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Home , Midway Atoll, Wake Island

WESTERN BIRDS

Volume 26, Number 2, 1995

BIRD OBSERVATIONS ON WAKE

H. LEE JONES, 6108 Wildwood Road, Lake Isabella, 93240

Wake Atoll, at 19 ø 18' N, 166 ø 38' E, is one of the earth's most isolated landmasses. It is 1700 mi. (2700 km)from Japanand 2000 mi. (3100 km) from . The nearest point of land is tiny Taongi Atoll in the northern MarshallIslands, 350 mi (550 km) to the southeast.As this island is seldomvisited by ornithologists,its avifaunais littleknown. Wake Atoll, usuallyreferred to as WakeIsland, consists of threeislets, only one of which is correctlycalled . The atollis V-shaped with itsapex projecting southeast.Its total land massis only 3 miz. Each arm of the "V" is approximately4.5 mi. (7.0 km) longand averagesabout 0.3 mi. (0.5 km) across,with a shallowlagoon between the arms.Both arms are brokennear their distal end. Wilkes Island, at the tip of the south arm, was once separatedfrom the main islandby about 300 feet (100 m) but is now connectedby a causeway.At the tip of the northarm isslightly larger Peale Island,separated by a 400-foot (125-m) channeltraversed by a narrow bridge. Seabirdcolonies are almost restrictedto these two islands.Most human activityand virtuallyall permanentbuildings are confinedto the main island. The birdsof WakeAtoll are knownfrom only a few accounts:Vaughn (1945), Bailey (1951), Bryan (1959), Rice and Kenyon (1962), Casey (1966), Fosberg(1966), Johnstonand McFarlane(1967), Rowland(1990), and Sutterfield(1990), plus unpublishedreports and field notes of the BiologicalSurvey Program in the National Museumof Natural History, ,D.C. Pratt et al. (1987) summarizedthe known avifaunathrough about 1985. I visitedthe islandfrom 24 March until1 April 1993 as the ornithologistfor a biologicalsurvey conducted for an "environmentalassessment for long-termactivities at Wake Atoll" (U.S. ArmySpace and Strategic Defense Command). I found most of the species reportedby previousinvestigators. The Red-tailedTropicbird (Phaethon rubricauda),Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster),Red-looted Booby (Sula sula), (Sternafuscata), and Brown Noddy (Anousstolidus) were breedingat the time of my visit. Three other speciespresent but WesternBirds 26:65-75, 1995 65 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

apparentlynot breedingat the time of my visit were the White-tailed Tropicbird (Phaethor• lepturus), (Sula dactylatra), and (Fregata m/nor).

