The Birds of Bering Sea (and Beyond)
Here’s a relevant admission: I’m not much of a “birder.” While deeply appreciative of all winged creatures, I haven’t (yet) made time to learn their names and details, most of them. Tsk on me. Still, it was mesmerizing to watch the birds as we crossed the Bering Sea and made our way up the eastern side of the Alaskan Peninsula in July 2019.
One species that was a thrill to see (because my mom loved them): the puffins! We saw lots of them in their activities of daily living: nesting, whacking the water while struggling to lift off, flying in flocks, diving for food.
On quiet days on the Bering Sea (we were very lucky!), the water reflected the ever-present birdlife surrounding the ship.
McKay’s Bunting!
During off-ship Zodiac exploring, we saw cliffs and rocky outcrops filled with birds tending their nests and meeting up in their colonies. We also saw them in frantic groups diving for “bait balls” when fish were driven up from below in abundant numbers (see the Sept. 2 Generally Write blog, “Unpacking Alaska”).
We visited St. George Island, where 75% of the remaining red-legged kittiwakes come to breed. Elsewhere we saw shearwaters, petrels, terns, albatross, fulmars, gulls, oyster-catchers, auks (no! Not auks - that’s a test for “real” birders!). But we did see auklets and murres and murrelets, and even McKay’s buntings.
An eagle chick in the nest.
And then there were the eagles. Always so...symbolic.
My intention is to improve my bird knowledge, but meanwhile, enjoy some photos that I managed to wrangle.
