Perhaps the most sought-after bird in Alaska’s vast wilderness is the Arctic Warbler. This plain bird belongs to an entire family of modest species, the Old World warblers. Anyone who has traveled in Eurasia or Africa has seen the vanilla-wrapper warblers, normally separated more by song and ecology than looks. In Alaska, their non-descript plumage is their best field mark although their buzzy trills help us bird guides find them. We normally find them on the Denali Highway, especially in the area of the MacLeran Summit. This individual was at Rock Creek, a name which could be applied to about every stream in the State. Arctic Warblers join a few other birds to cross the Arctic Ocean in late spring, wintering in Asia. After they breed they fly “home” and ride out the winter, waiting for their return trip to Alaska. (Believe me; I know the feeling).

Common Ravens are the largest songbird in the World, one of the most intelligent and adaptable birds, and the enemy of most nesting birds. Note the huge, slightly decurved bill, a quick end for baby birds and eggs as well. This bird is all over the Interior of Alaska and much of Canada as well. American Crows are not in Alaska and the Northwestern Crow in confined to parts of the south shore.

American Dippers are common on rocky streams in the Interior, issuing their sharp calls and bobbing and weaving up and down the rapids. They will even walk underwater, catching caddis fly larvae. As you can see, though, they also catch small fish, a rare thing for songbirds. Dippers are represented by several species, scattered on several continents, and the American Dipper is found in many places in the American West.

Gray Jays are Old World in origin, moving into our continent during the last ice age. This is true of jays which are blue or gray but those which are other colors, like green or brown, evolved in the New World Tropics. Gray Jays are often dubbed “camp robbers” as they do not hesitate to come into tent sites and take what food they can steal.

Young Gray Jays are sooty-colored and have a way of hiding in the shade like catbirds. This species is a perfect example of Allen’s Rule, which states that warm-blooded animals in colder climates often have reduced appendages, such as the short bill of this bird. As you might have guessed, this is for reduced heat loss.

While the vast majority of Alaska’s sandpipers breed on the Arctic Tundra, Least Sandpipers make their homes all over the Interior. Their browner plumage helps them blend with muddy shores and makes them virtually invisible if they don’t move. In winter, when we get them in the Lower 48, they are much grayer, blending in with beach sand and such.

Another killer of songbirds, the Northern Shrike is distributed sparsely over Alaska’s Interior. They are told from Loggerheads, which are never this far north, by the narrow, black eye-stripe and the lighter gray color. Their juveniles, often seen in the Lower 48 in winter, are browner than other plumages of shrikes. This family is abundant in the Old World, including Africa and Australia.

There are only seven New World warblers in Alaska and the most conspicuous is surely the Orange-crowned. Their trills are heard in a variety of habitats and the songs may be surprisingly variable. Most folks who visit Alaska or the West Coast struggle at first with this species as they are much yellower underneath than in the rest of North America. BTW, on this particular bird you can see some of the usually-hidden orange on top.

Pine Grosbeaks are tame and abiding in much of their northern range, often seen in roads picking up gravel and seeds. These are one of many birds where the males are red and the females yellow, as red and yellow are very close biochemically. These birds are big enough that they seldom need to stray too far south in winter but reward those in the North for having bird feeders. BTW, not all grosbeaks are closely-related and some emanate from the Old World and some the American Tropics.

Cranes have a very large breeding range across much of the North, and even in Florida and Mississippi. In many areas they appear stained, often by tannin found in water as a result of rotting leaves. This appears to be a flock of possible failed nesters but it’s hard to say for sure

This is a typical scene in Central Alaska with a Moose and a pair of Trumpeter Swans sharing a quiet pond. As herbivorous acquaintances, they have no real relationship and pretty much ignore each other. They are, however, among the largest members of their respective classes in Alaska.

The State Bird of Alaska, Willow Ptarmigan (and their two close relatives), undergo a stark color change from winter to summer. Each is white in the snowy months but becomes mostly dark in summer, without the snow. This bird still has to molt some white but he’s looking like the birds of summer. Note the feathered toes, a trait very few birds have.

Cliffs are the swallow of Alaska’s Interior. These are gathering mud for nest-construction and always keep their wings up for quick take-off. Notice the light buffy “flashlight’ on the forehead, crucial for separating them from Cave Swallows in the southern Lower 48. The population of Cliffs has risen with more artificial nesting sites.

One of the most exciting birds of Alaska’s Interior is the Northern Hawk-Owl, often seen atop spruce trees in the Far North. This one has a vole, but aside from rodents, they also take small birds. They can be quite tame or frustratingly wary, perhaps depending on their history with our species.

Many birds in Alaska’s Interior are seen from spruce tops as it allows them to search for food as well as watch for enemies. Given that it’s light more than 20 hours in summer, Alaska’s owls have to be able to hunt by “day.” But they don’t have to migrate south as they can hunt under darkness as well, unlike hawks. Still, many owls do head south, depending on food availability.

Darting off from its perch you can see why they call it a “hawk” owl! They are built not unlike an accipiter and even unwary birds fall victim quickly. Hawk-owls are one of the many irruptive species that may head south in big numbers one year and not the next. I find it interesting that there are “irruptions” by those who “erupt.” Do you know why?