icatus, Gammarus locusta and Weyprechtia 

 pingiiis. 



Kittlitz's Murrelet (Brachyramphus 

 brevir'ostre) 



Kittlitz's Murrelet breeds in scattered coastal 

 locations in Alaska from Leconte Bay possibly 

 north to Point Barrow and on the Chuckost 

 Peninsula in Siberia but is rare north of the 

 Bering Strait. Breeding of this inconspicuous 

 species probably has been overlooked by in- 

 vestigators. Brower took many specimens at 

 Barrovif from August to October but, although 

 Bailey (1948) believed suitable nesting sites 

 existed between the Seahorse Islands and Bar- 

 row, there is still no proof of nesting. The only 

 previous pelagic observations are those re- 

 ported by Swartz (1967) : three sightings, 

 totalling four birds, north of Cape Lisburne. 

 Little is known of the migration of the species. 

 There are no winter records, and the latest 

 specific fall record for Barrow, is one collected 

 by Brower 4 October 1927 (Field Museum 

 specimen). 



We recorded 15 sightings of Kittlitz's Mur- 

 relet between 24 September and 8 October, 

 eight of them between Barrow and Icy Cape 

 (fig. 33). The remainder was in the northern 

 part of the study area. It was never abundant, 

 with 12 of the sightings being of three or less 

 individuals. Small numbers were also seen in 

 the southern part of the Bering Strait on 18 

 October (fig. 34). These observations probably 

 are now the latest on record for Kittlitz's Mur- 

 relet in Alaska. Little is known about the food 

 habits of this species though invertebrates 

 probably constitute most, if not all, of its food. 



Parakeet Auklet (Cydorrhynchus psittacula) 



The Parakeet Auklet breeds near the Bering 

 Strait and the Aleutian Islands. Small nesting 

 colonies occur on the Siberian coast in the 

 western Chukchi Sea (Koslova, 1961) but none 

 on the Alaska Chukchi coast. Jacques (1930) 

 saw several flocks of small auklets at 69°40' N, 

 170°00'W on 14 August which may have in- 

 cluded this species. Grinnell (1900) found it 

 common in Kotzebue Sound on 1 June but 

 Swartz (1967) reported only one sighting of 

 several individuals there in August. There are 

 only three records for Barrow: 12 September 

 1896 (Seale, 1898), 3 October 1932, and 27 



July 1942 (Bailey, 1948). The species winters 

 in variable numbers oflF the Pacific coasts of 

 Canada and the United States, but little is 

 known of its migration. 



We observed three individuals in the study 

 area at 69°47'N, 167°50'W on 9 October 

 (fig. 14). A single bird was seen in the Bering 

 Strait on 18 October (fig. 12) . 



The Parakeet Auklet feeds by diving for 

 planktonic amphipods, arrow worms, fish 

 larvae, polychaetes, and cephalopods (Bedard, 

 1969). 



Crested Auklet (Aethia cristatella) 



The Crested Auklet has the same breeding 

 range as the Parakeet Auklet ; it is one of the 

 most abundant species breeding on the 

 Diomedes but is not known to breed in Alaska 

 north of the Bering Strait. Bailey (1948) listed 

 a number of summer records for Barrow and 

 believed a few individuals might nest on arctic 

 coastal boulder fields. Nelson (1883) observed 

 a small number at Herald and Wrangel Islands. 

 Jacques' (1930) only possible sighting was of 

 unspecified auklets at 69°40'N, 170°00'W 14 

 August. Swartz (1967) had two sightings 18 

 miles west of Cape Thompson. The Crested 

 Auklet winters in ice-free waters from the 

 Bering Strait southward, especially near the 

 Pribilofs, Aleutians, and Kodiak. 



Seven of our 12 sightings were northeast of 

 the study area between Barrow and Icy Cape 

 (fig. 36). The largest concentration was a 

 group of more than 100 individuals swimming 

 among ice cakes suggesting a considerable 

 northward movement after breeding. This is 

 the only alcid in which a large flock (30 indi- 

 viduals) was observed sitting on the ice. None 

 was observed after 27 September. 



No specimens were collected. Studies during 

 the breeding season have found herbivorous 

 zooplankton (Calanus and Thysanoessa) to be 

 the primary food (Bedard, 1969). 



Horned Pufl'in (Fratercula corniculata) 



The Horned Puffin is a north Pacific species 

 found breeding in the Chukchi Sea from the 

 Bering Strait north to Cape Lisburne. Nelson 

 (1883) and Jacques (1930) reported it from 

 Herald Island but there are no definite breed- 

 ing records. Swartz (1966) found 950 pairs 

 breeding at the Cape Thompson cliifs in 1960. 

 Summer observers have reported Horned 



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