SPECIES ACCOUNTS

The followingspecies accounts include, in additionto my observations, accountsof the birdsobserved and photographedby Lou Hitchcock,a civilianAir Forceemployee and 20-yearresident of the island.Hitchcock is not an ornithologistand hashad no accessto fieldguides or experts,but he has documentedmuch of what he has observedof the plantsand wildlife over the yearswith an excellentseries of photographsthat I examined. Historically,no land-dependentbirds other than shorebirds,ducks, and the now-extinct Wake Rail (Railus wakensis) were documented from this remote atoll. LaysanAlbatross Diomedea immutabilis. This species breeds in the northwestern HawaiianIslands and the Ogasawara(Bonin) Islands south of , and may be establishingsmall colonies on GuadalupeIsland and San BenedictoIsland off the west coastof Mexico(Harrison 1990). It rangesat sea throughoutthe northernPacific Ocean(Sanger 1974). It wasformerly more commonand widespreadand may have bredon WakeAtoll. In Hawaiiit nestsduring the winter(Harrison 1990), butin what seasonit has nestedor attemptedto nest on Wake Atoll is not clear. Hitchcockfrequently has seen up to four or fivebirds at a time on the island.He reportsthat theystay for a few weeksat a time but nevernest successfully. They keep to the closelycropped grassy areas adjacent to the ,where they lay their eggs. Hitchcockhas neverseen young and believesthe feral cats,and possiblyrats, may destroythe hatchlings.He has excellentphotographs of paired birdsin courtship (Figure1). I did not seethis species during my visit. , artist and naturaliston the United StatesExploring Expedition in 1841, found "short-tailedalbatrosses" here, whichmay havebeen this species,as well as the Black-looted(Rice and Kenyon 1962). Peale referredto them as D. brachyura,believing the differentplumages were differentage classesof the Short- tailed .The one specimenfrom this expeditionin the U. S. National Museumis nigripes,but an eggcollected appears to be that of immutabilis(Rice and Kenyon 1962). Rice and Kenyon(1962) alsoreported 's recollections from his 1923 TanagerExpedition to WakeAtoll. Wetmore told them of greatdestruction of birdsby the Japanesein the yearsprior to hisvisit from 27 Julyto 7 August1923. He found evidenceof a recentlyoperated skinning plant, indicativeof extensive plumehunting on the island,that contained piles of bonesfrom frigatebirds, boobies, and terns,but no .He surmisedthat the lackof albatrossbones suggested that they no longerbred on the islandby 1923 and perhapslong before. Rice and Kenyonalso stated, "Information supplied by severalobservers who were on Wake from 1935 until the Japaneseoccupation in 1942 confirmed the absenceof albatrosseson the islandduring this period." Rowland(1990), however,mentioned a 1936 photographof the old Pan Ameri- can hotel in the Wake Island Museumthat showsan adult Albatrossand severaldowny chicks on the lawn. He alsomentioned a possibleLaysan Albatross nest in 1988 reportedto him by islandresidents in 1989. Furthermore,Bailey (1951) alsosuggested that somespecies of albatrossbred on the islandduring the periodof Japaneseoccupation in WorldWar II. An Americanblock•ade of the island hadall butcut off the'Japanese from their supply lines, resulting in the starvationof BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL manyof the troopsduring the lastfew monthsof their occupation.He quotesfrom the diaryof a Japaneseofficer stationed on the islandat that time: "An orderhas just come out forbiddingus to catchgooney birds [albatrosses] lest they be wipedout." It appearsfrom theseaccounts that LaysanAlbatrosses have bred or attemptedto breedperiodically on Wake Atoll sincethe earliestvisits by ornithologistsin the last century.Unfortunately, little concreteevidence exists to supportthese observations. Black-lootedAlbatross Diornedea nigripes. I sawtwo flyingtogether about 2 km off PeacockPoint on 25 March and observedone flyinglow over the airstripon 31 March. Gary Lumia,an Air Forcemaintenance techniciam described to me six large albdark"gooney birds" he had seen regularlyat PeacockPoint for a period of time until about "four weeksago." He thoughtthey might be nestingbecause of their courtshipactivities but never saweggs or young.Black-looted Albatrosses have bred on Taongi Atoll (Pratt et al. 1987), the land nearest Wake, but have not been definitelyobserved breeding at Wake Atoll sincePeale's visit in 1841. White-tailedTropicbird Phaethon lepturus. I brieflysaw one adultin flight near the rain catchmentbasins between the personnelhousing area and the air terminal on 25 March.Hitchcock sees them everyyear andbelieves that a few breed.Fosberg (1966) reportedone near FlipperPoint in September1961 and two on WilkesIsland on 8 March 1963. Casey(1966) reportedtwo adultswith one chickin the rubbleof an old Japaneseblockhouse on the islandduring her visitin 1966 (specificdate not given).This speciesbreeds primarily on high islands,in trees in the interior or in shadedrock crevices along coastal headlands, but alsonests in smallnumbers on low- lyingatolls such as at MidwayIsland (Harrison 1990).

