Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 8:14 am, sunset 7:19 pm for a total day length of 11 hours and 4 minutes. Tomorrow will be 5 minutes and 25 seconds shorter.
Intermittent showers and moderate rain continued today with temps in the mid-40s and calm. During a break in the weather late yesterday afternoon, I chanced to find a single CACKLING GOOSE circling the estuary before landing out of sight. I wondered what happened to the rest of its flock as it seems strange to see only one. I did not refind it today.
This morning during another break, I caught a glimpse of a juvenile NORTHERN SHRIKE perched on a spruce spire lookout. Three aggressive BLACK-BILLED MAGPIES joined forces and quickly drove it away. They were not at all pleased to share their neighborhood with a bird-eating predator.
As the rain returned, I headed to the Alaska Sealife Center to check out the aviary. No one gasped with excitement or pointed out the KING EIDER drakes now clad in deep brown hues instead of their vibrant blue, green, and white breeding colors. A smaller orange shield and the cool “jet fins” remained.
The RHINOCEROS AUKLET still had his rhino “horn” but the side whiskers were mostly gone. Gone too, were the white face and most of the golden head tufts of the TUFTED PUFFINS. One tough guy in black still managed to look rakish while sporting much shorter tufts, oozing with personality.
The white-bellied HORNED PUFFINS have also exchanged their bright white faces for darker shades. The gaudy bill plates that they no longer need for courtship were loose and looked ready to fall off. One Puffin yawned wide, showing the backwards-facing spines called denticles on the roof of its mouth that allow it to grab and hold multiple fish without dropping them.
Instead of remaining dark, the face and throat of the COMMON MURRES were changing to white. A pair gently preened each other, fine-tuning the new feathers while reinforcing the pair bond. Of all the seabirds, the Murres were the noisiest today, circling in a tight raft, calling their name.
It was fun to watch the two male Steller Sea Lions in the outdoor pool: Forrest now 11 years old and 1400 pounds, and Kuliak, 8 years old and 1200 pounds. They lounged on the pool deck like tourists at the beach, almost immobile. Then suddenly, Kuliak launched into the pool and the two roared at each other, baring their teeth. The game was on as they chased around the pool and tussled on the deck. Such powerful, enormous, yet graceful animals!
I will be back soon to enjoy the seabirds and other animals, especially if this rain keeps up!
Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Seward Sporadic Bird Reporter
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