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Your direct gift to Audubon Alaska goes to work in Alaska.
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Our migratory birds have all arrived and are busy singing up a storm and nesting. With the early spring, Audubon staff have already seen or heard ducklings, goslings, baby woodpeckers, and even chickadee fledglings. This issue is jam-packed with our fledgling Arctic Ocean Story Map, good news for the Arctic Ocean, Anchorage summer bird walks, Birdathon and Great American Arctic Birding Challenge results, and more!
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WHAT'S THE ARCTIC OCEAN LIKE IN SUMMER?
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Ribbon Seal by Liz Labunski
US Fish & Wildlife Service
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Find out first-hand from field researchers what the Arctic Ocean is like throughout the summer on the new
Audubon Alaska Story Map of Vital Arctic Ocean Areas. A new blog post every other week will highlight firsthand accounts by field researchers working in these amazing places, following eiders, marine mammals, and other birds and wildlife through the Arctic Ocean's busiest time of year. Want to learn about Kittlitz's Murrelets? Or hear the haunting underwater songs of belugas, seals, and walrus? Visit the story map!
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GREAT NEWS FOR THE CHUKCHI SEA
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Susanne Miller
US Fish & Wildlife Service
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There was recently some great news for Arctic Ocean wildlife: Repsol, one of the companies with drilling leases in the Chukchi Sea
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will
give up all 93 of its drilling leases over the next year. Out of the 487 leases originally part of the Oil and Gas Lease Sale 193 Audubon and our partners have been fighting for years, only a single lease site held by Shell remains. That's worth celebrating!
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GET OUT BIRDING WITH AUDUBON ALASKA
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TROUBLE FOR THE TONGASS IN CONGRESS
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Varied Thrushes nest in old-growth forest
by Dan Dzurizin
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At the end of May, the Senate introduced the Wildfire Budgeting, Response, and Forest Management bill that is meant to address the growing problem of wildfire spending. Unfortunately, it also contains a section that would delay the transition away from old-growth logging in the Tongass National Forest. The same provision also popped up in the Senate Interior Appropriations bill and Don Young's state forest transfer bill, on the House side.
Learn More
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BIRDATHON: WHO TOOK HOME THE TROPHIES?
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Team Swift
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Audubon Alaska's annual Birdathon is a fun way to raise money for protecting Alaska's amazing birds by counting birds-as many species as possible in a 24-hour period during the month of May. Audubon Alaska staff form teams and collect pledges per bird species they find or lump sum donations. You can
still support one of the Birdathon teams!
See the results
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GREAT AMERICAN ARCTIC BIRDING CHALLENGE WINNERS
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Dick Daniels
Creative Commons
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Congratulations to the winners of the 2016 Great American Arctic Birding Challenge! Many thanks to everyone who participated, we hope you enjoyed the time outdoors and learned a little about the amazing birds that connect the Arctic, especially the Arctic Refuge, with your state.
The Arctic Refuge bonus prizes went to teams that saw 10 or more Arctic Refuge-nesting species. All of the competing teams achieved the bonus, which just goes to show how many bird species everyone shares with the Arctic Refuge!
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MIGRATE TO BELIZE WITH AUDUBON ALASKA IN FEBRUARY
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Northern Jacana
by Francesco Veronesi
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As we enjoy "our" birds in Alaska this summer, it's important to remember the majority of them spend most of the year in other places that are just as vital for their survival. Join Audubon Alaska on a migration of your own to
Belize February 19-28, 2017. In addition to its rich Maya history and Caribbean-influenced culture, the small country of Belize offers birders a huge diversity of migrant and resident species in lush and varied ecosystems. We'll explore habitats that include wetlands, pine forest, tropical moist forest, and a mangrove island on this unforgettable 10-day adventure.
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HELP BIRDS WHEN YOU BUY GROCERIES
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Picking up a snack
by Beth Peluso
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Audubon Alaska participates in Fred Meyers Community Rewards program. Simply link your
Fred Meyer rewards card with Audubon Alaska, then Freddie's makes a donation every time you shop and use your rewards card. The more households that select Audubon Alaska the more donations we get! There is no cost to you, and you still earn all your rewards points.