Figure1. LaysanAlbatross courting, Wake Atoll. Photo by Lou Hitchcock

67 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

Red-tailedTropicbird Phaethon rubricauda. Unlike the White-tailedTropicbird, this speciesbreeds primarily on and other low-lying islands(Figure 2). Its numbersincreased noticeably during the eight daysI was on the atoll, suggestingthat it was in the earlieststages of its breedingcycle. In all, I foundten birdson nestsand observedcourtship activity in severalother areas, suggestingadditional unseen or not-yet-establishednest sites. Nesting and courtingbirds were in six more or less distinctareas on Peale Islandand Wake Islandproper northwest of the air terminal, but not on the southern arm of the atoll. Of three attended nests examined, one containedan egg and two were empty. Accordingto Gouldet al. (1974), thisspecies breedsmainly from March throughJuly or Auguston Wake Island. MaskedBooby Sula dactylatra. I sawthree adultsin the Brown Boobycolony and theseor other individualson nearbyoffshore rocks at the westend of WilkesIsland. No nests.eggs. or young were observed.These birds may have been in the early stagesof breeding(before egg laying).Apparently, this species breeds on Wake only in smallnumbers. Other accountshave reported fewer than sixpairs. Fosberg (1966) saw only a very few on Peale Islandon 22 and 23 October 1953. Casey (1966) statedthat it is "rarelyseen." Rowland(1990) saw only two activenests, both with chicks,on WilkesIsland in 1989. Sutterfield(1990) sawtwo MaskedBoobies on eggs in late October 1989. Brown Booby Sula leucogaster.I locatedtwo adjacentcolonies of approximately 30 and 26 nestson the outer perimeter of the Wilkes IslandSooty Tern colony. Youngwere in all stagesof growthfrom recentlyhatched to nearlyfull-sized downy with moderatelydeveloped flight . No nestcontained more than two young. and all nestswith well-developedyoung had only one. i saw no eggs, but several

Figure2. NestlingRed-tailed Tropicbird, Wake Atoll. Photo by Lou Hitchcock 68 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

sittingbirds may havebeen incubating.Fosberg (1966) foundit to be the most commonof the boobies.He found20 pairs,all with young,on the lagoonside of KukuPoint, Wilkes Island. Rowland (1990) counted106 nests,most with young,on WilkesIsland in April 1989. Sutterfield(1990) found148 BrownBoobies beginning nestconstruction and two on eggsin late October1989. Red-looted Booby $ula sula. I found two small adjacent colonies in Beach Heliotrope(Tournefortia argentea) and Naupaka ($caevolasericea) trees near the westend of WilkesIsland. These two colonieswere approximately100 m apart at the interfacebetween heliotrope scrub forest and the largegrassy field (the Vortac area)at the island'swest end. The nestswere between1.5 and 4 m off the ground. Approximatelyone third of the nestsheld nestlings;the other nestsmay have containedeggs or recentlyhatched young. No youngwere more than two-thirds grown. Approximately26 nestswere visiblefrom the field and aboutnine others were seenas far asabout 15 m into the scrubforest. Bailey (1951) sawno boobiesof anyspecies nesting on the islandwhen he visitedin May 1949, andattributed this to the near devastationof the islandduring the war, whichhad endedfour yearsearlier. Fosberg(1966) founda few nestingon PealeIsland on 21 April 1952. Rowland (1990) counted41 Red-lootedBooby nests on WilkesIsland in April 1989. The eight nestsin whichhe wasable to determinethe contentsall had young. Most Red-lootedBoobies on Wake Atoll are light-morphbirds; however, at least two I saw were white-tailedbrown morphs.One of thesewas pairedwith a white- morphindividual and the otherone mayhave been as well. A few otherbirds mottled with duskyon their back,wings, and (in somecases) tail I presumedto be immatures of the lightmorph. I sawno Red-lootedBoobies away from the immediatevicinity of the colonyother than one flyingtoward the colonyfrom the oceansouth of Wilkes Islandon 31 March, suggestingthat thisspecies forages farther at sea. Great FrigatebirdFregata minor. I saw up to 225 birdsroosting on powerlines acrossthe man-madechannel that nearlybisects Wilkes Island about midway along its length.Often, a few were seenthere well into the morningand well beforedusk as well. About 70% of the frigatebirdsI observedat the atoll were immatures. Frigatebirdsshowed no indicationof breedingduring my visit. Only one of the sourcesthat I haveread (Fosberg 1966) specificallymentions frigatebirds' nesting on the island,although most found a numberof birdspresent (Sutterfield, for example, counted274 on the powerlines).Fosberg (1966) found birdscarrying twigs and "perhaps10-12 pairswith eggs"in treeson WilkesIsland just back of KukuPoint in March 1963. He alsofound a numberof individualsroosting in treesand on the remainsof an old pier, on both Peale and Wilkesislands, in April and July 1952, October1953, and September1961. CattleEgret Bubulcus ibis. Hitchcock showed me photographshe hadtaken of a CattleEgret, one of threethat were present. The birdin the photographswas rather stockyand short-necked, with a relativelyshort yellow bill and blacklegs and feet, charactersall typical of thisspecies. It wasphotographed in theinterior of theisland in shortgrass. Although he didnot recordthe date,his prints were processed on 16 October1979. Thesebirds could have been migrants or straysfrom eastern or wanderersfrom the introducedHawaiian population. NorthernPintail Anas acuta. Hitchcockhas photographsof five femaleson a smallfreshwater pond near the air terminal.The photoswere processedon 16 October 1979. Accordingto him, ducksshow up twice a year, apparentlyon a regularbasis, but never more than seven birds at a time.Fosberg (1966) found one on a smallpond on 8 March1963 andmentioned that a residenthad seen up to nine ducksat a time.This species was also mentioned by Casey(1966) asone of three duckspecies that occurrarely. 69 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

