Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 10:00 am, sunset 4:07 pm for a total day length of 6 hours and 7 minutes. Tomorrow will be 2 minutes and 29 seconds longer.
December’s cold snap (hardly snappy) extended into the New Year with cold, clear skies and temps in the low teens and single digits. Stuck in a rut, the north wind roared with gusts to 28 mph.
Resurrection Bay released its warmth to the cold air in ghostly sea smoke. The wind scoured the snow off the surrounding mountains revealing bare rock. By late afternoon today, however, the wind dropped, clouds slunk in, and 3-4” snow was in the forecast for tonight.
I spotted two nanny Mountain Goats and four adorable kids yesterday, driven off the mountain into the trees and browsing by the landslide along Lowell Point Road.
At Lowell Point Beach, almost out of the wind, three BLACK-BILLED MAGPIES and two AMERICAN CROWS patrolled the frozen wrack line gleaning tidbits. They paused to watch me, perched on driftwood, all fluffed up, feet tucked under feathers.
The brilliant but short-lived sun shone a spotlight on the sea birds sheltering in the harbor. A raft of COMMON MERGANSERS and RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS paddled and dove in synchrony, pursuing fishy prey with a few BARROW’S and COMMON GOLDENEYES. PELAGIC CORMORANTS, mostly solo, fished on their fringes.
A stealthy Harbor Seal popped up in the sea ice on the south side, looked around, and as quietly disappeared.
The suet and sunflower seeds in my feeder have hardly been touched by the Nuthatches, Chickadees, Song Sparrow, and Juncos in the first days of 2026. I hope they survived the Polar Express and will soon return.
Happy Birding in 2026!
Carol Griswold
Seward Sporadic Bird Report Reporter
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