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 pleasant morning, a good book, a hot cup of joe and a favorite snack.

The rhubarb is on, growing like crazy all over town! It feels like a wild plant ready to be foraged. In fact, rhubarb grows exceptionally well in our sub-arctic rainforest biome. Like our lovely foraged ingredients, it comes back every year without much tending.

I did not grow up with rhubarb. Tasting a slice of strawberry rhubarb pie from a local pie shop, my young mind couldn’t get past the idea that the filling consisted of pink celery sticks – rendered rather gloppy in the pie. My original assessment – yuck! Good thing young taste buds grow up.

These days the bright pink and red stalks are an absolute favorite. The lemony flavor paired with the colorful hue make for a winning combination.

Rhubarb happens to freeze quite nicely. So, in the doldrum days before spring growth got started I dug into my freezer and turned out a batch of rhubarb crumb bars to bring along to a sunny day picnic gathering of friends. The bars were a hit. I was happy with the flavor, but I thought they looked boring. Covering an 8 x 8 baking pan, the rather nondescript bars could have been anything. I wanted these tasty treats to visually beckon.

The solution? Same recipe, but this time baked in parchment-lined muffin cups and topped with toasted pecan accents. My neighborhood taste-testers agreed!

Do you have a favorite take-along picnic treat?

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