Black Kite Milvus rnigrans.I examinedseveral photographs in Hitchcock'scollec- tion of an individualthat appeared around 1980 and stayedfor about five years (Figures3). The BlackKite is abundantin muchof mainlandEurasia from the tropics nearlyto the ArcticCircle, in Japan.and in muchof ,including Sulawesi. New Guinea, and portionsof the SolomonIslands. Populations in northern latitudes(M. rn. lineatus in Asia) are long-distancemigrants, but extralimitalisland recordsare rare. Amadon (1952) and Dickinsonet ai. (1991) reported a 1907 specimenof M. rn. lineatusfrom Palawan.MacKinnon and Phillipps(1993) described this speciesas a "rare winter visitor" to Sumatra and Borneo. Interestingly,the specimenfrom Borneois alsoM. rn. lineatus(Smythies 1981) ratherthan the largely residentM. rn. affinis from nearbySulawesi. To the bestof my knowledge,this species has been reportedonly three timesbefore in the oceanicNorth Pacific.T. Lemke and T. Pratt observedan immatureon PaganIsland in the northernMariana Islands on 19 February 1984 (Glasset ai. 1990), and one was seen on Tinian Island. also in the northernMarianas, from 25 July 1989 until 19 November1990 (Stinsonet ai. 1991). Glass et ai. also mentioned.without further details.an unpublishedsighting from MidwayAtoll "morethan a decadeago." Becauseof the paucityof extralimitalrecords in the Pacific, the possibilitythat the Wake Atoll bird was ship-assistedmust be considered.Black Kites are commonin large portssuch as Hong Kong, Shanghai,and ,where they may frequentlybe seenperched on ships'riggings.

