Right church, wrong pew…

First a note about yesterday’s posting.

When we identified the warbler as an Arctic, we were going by the field guides on hand (all pre-2014). Unknown to us, the AOU split Arctic Warbler into three species back in 2014 — Arctic, Japanese Leaf, and Kamchatka Leaf warblers.

Study of specimens and other Arctic Warbler records from the Aleutians prior to 2014 shows that all identifiable records were Kamchatka Leaf Warblers. So ours is presumed to be as well.

However, separating these three species in the field is difficult, to say the least. Call is the best way to identify them, but ours did not call (and Barb has REALLY good hearing!).

I have put all 53 (yes, 53!) photos up on a web page at http://franklinhaas.com/Kamchatka/Kamchatka.html  for anyone interested at trying to establish the identity of this bird.

It is still a first for Adak (and us)!

So pre-2014, it was an Arctic Warbler (the church), today it is a Kamchatka Leaf Warbler (the pew)…

Now back to today.

Temps in the 50s, mostly cloudy, ENE wind at 10-20 mph

We had nothing new on our usual morning rounds (feeders, Sweeper Cove and Channel, Kuluk Bay, etc. However, the previous afternoon, while up at Clam Lagoon, we met the captain and a Fish and Wildlife inspector from the Early Dawn — a crab boat currently in port. The captain offered us some fresh brown crab, just stop by the boat!

So, this morning, we stopped by and they not only gave us some crab, they cooked it for us, too! So our dinner was set.

We headed up to the Warbler Willows and Adak National Forest, and except for Pacific Wrens, had no birds.

At Clam Lagoon, I walked the marsh edge and peninsula and had 2 sharp-tailed Sandpipers and 1 Pectoral.

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Clam Lagoon, September 17, 2017

Barb had a lingering Parasitic Jaeger.

We headed over to the east shore of Lake Andrew. I got out and walked down to check the small ponds and two small clumps of spruces. As I was walking along, a bird flew overhead with the wings in a dihedral! At home this would be a Turkey Vulture! Then I thought of Northern Harrier! It was just a Short-eared Owl in a glide. Once it started flapping, it was obvious. It just shows how your mind works when you are not on your home turf…

Short-eared Owl, Lake Andrew, September 17, 2017

The owl was shortly joined by a Peregrine Falcon in order to perform some aerial ballet! The owl disappeared around the bend, but the Peregrine came back and flew around us before landing on a log at the water’s edge.

Short-eared Owl, Lake Andrew, September 17, 2017

Short-eared Owl (left) and Peregrine Falcon, Lake Andrew, September 17, 2017

Peregrine Falcon, Lake Andrew, September 17, 2017

Peregrine Falcon, Lake Andrew, September 17, 2017

As I continued on, a snipe flushed from almost under my feet and quickly disappeared into thick growth about a hundred yards away. I tried to find it again, but could not. So it is a snipe sp.

At the Seawall, Barb saw some Short-tailed Shearwaters. On the east side of Clam Lagoon, we spotted our first Emperor Goose for the trip. We also saw 6 small shorebirds flying across the lagoon heading northeast. They were too far away for us to identify them.

Back up at the Seawall, we had another feeding frenzy and, again, found a Pomarine Jaeger in the fray.

We saw at least three Peregrines today, and maybe four.

Our year’s list is now 89. One to go to tie our previous high.

The weather is forecast to be easterly winds for several days. Not the best for vagrants, but you never know!

PS: for those of you who have visited Adak, you will be puzzled to know that the Bay 5 restaurant is “closed for the season!” What season? We have no idea…

Where are we, the Hamptons?

They just keep coming…

First a note about this post.

When we made this post on Saturday, we called the warbler below an Arctic. We did not realize that Arctic Warbler had been split several years ago into three species (see Sunday’s post). So if you read this post before Sunday, it said Arctic Warbler. I have edited t to now read “Kamchatka Leaf Warbler.”

Temps in the 50s, partly sunny, moderate WSW winds.

We lost internet access around 7:30 pm Friday and didn’t get it back until this afternoon. So if you missed Friday’s post, be sure to read it below.

Since it was relatively calm this morning, we decided to head straight to the Warbler Willows to see what might have arrived overnight. Unfortunately, although viewing was ideal, we did not find any new birds.

So we headed over to Adak National Forest. As we pulled up, Barb spotted a bird and said it was not the flycatcher, but was a small bird with a strong eyeline. I got on it and it appeared to be an Arctic Warbler — which would be a first for Adak! However, we know the pitfalls of identifying Asian warblers, so we took a lot of photos. The photos sure looked like an Arctic. We continued on our way and did some other birding (see below) and returned to ANF later in the afternoon. The bird was still there and was more cooperative. I got so many good photos, I couldn’t pare it down to less than these.

