Birds Found on the Arctic Slope of Northern Alaska Part 3

Most of the old squaws (July 4-10, 1951) were in pairs or small groups at Topagaruk. They const.i.tuted less than one per cent of the avian population and were more commonly seen around the edges of stabilized lakes of medium size than elsewhere. One adult female shot on July 7, weighed 600 grams and had ova as large as 17 millimeters in diameter.

On July 8, 1952, between 1:00 A.M. and 2:00 A.M., the ice started to move and formed leads near the sh.o.r.e of the Arctic Ocean at Point Barrow. Ordinarily the ice does not leave until approximately the 20th of the month. These new leads brought greater numbers of old squaws nearer sh.o.r.e. At 6:00 P.M. that same day eighteen old squaw ducks sat on the ice off-sh.o.r.e and approximately 100 flew to the east in three separate groups.

At Kaolak River (July 12-18, 1951), old squaws were observed every day. On a four hour field trip (July 15), four adults were seen. On July 18 an old squaw was flying in company with a male pintail. An Eskimo hunting party of three men had killed a female (July 18) near our camp and were going to prepare it for food that evening.

At Kaolak (July 21-27, 1951) we observed one pair with young and two single adults.

At Barrier Lake, northeast of Teshekpuk Lake (July 29-Aug. 4, 1951), old squaw ducks were in evidence at least once or twice a day. On July 30, three birds were sitting on an island in a small lake adjoining Barrier Lake. They were molting and although capable of flight were using the island as a place of refuge. Two females shot on July 30, weighed 650 grams and had ma.s.ses of ova smaller than those in the female shot at Topagaruk 23 days earlier. The largest ovum in the latter female was 2.3 mm in diameter. On a flight on August 4, 1951, from Teshekpuk Lake to Point Barrow we saw two flocks of 18 each when 73 and 34 miles southwest of Point Barrow.

Between the mouth of the Canning River Canyon and Umiat (July 18, 1952), old squaws were more numerous in lakes adjacent to the Colville River than in lakes to the east.

Upon our arrival at Gavia Lake (Aug. 20, 1952) a family of two adults and two juveniles and another family of one adult and six juveniles were the only ducks on the lake. One of the juveniles rested on the bank instead of feeding in the lake with the other ducks, and on August 23 died. On August 21, one duckling in the second family strayed out toward the center of the lake, whereupon the adult female swam out and herded the young bird back toward the group nearer the sh.o.r.e line. On August 22, the female and two ducklings of the first family were shot. The adult was 390 mm in total length whereas the young were 300 mm in total length and weighed 320 grams. Neither young birds nor the mother could fly. The breast of each young consisted of only a few thin layers of muscles whereas the adult's breast was made up of thick muscles. The second family had frequented the south sh.o.r.e, but moved to the north side of the lake when fired upon. On August 22, one duckling was 214 mm long and weighed 119 grams. Although the season was far advanced and the snows of autumn were already falling, ducklings of the sizes specified above were still unable to fly and the females were still molting the essential flight feathers.

At Driftwood (Aug. 30, 1952) an adult and two juveniles were feeding in a lake northeast of camp.

+Polysticta stelleri+ (Pallas): Steller's eider.--Specimen, 1: Topagaruk, 15548', 7034', 10 ft., No. 30325, ad. female, July 10, 1951.

An incubating female was shot at Topagaruk on July 10, 1951. Her ovary was 30 mm long, and the largest ovum was 3 mm in diameter. Her nest was in a depression of a high-centered polygon some 300 feet from any large body of water, contained five fresh eggs, and was lined with black down feathers of an adult. On each of three occasions when approached, the female left the nest when I was six feet away.

On September 7, 1952, a flock of eight Steller's eiders was swimming in a large lake approximately one mile southeast of the Arctic Research Laboratory.

+Somateria mollissima v. nigra+ Bonaparte: Common eider.--On August 25, 1952, approximately 100 yards southwest of Point Barrow, 30 Pacific eiders were resting on the beach in company with 90 king eiders. When approached some swam and others flew out onto the Arctic Ocean where they remained until we withdrew from the area, after which time the birds returned to their resting place on the beach.