Figure3. BlackKite in flight, Wake Atoll, early 1980s. Photo by Lou Hitchcock 7O BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

PacificGolden-Plover Pluvialis fulva. Thisspecies is a commonand widespread wintervisitor on Wilkesand Wake islands,but is relativelyscarce on PealeIsland, whichlacks open grassy habitats. I sawit primarilyin short-croppedgrassy areas, especiallyalong the runway, taxiway, and golf course, but also on both outer and inner beaches.Johnston and McFarlane(1967) conducteda comprehensivestudy of the bioenergeticsand seasonal status of thePacific Golden-Plover onWake Atoll. On the basisof sevenvisits between June 1963 andMay 1965, theyestimated that 200-500 winteron theatoll, with the first birds arriving in lateJuly and the last departing in late May. WanderingTattler Tringa incana. I sawseveral individuals daily in a varietyof aquatichabitats, including outer rocky and pebbly beaches, calm shorelines, freshwaterand brackish ponds, and sand fiats in the innerlagoon. This species is a frequentlyrecorded migrant (Fosberg 1966, Casey1966, Johnstonand McFarlane 1967). Siberian(Gray-tailed) Tattler Tringa brevipes. I saw and heard one individual in basicplumage at the freshwaterpond between the tarmacand taxiway at the air terminalon 29 March.It gavea distinctive"tuwee tuwee" call, very unlike the "flee- tlee-tlee-tlee"call of the WanderingTattlers with whichit was associating.This representsthe firstrecord of thisspecies from Wake Atoll; however, it shouldbe expectedoccasionally, asit iscommon in Micronesiaand rare in the (Pratt et al. 1987). Bristle-thighedCurlew Numenius tahitiensis. I examinedphotos of a probable Bristle-thighedCurlew taken by Hitchcocksometime in 1983 (photoprocessed in December1983). Althoughthe photographsare ratherpoor, the bird'sgenerally warm brownplumage suggests this species rather than the Whimbrel(Numenius phaeopus).Fosberg (1966) founda Bristle-thighedCurlew on 1 September1961 andseveral from 7 to 9 March 1963. With no comment,Casey (1966) alsolisted this speciesfor Wake. RuddyTurnstone Arenaria interpres.I observedone feedingin the closely croppedgrass at the westend of the runwayon 25 March.However, during brief stopsat KwajaleinIsland (750 mi. southof Wake)while traveling to andfrom Wake, I foundthis species abundant. Fosberg (1966), Johnston and McFarlane (1967), and Wetmore(Rice and Kenyon1962) foundsmall numbers in July,August, October, and March, suggestingthat it is an expectedmigrant on Wake. Gray-backedTern $terna lunata.This species is confinedto the tropicalPacific from Hawaiisouth to the TuamotuArchipelago, , and , andwest to the Marianas(Harrison 1985). I saweight, four, and seven individuals, respectively, on 26 and 27 Marchand 1 April, perchedon and flyingaround a clusterof wooden postsjust offshore on the lagoonside of the causewaybetween Wake and Wilkes islands.I saw no indicationof breeding.Harrison (1990) listed Wake as oneof the islandswhere the Gray-backedTern breeds but gave no specificinformation. Casey (1966) listedit as presentbut did not elaborate. SootyTern $terna fuscata. This is far andaway the most abundant bird on Wake Atoll(Figure 4). Therewas a largebreeding colony at the westend of WilkesIsland anda smallercolony on PealeIsland at thetime of my visit.! alsofound evidence of tworecently active colonies e•sewhere onPeale; however, nobirds breed on Wake Islandproper. The Wilkescolony occupied 18,000 m2 at the westend of an expansivegrassy area just above the shoreline. The number of adultsin this colony at thetime of myvisit varied between approximately 10,000 and25,000, the higher figuresbeing counted at dawnand dusk.The numberof youngI estimatedat approximately3000-3500, by extrapolation from counts of varioussections of the 71 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL colony.There were an estimated9800 eggsin the colony,but none examinedwere viableand mostwere crackedor broken.Young birds varied from onlya few daysold to nearlyfull grown.No flyingyoung were seenin thiscolony the firsttwo days,but one was seenon 26 and 27 March flyingover the shorelinejust west of the colony. I observedno predationon SootyTern eggsor young;however, a feral cat ventured into the colonyon 27 March.The catdid not attemptto captureany young but rather seemedintent on exitingthe colonyas quicklyas possible. On Peale Islandthe only breedingSooty Ternswere on and immediatelyadiacent to FlipperPoint. Young birds were in groupsalong the shoreline,and a few were in the vegetationjust above the shoreline.An estimated300 youngwere in this colony: however,a direct count was not possiblebecause of densevegetation. In contrast with the Wilkescolony, many young in thiscolony had fledgedand were flyingabout the colonyon 24 March and afterward.The averageunfledged bird was alsoabout 11/2to 2 weeks more advanced here than on Wilkes. Island residents mentioned that there were considerablymore birds(adults) on Peale a few weeks prior to my visit (one usedthe term "millions").I foundevidence of recentnesting near FlipperPoint and at the west end of Peale, where I observeddead chicksand non-viableeggs. There were approximately500 eggsand an undeterminednumber of deadchicks of all ages,as well as aboutten dead adults.The age of the carcassesprevented any determination of cause of death. At the extreme west end of Peale I found fewer than 20 carcassesof hatchlingsin a smallclearing at the end of the road. I found no evidenceof nestinganywhere else on Peale.Much of PealeIsland is heavilyvegetated with shrubsof Tournefortia argentea, $caevola sericea,and Peruphisacidula so is not suitablefor Sooty Terns. Bailey(1951) describedthe SootyTern colonyon PealeIsland as "the largestI had ever seen," suggestingthat it was much largerthan the one I observed.although he

