Seward, Alaska
I updated the labels on my January
1, 2016 Whiskered Auklet photos to Crested Auklet after review by experts
including Martin Renner in Homer, and Thede Tobish in Anchorage.
Martin noted: the cristatella
grin or “smiling line” at the gape, from the bill towards the eye, is
diagnostic for Crested Auklet. The crest is thin and flimsy in a Whiskered Auklet
and the plumes start in front of the eye. In the field, the Whiskered is only a
third the size of a Crested.
Thede noted that the
Whiskered Auklet rarely moves between favored tiderip passes west of Unimak
Pass in the Aleutians, and there are no Seward or North Gulf records.
It was a huge storm, so
anything is possible, but not apparently, a Whiskered Auklet. Yet.
Many thanks to Martin, Thede,
and Dave S. for your interest in these photos, and for your expertise!
Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Seward Sporadic Bird Report
Reporter
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