Birds of Chignik Lake

As articles are published, readers will be able to click the below titles to go directly to them.

I. Introduction: The Chigniks – Avian Diversity and Change in a Remote, Unique Environment

II. List of Birds by Common Name (with scientific name), American Ornithologists’ Union Order

Section 1: Loons of Chignik

Sidebar: The Loons of The Lake

Section 2: Grebes, Petrel, Cormorants, Heron

Section 3: Swans, Geese and Ducks

Sidebar: Ice Changes Everything – Wintertime on the Frozen Chignik

Sidebar: Nature Watching & Nest Finding: an Exercise in Mindfulness

Section 4: Hawks, Eagles and Falcons

Section 6: Upland Game Birds

Willow Ptarmigan Lagopus lagopus

Section 7: Shorebirds, Gulls, Terns and Alcids

Section 8: Owls

Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus
Northern Saw-whet Owl Aegolius acadicus

Section 9: Kingfisher, Woodpecker, Shrike

Belted Kingfisher Ceryle alcyon
Downy Woodpecker Picoides pubescens
Hairy Woodpecker Picoides villosus
Northern Shrike Lanius excubitor

Section 10: Corvids

Black-billed Magpie Pica hudsonia
Common Raven Corvus Corax

Section 11: Swallows

Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor
Violet-green Swallow Tachycineta thalassina
Bank Swallow Riparia riparia

Section 12: Birds of White Spruce Grove

Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapilla
Red-breasted Nuthatch Sitta canadensis
Pacific Wren Troglodytes pacificus
American Dipper Cinclus mexicanus
Golden-crowned Kinglet Regulus satrapa
Ruby-crowned Kinglet Regulus calendula
American Robin Turdus migratorius
Gray-cheeked Thrush Catharus minimus
Hermit Thrush Catharus guttatus
?American Pipit Anthus rubescens
Orange-crowned Warbler Vermivora celata
Yellow Warbler Dendroica petechia
Wilson’s Warbler Wilsonia pusilla
American Tree Sparrow Spizella arborea
Savannah Sparrow Passerculus sandwichensis
Fox Sparrow (Sooty) Passerella iliaca
Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia
Lincoln’s Sparrow Melospiza lincolnii
Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis (Species Overview)
- Slate-Colored form
- White-winged form
- Oregon form
Golden-crowned Sparrow Zonotrichia atricapilla
White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicollis
Snow Bunting Plectrophenax nivalis
Red Crossbill Loxia curvirostra
White-winged Crossbill Loxia leucoptera
Pine Siskin Carduelis pinus
Common Redpoll Carduelis flammea
- Xanthochromic Common Redpoll rarity
Hoary Redpoll Carduelis hornemanni
Pine Grosbeak Pinicola enucleator

Appendix:

Alphabetical Listing of Chignik Birds by Common Name

Chignik Species Checklist

References:

Alaska Peninsula and Becharof National Wildlife Refuge Bird List (U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service) (online)

Aniakchak National National Monument and Preserve Species List (online)

Audubon Guide to North American Birds (online)

Birds of the Chignik River Drainage, 1960-63, David Narver, University of Washington, July 1968

Cornell Lab of Ornithology: All About Birds (online)

Siblley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America, The, written & illustrated by David Allen Sibley, 2003

Heirloom lettuces and spicy microgreens are happliy growing pest free.

Experiments often includes failures. But failures often bear insights and improvements, right?

Last summer, we experimented with a container garden on our covered deck, an area that seemed to receive abundant summertime sunshine and warmth. We planted cabbages, lettuces, peppers, and tomatoes. I was pretty confident the cabbages would grow, since they are cold-hardy. The peppers never came around, but the tomatoes were interesting.

We started the tomatoes inside from seed, then moved them to the deck in June, but found we had miscalculated the amount of sunshine falling on the deck. As summer progressed and the sun rose higher in the sky, the warmest, brightest sunshine of mid-day was blocked by the roof over the deck. The tomato pants developed v e r y slowly. By September, the plants were a foot tall and were starting to flower. Too late to fruit, I moved the plants to our indoor garden room and hand-pollinated the flowers which then developed into fruit. Hurray!

Disaster followed.

I didn’t realize it, but the tomatoes were infested with aphids – tiny black specks were soon flourishing on all the fresh, tender hydroponic greens. My garden was ruined! I read there are about 1500 recorded species of aphid in North American! I tried a couple of strategies to combat the little beasts, but with no success. My last resort was to kill all the plants, to move any potted plants back outside, to fully sanitize and deep clean the hydroponic garden and to start all over again.

Now, fresh seeds have sprouted and new plants are growing in the hydroponic garden without any signs of pests. No outside plants will mix into the hydroponic room ever again! Lesson learned.

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