Figure4. IncubatingSooty Tern, Wake Atoll. Photo by Lou Hitchcock 72 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL did not estimateits size, saying only that he saw"thousands of birdson their eggs"on 15 May. The PacificOcean BiologicalSurvey Program (unpubl. field notes;Gould 1974) reported 1,750,000 Sooty Terns on Wake Island from 1964 to 1966. Fosberg(1966) founda "considerablerookery" on Pealeon 20 and 21 April 1952 with "youngin variousstages of pin leatheringto almostfull grown.•' In October 1953 he founda "smallflock near the westerntip of PealeIsland, including "almost fullygrown young." On 8 and 9 March 1963, he foundthousands of birdspresent, "with fully grown young, able to fly when approached."Casey (1966) reported "250,000 to 1,000,000 birds" in 1966. Rowland(1990) visitedthe islandin early April 1989 and found approximately 250,000 nestlingSooty Terns in a 48,000-m2 colonyat the westend of Wilkes Island.This standsin starkcontrast to the 3000 to 3500 chicksI foundin a colony only three-eighthsthis size at virtuallythe sametime of year when the birdswere in aboutthe samestage of their breedingcycle. Rowland also found considerably more birdson PealeIsland. He estimatedabout 100,000 chickson FlipperPoint alone and 43,000 morein the generalvicinity. Sutterfield (1990) foundno evidenceof nesting on WilkesIsland in late October 1989, but did find "a few eggs"on the northwest point of PealeIsland. He did not indicateif they were beingincubated. Hitchcocktold me that Sooty Ternswere formerlymuch more commonand the feralcats have substantiallyreduced their numbers.He saidthat othershad told him that a singlecat workingat night can kill up to 100 chicksand so disruptthe colony that many additionalyoung become isolated from their parentsin the densevegeta- tion and die. He saidthe tern colonyonce took up the entire gradedarea (the west end of Wilkesis gradedevery year to attractthe ternsaway from areasaround the runwaywhere they would nest otherwise)but now takes up only about one-sixthof that area. Most SootyTerns at Wake nestin the spring,as on ; however,the timingof breedingon Wake and elsewherein the central and eastern Pacific is poorly understood,with differentcolonies on the sameisland sometimes nesting at different times of the year (Ashmole1963, Gould 1974). At least in 1989 and 1993, incubationhad endedby late March and early April, suggestinga somewhatearlier breedingseason in theseyears, although Bailey (1951) foundSooty Terns still on eggsin May.