Later, when we got back to the house, we checked all of the references and compared it with online photos (and with help from Isaac!) and confirmed our initial identification was incorrect. Instead it was a Kamchatka Leaf Warbler (which was split from Arctic Warbler a few years ago) — a first for Adak!

And our second lifer for the trip.

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (Morning)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon, in the shade)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon, in the shade)

Kamchatka Leaf Warbler, Adak National Forest, Sept 16, 2017 (afternoon, in the shade)

In between warbler-watching, we checked the High School Willows. No birds in the willows, but we had a flock of 79 Cackling Geese flying overhead.

Cackling Geese, over the High School Willows, Sept 16, 2017

We went down to Finger Creek and had a Snow Bunting at the quarry along the way. The salmon were running heavy.

At Clam Lagoon, a Parasitic Jaeger was still lingering. There were no shorebirds out on the peninsula and I did not walk the marsh edge today.

At the Seawall, we spotted another feeding frenzy fairly far out, and I was able to identify several Northern Fulmars in the mix. But no other pelagics.

Our year’s list is at 97.

Four days, two lifers. Not bad…

A nice day…

NOTE: We lost internet access around 7:30 pm Friday and didn’t get it back until Saturday afternoon, so this posting is late.

Temp in the 50s, partly sunny, Wind WSW switching to WNW 20-30 mph.

We went over to the Seal Drive feeder to put out seed and discovered, to our dismay, that some moron cut down the smaller of the two spruces that were there! Presumably for a Christmas tree! There are probably fewer that a hundred trees on Adak. How thoughtless!!

We checked Sweeper Cove, then got gas (still a bargain at only $6.49/gal!). As we left the gas station, we had a Gyrfalcon fly by.

We headed up to the Warbler Willows. The willows were swaying and bouncing strongly in the wind, so no bird dared show itself, except one brave Pacific Wren.

At the Adak National Forest (about 30 of the aforementioned trees) we had a Pacific Wren, I also saw another bird disappear into the forest, but I thought it was just another wren. It did not reappear.

I walked the Elfin Forest. No birds.

At Clam Lagoon, I walked the marsh edge, finding only a couple of Pectoral Sandpipers and a peep which flew away too fast for me to identify.

Pectoral Sandpipers, Clam Lagoon, Sept 15, 2017

We did not see anything different at the Seawall. Lake Shirley produced our first Greater Scaups of the trip! Were are they all? Lake Ronnie also had two more.

On the east side of the lagoon – out towards the middle – we spotted a flock of 12 Sanderlings. We could not pick out any other species mixed in.

Back up at the Seawall, things were picking up. At the southern end, Barb saw some feeding frenzies further up, so we drove up and started scanning the flocks of gulls and alcids.

We soon discovered the source was a whale. We only got brief views (as is typical for us up here!), but our best guess is a Minke Whale.

While scanning the flocks, I picked up a Pomarine Jaeger, quickly followed by a Parasitic! This is only our second Pomarine that we have seen out here (our first was this spring).

We then saw three White-winged Scoters to add to the trip list.

When we were finished scanning the action, we continued up the Seawall and spotted a loon. At first, the pale bill made us think it was a Yellow-billed, but we quickly came to our senses and correctly identified it as a Common.

Common Loon, Seawall, Sept 15, 2017

When we got back around to the eastern side, I walked out the peninsula, hoping to find the Sanderlings – and possibly some friends…

No go.

So I decided to walk the marsh edge again. This time, in addition to the three Pectoral Sandipers, I also had a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper. I also finally got a look at the peep that flew away earlier (at least I assume it was the same bird), and it turned out to be only a Western Sandpiper.

Western Sandpiper, Clam Lagoon, Sept 15, 2017

We headed back south and stopped again at the Adak National Forest. Barb spotted a bird sitting on the willows and said it was our flycatcher from the other day. Indeed it was. The ANF is less than a mile (as the flycatcher flies…) from the Warbler Willows. It was more cooperative this time and I got better photos.

Gray-streaked Flycatcher, Adak National Forest, Sept 15, 2017

Gray-streaked Flycatcher, Adak National Forest, Sept 15, 2017

The only other birds of note today were three more Greater Scaup on Lake Leone – which is next to the quarry south of Sweeper Cove. We rarely see any waterfowl there at all.

In 2007, we had a total of 90 species for our Adak Year’s List. Since we had 81 this past May, we were hoping to possibly exceed that. However, one advantage in 2007 was having a boat available to go out for the auklets – 5 species of them! So getting to that magic number this year will be difficult — but not impossible. So far, we have added five species for the year – Pectoral Sandpiper, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Sanderling, and Gray-streaked Flycatcher. So we are already at 86!

Keep those westerlies blowing!

Rain, rain, rain…

Temp in the 50s, rain in the morning becoming drizzle by mid-afternoon, wind SE 20-40 mph.

