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…