Brown Noddy Anous stolidus. I found eight birdsand two freshlyconstructed nestson top of a concretebunker at the outerperimeter of the SootyTern colonyon Wilkeson 26 March.The sameday I sawfour birdsperched, one with vegetationin its beak, atop a rather large offshorecoral "rock" coveredwith whitewashoff the westend of Wilkes.On 28 March,one nestwith an eggwas locatedatop a large concreteblock in the lagoonnear the golfcourse on Wake Islandproper. Also on this date,a flockof 65 noddiescircled for muchof the dayaround a clusterof Casuarina treeson the golfcourse and perchedon offshorecoral near the golfcourse. By 29 Marchthe flockhad grownto 90. Scatteredother individualswere seenthroughout the atoll flyingalong the shoreor feedingoffshore, with total numberson the atoll increasingnoticeably during my visit. Fosberg(1966) foundone nest(contents not given)and severalbirds on 20 and 21 April 1952, anda nestwith a half-grownyoung on 22 and 23 October1953. Casey (1966) mentionedBrown Noddies as abundant, "although [their nests] are sometimes hard to locate."

Black NoddyAnous rninutus. I saw two individualsperched with Brown Noddies on a concretestructure just offshore along the outerbeach opposite the golfcourse on 29 March.This speciesis rare at Wake, and its breedinghas not beensuspected by past observers. 73 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

White Tern Gygisalba. I sawthree birds in flightnear the westend of the runway on 24 March. I then saw none until 28 March, when I observedsix circlingaround and perchedin the clusterof Casuarinatrees at the golf courseon the main island.I sawthese birds there every day subsequently until my departureon 1 Aprilbut saw no courtshipbehavior. Fosberg (1966) foundseveral birds in April 1952, October1953, September1961, and March 1963, but no indicationof breeding. RockDove (FeralPigeon) Columba livia. I observeda flockof elevenbirds on 28 March and six birds on 29 March in the vicinityof the golf course.They are apparentlybeing bred by an islandresident (Rowland 1990). Short-earedOwl Asio fiammeus. I flushedone from beneath a smallPeruphis bushat the southwestcorner of the catchmentbasins late in the morning of 28 March,and a few minuteslater observedthe birdflying low overthe open scrubby area betweenthe catchmentbasins and the golf course.Although this speciesis unrecordedin the literaturefrom Wake Atoll, Hitchcockhas seen owls (presumably Short-eared)at Wake on severaloccasions. He usuallysees them in vehicleheadlights when flushedfrom the roadsideat night. Other speciesreported in the literaturefiom Wake Atoll but not recorded by Hitchcockor me are the ChristmasShearwater, Puffinus nativitatis (Pratt et al. 1987:344), Garganey,Anas querquedula (Casey 1966, Johnstonand McFarlane1967), NorthernShoveler, A. clypeata (Casey 1966, Johnstonand McFarlane1967), "yellowlegs"(Casey 1966), Sander- ling, Calidris alba (Casey1966, Johnstonand McFarlane1967), Sharp- tailed Sandpiper,C. acuminata (Casey1966, Johnstonand McFarlane 1967), Dunlin, C. alpina (Casey1966, Johnstonand McFarlane1967), andCommon Snipe, Gallinago gallinago (Johnston and McFarlane1967).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am gratefulto LouHitchcock for graciouslylending me hisprints for publication, and to the U. S. Army Spaceand StrategicDefense Command, the EarthTechnol- ogyCorporation, and MBA Internationalfor the opportunityto visitthe island.Doug Pratt and RogerClapp providedmany usefulcomments on an earlierdraft of this manuscript.

