The King
King Eider in arctic pond
I got up to the north slope last week and the King Eiders were in! Wow, they seemed to be everywhere. This one was gleaming in the sun. Now if you have ever been in the arctic you would know how unusual this is. If not then let me explain. There are 3 types of weather in the arctic; cold, windy, foggy. Usually you get all three however every now then you get only 2 out of three. Very rarely you get one out of three and notice that sunny did not make the list so this is a fairly rare situation. I thoroughly enjoyed photographing these stunning birds. They are very skittish around people as they are sea ducks that do not interact with people but during mating season they can be approachable. Always pick the ones that are following a female around if you want to get with in any kind of range. If you want flight photographs pick the lone drakes, they will fly.
Its May in Alaska….that means birds
May means birds. Its that simple. Up here in Alaska as the winter snows slowly rescind the birds move in to fill void. The Homer bird festival is the 5/6-5/9 and the Festival in Cordova is this week also. That is a bit unusual as they typically follow one another. Break out the binos, put on the T-shirts and get out there.
Morning On The Flats
I headed out this morning to the Palmer hay flats to see what I could get in the lens by way of our migratory bird population. I was up early and set up and got to see a magnificent sunrise with the mist hanging off the valley. Birding itself was slow, I could hear the Sandhill Cranes whooping it up just out of sight in the high thrushes and I kept waiting for a lift off. They like to warm up in the sun first. They never did though, I guess they were happy to be where they were. That’s a good thing.
Arctic Loon
The Arctic Loon has a distinguishing “greenish” iridescent patch on its foreneck that most of the time looks black. From this angle you can see the green. The little chick is all fluffy brown down though at the moment. After being born the chicks down can actually get water logged and they will jump up on Momma’s back for a ride while they dry out. This little guy seemed pretty well on his way to adjusting to his future on the water. He still cannot dive though, too buoyant. When mom or dad dives under he sticks his head down and tries to give chase but just pops right back up like a little cork.
Alaska Birding
The Alaska Birding Season is heating up. There are several resources for you to take advantage of if you are so inclined; if you are coming in from out of state the websites are great places to start.
Anchorage Audubon Society – http://www.anchorageaudubon.org/
Mat-Su Birders – http://www.matsubirders.org/index.html
Birding in Homer – http://birdinghomeralaska.org/
Birding in Fairbanks – http://www.arcticaudubon.org/
Juneau Audubon Society – http://www.juneau-audubon-society.org/
The Alaska Website with info on birding http://www.alaska.com/activities/birds/
Those are all excellent resources to begin with. Here is some information on the bird festivals in Alaska:
The Copper River Delta Shore Bird Festival that is held in Cordova
http://cordovachamber.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=44
The Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival in Homer.
http://www.homeralaska.org/events/kachemakBayShorebirdFestival/index.htm
The Bald Eagle Festival in Haines
Sandhill Crane Festival in Fairbanks
http://www.arcticaudubon.org/crane.html
Bird Festivals are a great way to get out and see Alaska and of course the wildlife. There are cruises that cater specifically to these festivals and to birding in general in the Bay areas and in the course of bird watching you are very likely to see a great deal of the rest of the wildlife that is present in Alaska.