Trip report St. Paul, Pribilofs June 2000
 
Roger Wolfe <rogwolfe@cruzio.com>
 

From June 5-10, 2000  I ventured to St. Paul island in the Pribilof
islands. Our Reeve Aleutian Air flight arrived  late in the afternoon
and our group of independent birders boarded St. Paul Tour's buses for a
quick look at  Red-legged Kittiwakes which the island is known for. We
then were checked into the rustic King Eider Hotel.  After settling into
our rooms I set off with my newfound birder friends who I met on the
plane- Mike Sylvia and Greig Cranna from Massachusetts . We birded Town
Lake and the  sea cliffs just outside of town. On the cliffs we made our
first sightings of Least Auklet, Red-faced Cormorant, Thick-billed
Murre, and both Horned and Tufted Puffins all of which were busily
nesting. Later after dinner at the Trident cafeteria located in the fish
cannery we were of birding until about 11 p.m. Skies were overcast and
the wind was from the SE.

Birds seen in this first tour included:
Lapland Longspurs and the Pribilof forms of Rock Sandpiper and
Gray-crowned Rosy Finch which are ubiquitous at St. Paul. Black-legged
Kittiwake, numerous Northern Pintail and Harlequin Duck. Semipalmated
Plover, Least Sandpiper were preludes to our most exciting shorebird of
the trip a Wood Sandpiper at Webster Lake. A group of four King Eiders
were spotted offshore from Hutchinson Hill. Long-tailed Duck, Greater
Scaup, Aleutian Canada Goose, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye and the
Eurasian form of Green-winged Teal comprised the waterfowl. Also seen
were both Red and Red-necked Phalaropes.

The following day was quite windy with the wind direction continuing
from the SE. New birds sighted on this day were Pectoral Sandpipers and
a roosting Long-tailed Jaeger eating bugs and a Glaucous-winged Gull. On
the cliffs we got our first looks at Parakeet and Crested Auklets. Snow
Buntings were plentiful in the rocky areas. We also saw Short-eared Owl,
Bank Swallow, Glaucous Gull and the Pribilof form of Winter Wren. The
forecast for strong winds from the NW the next day  made us hopeful for
vagrants.

And windy it was from the NW, gusts up to 40 mph with rain and sleet
which was painful in the face and made  for very difficult birding. Our
binoculars were constantly fogging up. I strongly recommend waterproof
bins for St. Paul. Mine got water in them and I spent a couple of hours
drying them out with a borrowed blow dryer. Also essential are wellies
or some other type of waterproof footwear as you will spend a good deal
of time stomping through wetland areas with the group spread out much
like you would in looking for rails. Good rainwear is a must for both
precipitation and cold winds. St. Paul tours maintains radio contact
with one another but a pair of walkie talkies were very helpful in
communicating within the group itself.

On this windy day we were lucky to flush a mixed flock of geese which
landed in Dune Lake. In amongst the Canada Geese were single Greater
White-fronted Goose and Emperor Goose. We also had looks at a pair of
Eurasian Widgeon, Pacific Golden Plover and a flyby Whimbrel. Another
group had Mongolian Plover but despite much effort we were unable to
relocate it.

Winds continued from the NW our next day but the rains subsided and
clear skies prevailed later the wind died out and we enjoyed an
apparently rare sunny afternoon and evening. Our group worked the island
hard this day covering a lot of ground but not seeing many birds.
Birding on St. Paul involves a good deal of effort. To quote Sean Smith
who runs St. Paul Tours for the native TDX Corp. " We basically promise
the alcids and kittiwakes, anything else is just icing on the cake.
Birding here requires hard work in looking for a needle in a haystack.
That and a little luck."

Despite all our hard work we saw no new birds until about 9p.m. when a
calling  Mongolian Plover flew over our heads and circled around
allowing most in our group decent looks. Back in town there was a Bald
Eagle seen over Town Lake.

We were scheduled to depart this morning but a the last minute we were
told Reeve had cancelled our flight due to mechanical difficulties. This
made for some trouble as many in our group were scheduled for connecting
flights to Nome or home or had rental cars and accomodations reserved.
Reeve foot the bill for another night at the King Eider and dinner at
the Trident. A word here on food and beverages. Food at the Trident is
good - breakfast is $9, lunch $13 and dinner $17. Some folks used the
microwave at the hotel to make meals and the store across the street has
most things. The tavern keeps strange hours and the whole island was
without beer for a couple of days, they also serve wine and sake. The
liquor store sells only beer and wine and is open sporadically.

St. Paul tours was kind enough to take us out birding in the evening. We
missed on a Black-headed Gull seen earlier in the day but Webster Lake
produced a Yellow Wagtail seen by few.

Reeve sent a jet for us instead of the usual Lockheed Electra. Aside
from all the good birds I got to see I really enjoyed the other birders
who started out as strangers and ended up good friends.

Roger Wolfe
Soquel, CA