LITERATURE CITED

Amadon, D. 1952. A bird new to Palawan. Phil. J. Sci. 81:139. Ashmole,N. P. 1963. The regulationof numbersof tropicaloceanic birds. Ibis 103:458-473. Bailey,A.M. 1951. Noteson the birdsof Midwayand Wake islands.Wilson Bull. 63:35-37. Bryan,Jr., E. H. 1959. Noteson the geographyand naturalhistory of WakeIsland. Atoll Res. Bull. 66. Casey,E. 1966. The birdsof WakeIsland. 'Elepaio 26(7):69-70. Dickinson,E. C., Kennedy,R. S, and Parkes,K. C. 1991. The birds of the .Br. Ornithol. Union Check-list12. Fosberg,F. R. 1966. Northern MarshallIslands land biota: Birds.Atoll Res. Bull. 114.

74 BIRDS OF WAKE ATOLL

Glass,P. O., Reichel,J. D., Lemke,T. O., Clapp, R. B., Wiles,G. J., Aidan,D. T., and Pratt,T. K. 1990. New migrantand vagrantbird records for the ,1978-1988. Micronesica23:67-89. Gould,P. J. 1974. SootyTern (Sternafuscata), in Pelagicstudies of seabirdsin the centraland easternPacific Ocean (W. B. King, ed.), pp. 6-52. Smithsonian Contr. Zool. 158. Gould,P. J., King,W. Bo,and Sanger, J. A. 1974. Red-tailedTropicbird (Phaethon rubricauda),in Pelagicstudies of seabirdsin the centraland easternPacific Ocean(W. B. King,ed.), pp. 206-231. SmithsonianContr. Zool. 158. Harrison, C. S. 1990. Seabirdsof Hawaii: Natural History and Conservation. ComstockPubl. Assoc., Cornell Univ. Press,Ithaca, N. Y. Harrison,P. 1985. :An IdentificationGuide (rev. ed.). HoughtonMifflin, Boston. Johnston,D. W., andMcFarlane, R. W. 1967. Migrationand bioenergetics of flight in the Pacific Golden Plover. Condor 69:156-168. MacKinnon,J., and Phillipps,K. 1993. A Field Guideto the Birdsof Borneo, Sumatra,Java, and Bali. OxfordUniv. Press,Oxford, England. Pratt, H. D., Bruner P. L., and Berrett, D. G. 1987. A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the TropicalPacific. Princeton Univ. Press,Princeton, N. J. Rice, D. W., and Kenyon, K. W. 1962. Breedingdistribution, history, and popula- tions of north Pacific albatrosses. Auk 79:365-386. Rowland,C. M. 1990. Biologicalsurvey. Wake IslandStarlab sites. Trip report -- Wake Atoll (April 4-11, 1989). EnvironmentalImpact AnalysisProcess Final EnvironmentalAssessment, Starlab Program, U. S. Fish and WildlifeService, AppendixA. PacificIslands Office, P.O. Box 50167, Honolulu,HI 96850. Sanger,G. Ao 1974. LaysanAlbatross (Diomedea immutabilis), in Pelagicstudies of seabirdsin the centraland easternPacific Ocean (W. B. King, ed.), pp. 129- 153. Smithsonian Contr. Zool. 158. Smythies,B. E. 1981. The Birdsof Borneo(3rd ed.). SabahSociety, Kota Kinabalu, and MalayanNature Society,Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia. Stinson,D. W., Reichel,J. D., Craig, R. J., andAidan, D.T. 1991. New and unusual bird records from the , 1988-1990. Micronesica 24:261-271. Sutterfield,T. 1990. Seabirdsurvey of ProjectStarbird construction sites on Wake Atoll. EnvironmentalImpact Analysis Process Final Environmental Assessment, StarlabProgram, Appendix D. U. S. Fishand WildlifeService, Pacific Islands Office, P.O. Box 50167, Honolulu, HI 96850. Vaughn,C. 1945. Observationson the birdsof Wake Island.Migrant 16(2):26-28.

Accepted 21 February 1995

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