Seward, AK
Sunrise 9:11 am, sunset 4:15
pm, for a total day length of 7 hours and 3 minutes. Tomorrow will be 4 minutes
and 15 seconds shorter.
Mostly sunny today! Low of
20º, high of 37º with a mild north wind. Quite a relief from the recent minus
25º with wind chill. Snow showers and rain on ice in the forecast for the week.
I spotted the resident
TRUMPETER SWAN family flying over the head of the bay. Even at a great
distance, I could jubilantly count all four cygnets and both parents. I
understand Bear Lake is not yet frozen, and they have been staying there for a
while.
When looking for the Swans up close (without success), I instead found 18 shorebirds, including DUNLINS, ROCK
SANDPIPERS, and a possible SANDERLING furiously probing for invertebrates in
the silty tidelands. These shorebirds are not unheard of here in the winter,
but it is always a wonderful surprise.
On the way back, almost to
the car, I turned back to see a RAVEN hopping up and down in the stubby, dry
grass. As Ravens are always up to something, I stopped to watch. A smaller
black and white head popped up. A COMMON MURRE! What was it doing in the grass?
Another poor choice by a distraught murre. The Raven proceeded to attack the
poor bird, who fought back valiantly.
I pondered the options and
considered the wisdom of interfering and perhaps returning the Murre to the
bay. Just as I decided to let Nature take its course, an adult BALD EAGLE
swooped in and nabbed the Murre. End of discussion. Instantly, a juvenile BALD
EAGLE and two RAVENS gave chase. The predators and prey quickly flew out of
sight behind the trees.
I do not know who dined that afternoon, but can
probably guess that there would be yet another headless, bloody carcass under a
tree. I wonder why the head is so valued; can the eyes and brain with their
associated fat be so important?
I watched another Raven
parade around the precious head of a Murre, posturing and exclaiming over his
prize before grabbing it and flying off. The pointy mandibles and bony skull
certainly didn’t look that appealing to me.
It is very sad to see so many
Murres suffering. As in the 90s, most of the Murres are starving. Why these
superb divers are unable to find fish when the other seabirds seem fine, is a
mystery. What drives them to frantically fly inland, up to at least 12 miles
from the ocean, or crash in the grass is also baffling.
Meanwhile, the main
predators, the Eagles, and the scavengers, Ravens (also sometime predators),
Crows, and Magpies are feasting on this easy source of food. Except for the
shocking brutality of the kill and fierce “preparation,” it’s not much
different from us eating a sanitized, plucked, gutted, and headless
plastic-wrapped rock hen or chicken. Bon appetite!
Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Seward Sporadic Bird Report
Reporter
No comments:
Post a Comment