2008 Seabird Colony Survey Trip Report
Hahr M. 2008. 2008 Seabird Colony Survey Trip Report. Kenai Fjords National Park
During 14-18 July 2008, Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) and Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge (AMNWR) biologists conducted a complete resurvey of the Chiswell Islands common murre (Uria aalge) and black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) populations. Censuses were also conducted at two colonies in KEFJ (i.e., East Aialik Cape and Bear Glacier Point) while en route to the Chiswell Islands. The boat based surveys were conducted aboard the M/V Gone Again (14–16 July) and M/V Serac (16–18 July). The surveys were led by AMNWR Wildlife Biologist, Leslie Slater, with assistance from KEFJ Ecologist, Meg Hahr. The park provided all vessel support for the surveys including contracting a private vessel for the first part of the trip when the M/V Serac was unexpectedly unavailable due to mechanical problems. We surveyed the Chiswell Island murre and kittiwake colonies seven years after the last population counts were made employing the same methods used during previous monitoring efforts (Roseneau and Byrd 2002). The purpose of this survey was to obtain current information on the status of Chiswell Island murre and kittiwake populations which were injured by the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS) and have yet to increase in numbers since the spill. This report is a summary of field activities associated with the surveys. The AMNWR will prepare a final report containing detailed survey results, analysis, and conclusions.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Hahr, Meg
- Date of Issue
- 2008
- Units
- KEFJ
- Keywords
- Matushka, Abundance, Aialik Bay, Aialik Peninsula, Alaska, Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, Bear Glacier Point, Beehive, Black-legged Kittiwake, Chiswell, Common Murre, Crater Bay., Distribution, Exxon Valdez, Gulf of Alaska, Kenai Fjords National Park, Kenai Fjords National Park, Natoa, Oil Spill, population monitoring, Rissa tridactyl, Seabird Colony, Seabirds, Uria Aalge