PLATE 9

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 1. A male yellow-billed loon setting on eggs in nest at Wahoo Lake on July 9, 1952.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 2. Nest and eggs shown in figure 1, July 9, 1952. Incubation had just begun.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 3. Arctic loon (upper) and red-throated loon (lower) from Teshekpuk Lake, August 1, 1951.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 4. Nest and eggs of white-fronted goose at Umiat, July 1, 1952. Incubation three fourths completed.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 5. Adult male surf scoters, July 16, 1952, at Porcupine Lake. Scoters are uncommon on the Arctic Slope.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 6. Arctic tern shot at Teshekpuk Lake on August 1, 1951. A common breeding bird in northern Alaska.]

PLATE 10

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 1. Sh.o.r.e of Arctic Ocean at Point Barrow, June 19, 1952. Many birds already were nesting on the tundra.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 2. Tundra and oriented lakes 80 mi. S Point Barrow, August 28, 1952, are breeding places for water birds.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 3. Luxuriant vegetation used by breeding birds in intermontane valley at Porcupine Lake, July 18, 1952.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 4. Willow-lined creek at Chandler Lake, August 25, 1951. Willows and alders offer nesting sites for birds.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 5. NW face of Mt. Chamberlin, 9131 ft.; terrain inhospitable to most breeding birds. August 5, 1952.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 6. Destruction of bird communities by caribou trampling south of Lake Peters. August 8, 1952.]

+Somateria spectabilis+ (Linnaeus): King eider.--Specimen 1: Point Barrow, 15627'25", 7123'11", 3 ft., No. 31306, ad. male, August 25, 1952.

Robert McKinley told us that in the last week of April of 1952, eiders (king?) arrived in the vicinity of the Arctic Research Laboratory in large numbers and continued to pa.s.s to the east for the next three weeks. King eiders were observed at Point Barrow on July 3, 1951.

Ninety king eiders and 30 Pacific eiders were resting on the sh.o.r.e of the Arctic Ocean at Point Barrow on August 25, 1952. The following day 200 king eiders were in the same area. A male, shot there, measured 560 millimeters in total length. The muscles were only a third the size of those on a normal bird. Another eider found dead also was emaciated and may have died from gun shot wounds inflicted by the guns of the Eskimos. For every bird killed by Eskimos, several are injured; many of these die along the migration route. On July 28, king eiders were flying northwest along the sh.o.r.e of Elson Lagoon, thence across the Point Barrow Peninsula at Birnirk, and thence southwest along the coast of the Arctic Ocean. This day was foggy and wind was from the east. On clear days and especially when wind blows from the northwest, king eiders cross the peninsula a fifth of a mile or so nearer Point Barrow, which is the most northern extension of the Peninsula. More eiders moved by on clear days than on cloudy or foggy days. In one hour, ten flocks, averaging 400 birds each, pa.s.sed overhead at Birnirk (July 28); three days earlier flocks of from 50 to 300 pa.s.sed approximately every 20 minutes. Eskimos on this date were shooting into these flocks of eider and bagging them in excess of the winter needs of the hunters. One Eskimo had 40 king eiders undressed and hanging on a drying rod at his home at Barrow Village (Sept. 2, 1952).

On July 29, 1951, we flew from Point Barrow to Teshekpuk Lake and observed (2:00-3:00 P.M.) only two small flocks of king eiders. On August 1, 1951, at Barrier Lake, three large flocks were flying west beyond the north end of the lake. This was the first day since July 29, on which we had seen such large flocks so far inland.

On September 11, 1952, eight king eiders were resting on the sh.o.r.e of the Arctic Ocean at Point Barrow.

+Lamp.r.o.netta fischeri+ (Brandt): Spectacled eider.--On July 28, 1951, at Birnirk, several flocks were flying along the Arctic Ocean.

+Melanitta perspicillata+ (Linnaeus): Surf scoter.--Specimens, 2: Porcupine Lake, 14629'50", 6851'57", 3140 ft., No. 31307 and 31308, ad. males, July 15, 1952.

Two males shot at Porcupine Lake on July 15, 1952, measured as follows: Total length, 489 mm, 495 mm; length of testis, 9 mm, 11 mm; weight, 1134 grams, 998 grams. These birds were frequently seen together along the south side of the lake. At Lake Schrader (July 27, 1952), 15 scoters, in loose groups of two to six, fed in the southwest corner of the lake.

+Buteo lagopus s. johannis+ (Gmelin): Rough-legged hawk.--On July 2, 1952, a nest of three young approximately six days old was examined mile southeast of Umiat Mountain. The young were being fed small mammals. Another nest containing three addled eggs was also examined near Umiat. Many infertile and addled eggs of several kinds of birds were noted on the Arctic Slope.

