, Canvasback, Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, Long-tailed
Duck, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Common Goldeneye.
Gulls; Short-billed Gull, American Herring Gull,
Raptors; Bald Eagle.
Songbirds; Black-billed Magpie, American Crow, Common Raven, Black-capped
Chickadee, Redpoll, Pine Siskin.
Details, including photos, of these birds can be seen via eBird. Go to
Explore, enter Kenai Peninsula, and then to More Recent Visits and scroll
down to April 11.
Sunrise 6:50 am, sunset 9:08 pm, for a total day length of 14 hours and 18 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 27 seconds longer.
Winter and Spring continued to swap places all week with 2” of short-lived snow on Tuesday then sunny on Thursday with temps rising above 40. The forecast favors Winter with temps in the high 20s overnight, rising to mid-30s. Spring wins, regardless, with over 14 hours of daylight and gaining!
The wetlands and pond at Mile 1 Nash Road remained mostly frozen, but five adult TRUMPETER SWANS gathered at the back near a small section of open water.
The nest failed last year due to high water flooding; these Swans may be the family from the previous year. It will be interesting to watch the territorial drama and winners of the nest sweepstakes over the next few weeks.
After hearing and briefly spotting very elusive LAPLAND LONGSPURS this past week, I found four who landed and instantly disappeared, perfectly camouflaged against the brown grasses. By taking blind shots of the general landing zone, I managed to get a documentary, but gratifying photo by luck.
I also found and photographed the drake EURASIAN TEAL with his sporty horizontal white stripe, and a very handsome drake EURASIAN WIGEON styling his rufous head with a big white “thumbprint” on the crown.
Small numbers of GREEN-WINGED TEAL, AMERICAN WIGEON, GADWALL, NORTHERN PINTAILS, and MALLARDS dabbled nearby in the tidelands.
Hundreds of SHORT-BILLED GULLS and other gulls rose and fell like snow in a blizzard at the tide’s edge when an Eagle swooped across. I watched one adult Bald Eagle stroke low and powerfully after a panicked duck; the duck miraculously escaped.
On sunny Thursday, I heard the much-missed call of a GREATER YELLOWLEGS and finally found him/her standing next to an estuary creek.
On April 6, as the Artemis II Orion spacecraft passed behind the moon on their historic fly-by mission, I happened to find patchy clouds veiling the sun. I took some photos and when I enlarged them later, I discovered sunspots! 93 million miles away!
From the wonders of Spring migrants to space; what a phenomenal week!
