Well, I'm feeling better… kind of. My voice lasted for better part of a day of
guiding before it started giving out again. That’s what I get for being a quiet person who needs to be
otherwise for work. Despite this, my camera still works properly and my fingers are still capable of pounding out a quick blog post so here we go….
A visit to the “close kittiwake cliffs” on the west side of
the island will provide many opportunities for watching these unusual kittiwakes. The
trick, once you’ve seen your first one or two, is to enjoy this species without
actually seeing the red legs. Here’s
an example of how you can start:
There are also quite a few RED-FACED CORMORANTS out there
too. Although none of their nests
are in plain sight on the close kittiwake cliffs, you can often spy them spying
on you:
If you want an alcid that will pose, look no further than
the PARAKEET AUKLETS on St. Paul. The
details of their bill, eyes, and face plumes are downright shocking and straight-up goofy when you get a
chance to see them up close:
There are a few endemic and near-endemic things you can look
for on St. Paul. One of those is
the Pribilof subspecies of PACIFIC WREN (alascensis). This subspecies is literally only found
on 3 islands in the world and St. Paul is one of them. If you visit, the cliffs at Tolstoi
Point have been our most reliable spot for finding them this year:
I’ll end with a flower; the Alaska Spring Beauty... which is
blooming in summer now that the summer solstice just occurred:
