Ecological Distribution of Birds in the Kolomak River-Askinuk Mountain Region, Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska
Holmes RT and Black CP. 1973. Ecological Distribution of Birds in the Kolomak River-Askinuk Mountain Region, Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska. The Condor. 75(2):150-163
The ecological distribution of birds was studied in four summers along the Kolomak River, 30 km northeast of Hooper Bay, Alaska. At this location, the extensive wet-marsh and heath-tundra habitats of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta abut a low, isolated range of hills, the Askinuk Mountains. The occurrence and distribution of 88 species of birds and the nesting habitats and major feeding areas of 56 species regularly breeding at the Kolomak are presented and analyzed. The extensive marsh tundra, with scattered islands of slightly raised heath tundra, supports a diverse array of waterfowl and shore birds. The mountains provide additional ecological formations and contribute significantly to the avifaunal diversity. In particular, the better-drained tundra of the hill slopes is utilized by several shorebirds and some passerines. Rock outcrops provide nest sites for raptors, while a long, narrow zone of alder thickets along the base of the hills supports a variety of passerines not found elsewhere on the western part of the Delta. The avifauna in this region is also characterized by the extremely high densities of a few species.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Holmes, Richard; Black, Craig
- Units
- ARCN , BELA , CAKR , GAAR , KOVA , NOAT
- Keywords
- Arctic, Birds, Hooper Bay, Passerines, Raptors, Waterfowl