The power outage last night lasted until 12:30 am and many houses still don’t have power today. The phone system also crashed, but the internet came back up this morning.

The rain (heavy) started last night around 9 pm and was heavy until early afternoon, when it lessened to drizzle, and then on-and-off light showers. The rain (and wind!) made birding most of the day very difficult.

Down near Sweeper Cove, we came upon this trio of Northern Pintails taking refuge from the wind in this roadside puddle.

Northern Pintails, near Sweeper Cove, Sept 14, 2017.

We found our first shorebird of the trip, a Pectoral Sandpiper, at Contractor’s Camp Marsh.

There were no shorebirds on the Clam Lagoon flats and none out on the peninsula. I will be walking the Clam Lagoon marsh edge tomorrow.

We added the usual suspects to the trip list — puffins, murrelets, murres, cormorants, etc., plus a late Parasitic Jaeger and a pair of Black Scoters.

At the Seawall, a lot of Black-legged Kittiwakes were hanging out, with one particularly perturbed at the Glaucous-winged Gull invading its space!

Black-legged Kittiwake with Glaucous-winged Gulls, Seawall, Sept 14, 2017.

And others just hanging out.

Black-legged Kittiwakes, Seawall, Sept 14, 2017.

We couldn’t find any new birds at Warbler Willows today, but conditions were less than ideal.

There is a fishing ship in Kuluk Bay, but it appears to be idle, as even the gulls are ignoring it. And no fishing boats were in the docks at the fish-processing plant. So no new gulls for now.

The next few days’ forecast is for westerly winds — ideal for vagrants.

We will be looking…

Nice start!

Our flights to Anchorage were uneventful.

After doing our food shopping, we went out and did a little birding, but didn’t find anything unusual.

This morning we headed up to Arctic Valley, as we always do. Since we started coming up here, we have driven up the Arctic Valley Road (which goes up to the Arctic Valley Ski Area) one of the easier roads to drive and get up to high elevation. We always make it our first priority in order to get up there before any other vehicles. The point being to find ptarmigan out on the roadsides before they get scared off.

Well, every time we have done this, one or more vehicles have beaten us to it, and we see no chickens of any kind!

Until today…

Just a mile or two up the road, we spotted a dark lump on the side of the road, which turned out to be a Spruce Grouse! Then another mile or so and we saw another one, and then farther up, another one!

Spruce Grouse, Arctic Valley Road, Anchorage, Sept 13, 2017 (Number 1)

Spruce Grouse, Arctic Valley Road, Anchorage, Sept 13, 2017 (Number 2)

Spruce Grouse, Arctic Valley Road, Anchorage, Sept 13, 2017 (Number 3)

We were really hoping for Willow Ptarmigan (the only one we don’t have), but at least we had grouse.

Once we got to the top, there were no other vehicles there – hence our success.

It was very windy in Anchorage today. The wind noise may also have helped to mask the sound of our car as we came upon the grouse. The wind made dicky-birding difficult, to say the least.

Later, we were birding along Ship Creek and Barb spotted a Greater Yellowlegs. Last year, I saw one, but Barb missed it. So now she picked up an Alaskan bird that I had on her.

Greater Yellowlegs, Old Power Plant Pond, Ship Creek, Anchorage, Sept 13, 2017

Our flight to Adak left early. In talking to the flight attendants (whom we have gotten to know over the years) we found out that the fish-processing plant on Adak was back to full time operation. They said they had been having 50-60 passengers per flight out to Adak – very unusually high. This bodes well for Adak’s economy and possibly for birders looking for gulls. The plant discharges waste into the bay and that attracts and concentrates the gulls. We will see.

The weather when we arrived was partly sunny and in the 50s. There was a moderate south wind.

After unpacking and getting our gear together, we headed up to Clam Lagoon. There was nothing special there. On the way back we decided to stop at the Warbler Willows – a practice that we have adopted since having the Wood Warbler there three years ago. We stop there at least twice-a-day in the fall.

I got out of the car and walked over to get a view of the willows and spotted a bird in the far willows that I had never seen before. I called to Barb and she came over as I was taking photos.

She saw the bird – it was sitting mostly in the open – and I then circled around to try to get closer. Unfortunately, the bird disappeared into the thicker bushes and did not reappear.

However, I did get some nice photos.

It was a Grey-streaked Flycatcher! Only the second record for Adak. The previous one was seen by Jon Pushock and Devitch Farbotnik back in 2004.

Gray-streaked Flycatcher, Warbler Willows, Adak, Sept 13, 2017

Gray-streaked Flycatcher, Warbler Willows, Adak, Sept 13, 2017

Not a bad start for the trip!

This evening, just after looking at the photos on the computer, the power went out. That was around 8, it is now 9:45. We have had power outages many times before out here, so we are not worried. And it’s not very cold, yet.

So if you are wondering why there was no posting Wednesday night, that is why.