Red-necked Grebe

• 24 May 2010
  We had a departure time for Nome at 11:05 am which allowed for some leisurely birding around the hotel and at Lake Hood adjacent to the hotel. Since sunrise comes early, some participants chose to do some birding and then have breakfast, and finish final packing arrangements before our departure to the airport at 8:30 am. Shuttle to the airport and checking in went well, but we were delayed one hour on the runway due to a hydraulic issue. Better safe than sorry though! Arriving one-hour late in Nome set our lunch plans back a bit, but we quickly made our baggage exchange to Bering Air and got on to our plane and rocketed off to Gambell.
  
  The flight out was uneventful, but that nagging feeling of “what am I missing on the island?” was on our minds as we cleared the clouds to the north of the island and then landed at the Gambell airstrip. But as it turned out, we had little to fear since the snow totals in the area were the highest in many years and it was only 35ºF with 15 mph winds from the south. David MacKay and the staff from the Sivuqaq Hotel were there to meet us and transport our luggage to our rustic but very comfortable lodging at the Siviqaq where we were to be staying for the next five nights. (Note: “Sivuqaq” is Russian Yupik for “to squeeze” and although I have no idea if that is a local term for something which happened in the past, it would make sense that the term originated from a description of the narrow straights which birds migrate through between Far Eastern Siberia and Gambell). We had a late lunch, and then ventured out for a foray in the Near Boneyard for about an hour before coming back and getting some instruction on use and safety of the ATVs. While in the Near Boneyard, we were able to see one Common Ringed Plover and a Common Snipe (which most or all of the group managed good looks at). While the Common Ringed-Plover has bred in the area and is nearly annual, the snipe was a great find.
  
  We then departed for the South Marsh for the late afternoon where we spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening pouring over the birds there, and were rewarded in spectacular fashion by scope views of Lesser Sand-Plover, one Red-Throated Pipit, one Common Greenshank and several White Wagtails. This was a tremendous start to our tour, and we could not have asked for a better introduction to birding on Gambell. Back to the Sivuqaq by 9:00 pm for a late dinner and discussion on the following morning’s plans. Winds were still somewhat favorable, from the south and west, and we were very hopeful for the following day.
• 25 May 2010
  Our expected routine became established today, with plenty of fresh coffee, tea and a light breakfast available at 5:30 am. We dressed in layers and then headed out to the Point to do some sea watching and in particular to look for the elusive Ivory Gull and Arctic Loons as they fly by the Point. The sheer total of alcids passing the Point from south to north was staggering, but we were unsuccessful in finding our target birds this morning. We did manage some great views of Yellow-Billed Loon, King, Common, and Spectacled Eiders in the morning. Looking to warm up, we headed back to the Sivuqaq for a full breakfast at 8:30 am.
  
  After breakfast, we packed up for a trip to the Far Marsh and headed down the airport road as access. We spent several hours in the area to see if anything new had arrived, but beyond the expected Rock and Pectoral Sandpipers, we were unsuccessful. We scouted the road back to Gambell along the mountain to the east, then the Circular Boneyard and the north coast access to see if anything was hiding in the rocks. Calling it a “morning,” we headed back to the Sivuqaq for Jen’s lunch which consisted of home-made chicken soup and sandwiches which really warmed us up.
  
  After an early afternoon break, we went back to the Near Boneyard to search for a female Brambling which had been discovered, but we dipped on that. We were pleased to get some more views of Common Ringed Plover and of course the always dapper Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs. While scouring the Boneyard, one of the leaders noticed some mischievous local boys turning our ATV fuel control switches from on to off, hoping to cause some confusion, but for naught. (The locals also were found to be fond of jumping on the roof of the Sivuqaq late at night just to let us know how much they appreciated our visit!). Back to the Point where we got some wonderful scope views of a sub-adult male Spectacled Eider which cooperatively remained for all to admire at leisure.
  
  We decided to head back to the Sivuqaq for dinner at a normal hour (wonderful home-made macaroni and cheese casserole, salad and cauliflower) and then back to the Point for another attempt at some species we were seeking from 9:00pm – 10:30pm. We found a feeding frenzy of Northern Fulmars near the large iceberg, but little else and we called it a day by 11:00pm.