+Aquila chrysaetos canadensis+ (Linnaeus): Golden eagle.--Marvin Mangus told us that he had seen young in nests at the following localities: Kurupa River, 15511', 6838', on July 1, 1946; 10 miles south of Driftwood in latter part of June, 1950; 11 miles NW from the north end of Chandler Lake, 15256', 6825' on June 10, 1951; Awuna River, 15703', 6912' July 4, 1952. Single adult birds were seen by us at Gavia Lake (Aug. 21, 1952) and at Driftwood (Aug. 31, 1952).

Atanak and his companions from Wainwright saw 12 eagles while hunting (July 16-18, 1951) from the junction of the Avalik and Ketik rivers to a point seven miles up the Kaolak River, but no eagles were seen between the junction of the above rivers and Wainwright.

Golden eagles daily hunted prey along ridges where Arctic ground squirrels (_Spermophilus undulatus_) were abundant, for example, at Wahoo Lake (July 3-12, 1952) and at Porcupine Lake (July 13-18, 1952).

This species of eagle hunted also in areas where marmots (_Marmota caligata_) were abundant, as on the slopes adjoining Lake Peters.

There (August 6, 1952) three eagles soaring at 3800 feet elevation south of the mouth of Chamberlin Canyon elicited from each of four marmots three warning calls. Thereafter the marmots remained silent until the eagles had left the area. One eagle that consistently hunted (July 17, 1952) on the lower slope of Mount Annette along the Canning River was three times hara.s.sed by two ravens.

At the south end of Lake Peters (July 31, 1952), a pair of adult eagles soared along the slopes of Mount Mary approximately 1000 feet above the lake. Twenty minutes later these birds flew by camp at the base of the mountain. On August 2, at 8:00 P.M., two birds, one a large dark adult and one a bird of the year (?) dropped with partly closed wings from high on the east side of the lake to an undisturbed meadow on the west side. After circling the meadow once, the two birds spiralled upward to approximately 4500 feet elevation in one steep canyon, leveled off and after gaining the head of the next canyon, plummetted down to the base of the mountain some 1500 feet below. The high-speed flight continued across the ridge to the mouth of the next canyon where they circled twice and then soared upward to repeat the act. The objective probably was to surprise and prey upon small game at the mouths of each canyon. On August 13, the eagles were still in the area at the south end of Lake Peters in spite of an abrupt seasonal change; snow and rain increased and the temperature dropped.

On August 15, a Dall sheep (_Ovis dalli_) crossed the canyon from Mount Mary to the mouth of Chamberlin Canyon. As the sheep reached the east side of the canyon an eagle flew across the canyon and alighted approximately 150 feet from the sheep. A large group of small birds immediately hara.s.sed the eagle.

Two eagles fed on a dead caribou on a delta on the east side of Lake Peters. Eagles were noted every day at Lake Peters from July 31 to August 15 inclusive.

+Falco rusticolus obsoletus+ Gmelin: Gyrfalcon.--At the southwest corner of Barrier Lake on July 29, 1951, a gyrfalcon sat on a bank 10 feet above the water level. A dead Arctic tern was on the beach only 90 feet away and visible to the gyrfalcon. When approached to within 250 feet, the gyrfalcon, rather than flying north over the lake and lowlands, flew south across the upland tundra. On August 3, on the edge of the upland tundra approximately 3 miles farther east a gyrfalcon ate a Sabine's gull--a bird of the year. Its feathers had been plucked and only the stomach and intestines remained. The gyrfalcon left the feeding area when approached to within 450 feet and, as did the other gyrfalcon, flew south over the upland tundra rather than over the lowlands of inundated sedges. On July 4, one gyrfalcon sat on a promontory at the south end of Barrier Lake. This bird flew south.

At Umiat (Sept. 1-5, 1951) a gyrfalcon each day hunted the same areas of marsh in the river valley where tundra voles (_Microtus oeconomus_) were numerous and along the side of the valley where ground squirrels were common. On several occasions, this bird hovered 30 feet up and inspected us. This confidence was in contrast to that of the gyrfalcons at Teshekpuk Lake; they evaded us by leaving the ground several hundred feet away and flying out of sight.

Westley Redhead told us that a gyrfalcon was at Umiat as early as the latter part of May, 1952. We saw them there on September 1 and 2 in the same year. Gyrfalcons feed on ptarmigan in the river valley and on ground squirrels and small birds on the uplands by striking their prey on the ground. These falcons fly like prairie falcons and are of the same nervous disposition.