24 



J. C. BARTONEK AND S. G. SEALY 



Point Barrow and the Bering Strait, including 

 those at Cape Lisburne, at Motherhood Point, 

 Nine-mile Point, Cape Deceit, Towalevic 

 Point, Sullivan Bluff, all on the northern base 

 of the Seward Peninsula, and at Fairway 

 Rock. The relative size of populations of most 

 species was probably underestimated because 

 the burrow- and crevice-nesting species were 

 largely unseen. 



Bering Sea 



Aside from work by Gabrielson and Lincoln 

 (1959) and the early but understandably in- 

 complete accounts by Nelson (1883, 1887) and 

 Turner (1886), no comprehensive description 

 of the avifauna of the Alaskan coast of the 

 Bering Sea exists. Many studies adequately 

 describe local avifauna, and some of them are 

 exemplary assessments of the status of 

 populations. 



Most of the coastline suitable for cliff-nest- 

 ing marine birds and most of the smaller near- 

 shore islands from the Bering Strait south to 

 the tip of the Alaska Peninsula were recon- 

 noitered piecemeal from aircraft between 1970 

 and 1973 by J. C. Bartonek, J. G. King, D. R. 

 Cline, C. D. Evans, and M. L. Plenert (U.S. 

 FWS 1973a, 19736; this paper). In late June 

 1973 Bartonek, Cline, and Plenert made brief 

 reconnaissances on foot of King, Besboro, and 

 Shaiak islands. Bartonek and J. G. Divoky, 

 traveling by boat and occasionally on foot, re- 

 connoitered colonies at Cape Seniavin, a por- 

 tion of the Walrus Islands group, Shaiak 

 Island, and the coastline from Cape Peirce 

 around Cape Newenham to Security Cove 

 (U.S. FWS 1973a, 19736; this paper). Al- 

 though these cursory surveys (especially 

 those from aircraft) tended to identify nesting 

 sites of cliff-nesting birds while missing sites 

 used by burrow- and crevice-nesting species, 

 information was obtained on the location and 

 relative size of many previously unreported 

 colonies. 



The mainland and island colonies in Norton 

 Sound have received little notice in the pub- 

 lished literature. Bailey (1943, 1948), although 

 working mainly at Little Diomede and in Arc- 

 tic and Lopp lagoons on the north side of the 

 Seward Peninsula, mentioned the birds at 

 Wales Mountain and Tin City. Nelson (1883, 

 1887) traveled throughout the region study- 

 ing the avifauna and the anthropology of 



Eskimos. Grinnell (19006) at Nome, 

 McGregor (1902) along the Koyuk River, 

 Hersey (1917) and Turner (1886) near St. 

 Michael, and Cade (1952) at Sledge Island pro- 

 vide fragmentary examples of the area's 

 marine bird populations. Colonies at King, 

 Besboro, Egg, and Sledge islands, near York 

 Mountains, and at Bluff were described in 

 proposals for new National Wildlife Refuges 

 (U.S. FWS 1973a). 



Sealy et al. (1971) reviewed the literature 

 and discussed the various zoogeographic rela- 

 tionships among the avifauna of St. Lawrence 

 Island. Fay and Cade (1959) estimated num- 

 bers and biomass of all birds on St. Lawrence 

 Island but did not identify locations and sizes 

 of particular populations; consequently, repli- 

 cation of their estimates is precluded. An 

 exemplary study by Bedard (1969) identified 

 the locations and sizes of all populations of 

 crested auklets (Aethia cristatella), least auk- 

 lets (A. pusilla), and parakeet auklets (Cyclor- 

 rhynchus psittaculd) on the island. Sealy 

 (1973) identified breeding sites of horned 

 puffins (Fratercula corniculata) there and 

 throughout the species' range. Thompson 

 (1967) listed the birds observed at Northeast 

 Cape and on nearby Punuk Islands. 



Annotated accounts have been published on 

 the breeding avifauna of St. Matthew, Hall, 

 and Pinnacle islands by Elliott (1882), Hanna 

 (1917), Bent (1919), and Gabrielson and 

 Lincoln (1959). Klein (1959) presented quanti- 

 tative data on the birds he observed inci- 

 dental to his study of reindeer (Rangifer 

 tarandus). 



The avifauna of the Yukon-Kuskokwim 

 delta, which is rich both in numbers and diver- 

 sity, has been treated extensively in the litera- 

 ture. Nelson (1883, 1887), Turner (1886), Con- 

 over (1926), Brandt (1943), Gabrielson and 

 Lincoln (1959), Williamson (1957), Kessel et 

 al. (1964), Harris (1966), Dau (1972), and 

 Holmes and Black (1973) all described the avi- 

 fauna in the same general area of the delta, 

 i.e., the eroding portion in the general vi- 

 cinity of Hooper and Hazen bays. The avi- 

 fauna of the aggrading portion of the Yukon 

 delta and of the Kuskokwim's mouth have not 

 been accorded similar attention. Populations 

 of waterfowl nesting on the delta and their 

 wintering affinities were described by King 

 and Lensink (1971) and U.S. FWS (1973c). 