If you say "hey, I already did that," many thanks, and this is just a little reminder that your rewards card has to be relinked annually.
Link your rewards card now by searching for Audubon Alaska by name or our ID is #82017.
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NAME THAT BIRD PHOTO QUIZ!
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Dave Menke
US Fish and Wildlife Service
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The previous quiz bird was a Red-throated Loon.
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This month's quiz bird is often seen at the Anchorage Coastal Important Bird Area. Because this species nests in only a few northern locations, it was once considered one of continent's rarest birds. Although today the global population is estimated around 70,000, concentrating in small breeding and wintering areas makes this species vulnerable.
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The evening walks will focus on the species that make these locations unique and important. Both these walks will be held at a leisurely pace on easily accessible paths. Bird watchers of all skill levels and ages are welcome. Binoculars will be available to borrow. Tony Knowles Coastal Trail Walks are on Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30PMthrough August 3. Meet at the Westchester Lagoon parking area near the boat launch at 1824 W. 15th Ave. Potter Marsh walks are in partnership with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG): Cole leads walks Tuesdays, 6:30-8:30PM and ADFG staff lead walks Saturdays, 8:00-10:00AM. Meet at the Potter Marsh boardwalk parking lot in front of the kiosk.
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The Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska is part of the world's largest remaining stretch of temperate rainforest. Large, old-growth trees in the Tongass are vital habitat for many species of birds and other wildlife, including the Queen Charlotte Goshawk and the Sitka black-tailed deer. The Tongass is also the only National Forest where large-scale old-growth logging still occurs.
The transition out of industrial old-growth logging is long overdue. The administration announced in 2010 that the U.S. Forest Service would shift from old-growth logging to a young-growth focus in the Tongass. Now, a plan for this transition is on the verge of being finalized. This harmful provision in various bills would block this progress by preventing the Forest Service from finalizing the amended Tongass Land Management Plan until all young-growth is inventoried.
Audubon will be closely monitoring bills as the legislative process moves forward. Look for opportunities to take action as we work to steer this legislation to a better course for the Tongass and its birds.
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Birdathon teams scoured the Land of the Midnight Sun to find as many birds as possible. Cue the woodpecker drumroll for the Official 2016 Birdathon Results:
- Team Swift with 88 species.
- Team All for Knot with 81 species.
- Team Just Wingin' It with 61 species.
While Team Swift enjoys their shiny Birdathon first place trophy, Team All for Knot will be the custodians of the dreaded second place Rubber Chicken award for the next year. Also, you should check out Team Just Wingin' It's
story map of their Birdathon journey.
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There are two divisions for the Arctic Birding Challenge, one for the Lower 48 and one for Alaska, since the birds are converging on Alaska. The competitive spirit was strong this year with the Polar Vortex team from Challis, Idaho breaking the 4-year-old overall record (previously held by the Water Ouzels from Anchorage, Alaska) by a whopping 9 species! It was a tough competition for second place in the Lower 48 division with three teams counting within 10 species of each other. The top team from Alaska was the Water Ouzels with a final tally of 143 species.
Without further ado, here are the winners:
Alaska Division
- 1st Place: Water Ouzels (Anchorage, Alaska) with 143 Species (View the team checklist)
- 2nd Place: The Wandering Prattlers (Soldotna, Alaska) with 127 Species
- 3rd Place: The Lame Ducks (Seward, Alaska) with 104 Species
Lower 48 Division
- 1st Place: Polar Vortex (Challis, Idaho) with 162 Species (View the team checklist)
- 2nd Place: Hyperborean Phalanx (Bellevue, Idaho) with 151 Species
- 3rd Place: Pufted Tuffins (Missoula, Montana) with 143 Species
Will the Alaskan teams come back to reclaim the overall win next year? Can somebody take on Polar Vortex to break their 162-species record? We'll find out in the Arctic Birding Challenge 2017 next spring!
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For almost 40 years Audubon Alaska has worked to conserve Alaska's natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, wildlife, and the habitat crucial to them. Audubon Alaska is financially independent, raising all our own funding. This means your support is critical to protecting the birds and wildlife you care about.Thank you for supporting Audubon Alaska!
Happy Birding!
Beth Peluso, Communications Manager
Audubon Alaska
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