Seward, Alaska
Sunrise 4:46 am, sunset 11:08 pm for a total day length of 18 hours and 21 minutes. Tomorrow will be 3 minutes and 6 seconds longer.
Only a very few small patches of stubborn snow remain in secluded shady spots while the rest of the world is green, green, green and still unfurling. The overnight low dipped to 38 and the high reached 47. Slightly warmer temperatures in the low 50s and showers are in the forecast for the coming week.
Coincidentally, I admired civil twilight this morning at 3:20 am, lured outside by the good dog who decided to lounge on the green lawn instead of returning inside. So calm, peaceful, and too light to see stars.
I don’t know how long they’d been up and at ‘em, but I heard a RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD zing past, the sweet melodies of a FOX SPARROW, ROBINS, VARIED THRUSHES, HERMIT THRUSHES, the trills of a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, and the chatter of PINE SISKINS. Birds do not get much sleep in the breeding season!
An hour later at 4:40 am, I was awakened by an earthquake that gently rattled the house and quickly subsided. I learned later that it was 4.2 magnitude, centered 19 miles north-northwest of Anchor Point in Cook Inlet. Exciting morning!
At low tide at Fourth of July Beach on May 28, I heard the strident “wheep, wheep!” of BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS and looked up in time to see two flying overhead. Wow! Oystercatchers are an unusual sight on our beaches due to human and dog disturbance. But a short time later, I was startled to hear them again, but this time FOUR Black Oystercatchers flew overhead, also heading west. What a treat!
On a May 29 bike ride along Exit Glacier Road in Kenai Fjords National Park, I finally heard my FOS YELLOW WARBLER. Many more NORTHERN WATERTHRUSHES sang from hidden perches in the brush along creeks. I first heard them on May 25, as well as my FOS WILSON’S WARBLER busily stitching away. Still no Swainson’s or Gray-cheeked Thrushes heard. I'm listening!
Happy Birding!
Carol Griswold
Seward Sporadic Bird Report Reporter
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