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

*A summer memory frozen in a bag. Today, I thawed it out and let that summer day return.*

A sun-drenched summer day, the two of us out hunting for wild strawberries. 2025 was quite a summer for those sugary little beauties and we came upon the biggest ones we’ve ever found. In searching favorite places, we also kept coming across wineberries (aka nagoonberries) – Merlot-colored tart gems that are hard to pass up even when we already have “enough” of them. They are prized for having a unique flavor that evokes a mixture of raspberry, strawberry and something else – something bright and wild not found in cultivated fruit. After a morning of foraging, we stopped for a picnic lunch at an empty campground next to a large pond. Our only dining company was a curious beaver who gave the water a quick tail whack as he swam by. After lunch, we decided to see what was growing along the forested shore. Lo and behold, a bush laden with huge, ripe blueberries!

We put aside a gallon of wild strawberries, wineberries, and blueberries from this day, frozen for later processing into a jam of memories. Today as I worked in the kitchen, steady snowfall blanketed the quiet landscape.

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