RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT ALONG COASTS 



185 



in the Bering Sea alone. 



North and east of the Bering Strait, popula- 

 tion estimates of the bird fauna are less com- 

 plete. Swartz (1966) estimated, however, that 

 seabird populations of five colonies in the vi- 

 cinity of Cape Thompson in the Chukchi Sea 

 exceeded a total of 420,000 breeding birds in 

 1960. Information provided by Bartonek and 

 Sealy (this volume) indicates that large colony 

 complexes at Cape Lisburne and Little Dio- 

 mede Island each number, in aggregate, over 

 1 million breeding birds, mainly alcids, kitti- 

 wakes (Rissa spp.), gulls (Larus spp.), fulmars 

 (Fulmarus glacialis), and cormorants (Phala- 

 crocorax spp.). Although the Chukchi Sea 

 coast north of Cape Lisburne has no rocks 

 suitable for cliff-nesting seabirds, large num- 

 bers of tundra-nesting species use the inshore 

 waters as a migratory pathway, and many 

 nonbreeding cliff nesters summer in these 

 waters (J. M. Scott, comments by Pacific Sea- 

 bird Group on U.S. Department of the Inte- 

 rior Draft Environmental Statement 74-90). 

 According to Scott, sea ducks and gulls are 

 the most numerous birds in the Beaufort Sea. 

 Observations by Thompson and Person (1963) 

 of an estimated 1 million eiders, mostly king 

 eiders (Somateria spectabilis) and Pacific 

 eiders (S. mollissima), passing over Point Bar- 

 row en route to molting areas, reflect the num- 

 bers involved. Oldsquaws (Clangula hyemalis) 

 use coastal waters of the Beaufort Sea for 

 postbreeding wing molts; Bartels (1973) esti- 

 mated their numbers at nearly 400,000 in the 

 fall and perhaps more during the molting 

 period. Shorebirds, jaegers (Stercorarius 

 spp.), gulls, and terns, most of which use 

 coastal waters at some time during the sum- 

 mer season, swell bird numbers by several mil- 

 lions in this area (Arctic Institute of North 

 America 1974). 



As indicated by Sanger (1972), the seabirds 

 inhabiting coastal areas south of Bering 

 Strait are mainly members of the Procellarii- 

 dae in summer and Alcidae in winter. Sooty 

 shearwaters (Puffinus griseus) are the preva- 

 lent summer species and ancient murrelets 

 (Synthliboramphus antiquus) and marbled 

 murrelets (Brachyramphus marmoratus) are 

 the most abundant winter species. Sanger's 

 central subarctic domain (offshore waters in- 

 cluding the Gulf of Alaska) had a different 

 species composition. During the summer, pro- 



cellariids mostly slender-billed shearwaters 

 (Puffinus tenuirostris) and sooty shear- 

 watersmade up 94% of the biomass. Procel- 

 lariids, including fulmars, larids (largely glau- 

 cous-winged gulls, Larus glaucescens), black- 

 legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla), and large 

 alcids, including the tufted puffin (Lunda cirr- 

 hata), made up 87% of the winter biomass in 

 this domain (Sanger 1972). 



Although most of the arctic waters, includ- 

 ing the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort seas, 

 are unavailable to birds during the winter be- 

 cause of pack ice, they seasonally host an avi- 

 fauna dominated by colony nesters, such as 

 common and thick-billed murres (Uria aalge 

 and U. lomvia), and tundra nesters, such as 

 oldsquaws and eiders. In far northern waters, 

 sea ducks (mainly eiders and oldsquaws), red 

 phalaropes (Phalaropus fulicarius), and gulls 

 are the predominant species. 



Intertidal areas throughout the Alaska, 

 British Columbia, and Washington coasts 

 support characteristic assemblages of shore- 

 birds, including the black oystercatcher 

 (Haematopus bachmani), rock sandpiper 

 (Erolia ptilocnemis), wandering tattler 

 (Heteroscelus incanum), surfbird (Aphriza vir- 

 gata), and black turnstone (Arenaria melano- 

 cephala) as reported by J. M. Scott (com- 

 ments by Pacific Seabird Group to U.S. De- 

 partment of the Interior Draft Environmental 

 Statement 74-90). Perhaps the greatest con- 

 centrations of shorebirds in this whole region 

 occur during spring and fall migrations in 

 Prince William Sound. The tremendous num- 

 bers of migrating birds using these tidal and 

 marsh areas are hard to imagine, but densities 

 of up to 250,000 shorebirds per 259 hectares 

 (ha) on portions of the more than 51,820-ha 

 tidal flats of the Copper River Delta have 

 been recorded (Isleib and Kessel 1973). 



Although this region's avifauna is remark- 

 able from the numerical standpoint, it is im- 

 portant to remember also that some of its 

 species are limited in distribution to this area. 

 According to Bartonek et al. (1971), Alaska is 

 the only known breeding area for black turn- 

 stones, bristle-thighed curlews (Numenius 

 tahitiensis), surfbirds, western sandpipers 

 (Ereunetes mauri), and Kittlitz's murrelets 

 (Brachyramphus brevirostris). Several water- 

 fowl species, including the dusky Canada 

 goose (Branta canadensis occidentalis), cack- 



