· ... ·· rr\'3 .. 9.. "l'";:CJ.:"'?"'••:'·.::. [I t •.. Library u i' U.S. Fish & Wildlife Se.rvfce lOll E. Tudor Road Anchorage, Alaska 99501
RECONNAISSANCE QE THE P.AVLOF AND SANAK ISLANDS·, ALASKA • i/
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by
Edgar Bailey
I Key Words: Seabirds, ·M.ax ine mammals, I. Foxes, Voles, Shorebirds, '' Waterfowl, Passerine birds. I
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I; u. s. Fish and Wildlife Service ! i Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge 202 West Pioneer Avenue Horner, Alaska 99603 I
I ARLIS Alaska Resources. . Library & Information Services·· · Anchoraa~. Alaska··~ · · ..•' ..
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I In 1980 the Alaska Lands Act in~luded the Pavlof I
Islands, located south of the Alaska 1 Peninsula between I Sand Point and Cold Bay, in the Al~ska Maritime NWR.
I Nearly all of Dolgoi, the largest of the Pavlof Islands,· I
as well as roughly haleof Inner Ilia~ik and Wosnesenski
were selected by Natives. No lands on Ukolnoi,
I Poperechnoi, Goloi, and outer Iliasik islands have been I selected.
Sanak Island and surrounding islanas and reefs were
designated part of the original Aleutian islands NWR in I 1913. In 1928 Sanak Island was removed from the
Aleutian Islands Reservation, as it was called prior to
1940, but the surrounding islands and rocks remained
part of the refuge. Sanak itself now-is Native-owned, I I while most sur rounding islands remain: in the refuge.
The only previous survey of seabirds; in the Pavlofs was
cursory observations from aboard the M/V Aleutian Tern
I in June 1973 (Sowl 19 82); the only known recent survey I I in the Sanak area was an incidental ;visit to three of
the islets on the south side of Sanak: in 1976 (Sowls :e_:t
I 1978). The largest of the Tr~ini ty Islands was I
landed on in 1978 enroute to the San~man Reefs 12 miles
north of Sanak (Bailey and Faust 198~). The Shumagin
I Islands, 20 miles east of the Pavlofs~, were investigated I I in 1976 (Bailey 1977). Earlier biolog~cal information on . ' 2
the islands in this area, particular J::zr t:u: Cierrti :::;10: of seabirds on Sanak due to introduced foxes, is presented
·in Murie (1959). Other general information on observations of birds in the Sanak and Pavlof area is
found in Gabrielson and Lincoln (1959).
The Pavlof Islands (F~gure 1) are uninhabited and are
generally mountainous, reaching elevations of 1900 feet
on Poperechnoi, the most rugged of the group. Ukolnoi
and Wosnesenski have considerable gently sloping
terrain. Beach rye (Elymus arenarius mollis) dominates
the shoreline, while bluejoint (Calamagrostis
canadensis ) and other grasses and sedges (Carex .lill.llL)
prevail in interior lowlands. Alders (Alnus Qrispa)
and willows (Salix .ruu;ta_) line many streams and ring the lower mountain slopes; crowberry (Empetrum nigrum)
predominates in upland tundra zones.
Except for Caton, all of the islands surrounding Sanak
(Figure 2) are small; most are relatively low and flat.
Beach rye, umbelliforms, and other grasses cover the
larger area, while many isl~ts on the rough south side
of Sanak are mainly bare rock. Vegetation is similar to
that described for the Sandman Reefs. (Bailey and Faust
1980).
HETHODS
We arrived in the Pavlof Islands on 7 May 1983 aboard
the M/V Western Pacific, an 85-foot chartered crab ..
+ Jc;Ot: ISianO 15' Lt 0~ 3 + *** . .. N- QJ + The Pinnacle ISLANDS Kennoys .. ~~ ::; \ + p A c I F I C .. ...72(k_ + .. ; ! ..,. Outer lliasik *East Rock ~"-(,)•' Island ! South Rochs \ _) 'o2'00' R. 83 W. 800 000 FEET 30' ··:.BY THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY AND U.S. COAST uEODETIC SURVEY COMPILATION DIAGRAM FIGURE 1. PAVLOF ISLANDS. . I:.D AND PUBLISHED BY THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 5 0 5 I TOPOGRAPHY fROM AlASKA MAP. 1==: -1 --:-:!O:c·.c :. .. •' :, cECTED HYDROGRAPHIC DATA COMPILED FROM USC&GS CHARTS 2 TOPOGRAPHr FROM USCti:GS TOPOGRAPHIC MAfiiUSCRIPTS. T-8837 AND T-8836 I 20000 , -~,,) 11. 100.000 SCALE), 8703,8704( 1 :80,000 SCALE), 8833 79.798 SCALE), 8851 (I :40,000 SCALE). AND 8859 (I :300.000 SCALE) 3. TOPOGRAPHY BY PHOTOAUDAOE COMPILAfiON ··;,,..iNFORMATION IS NOT INTENDED FOR NAVAGATIONAL PURPOSES ADJUSTED TO TRIMETROGON BASE CONTOUR INTEk'l 4 TOPOGRAPHY FROM AAf AERONAUTICAL ARlAS ldJ] . •Ji<'l: I: ''1PILED IN 1953 FROM ORIGINAL SURVEYS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CHART BELKOFSI\1 119001 ., .D u S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1929-1952, SUPPLEMENTED BY cu; WWestdahl Rock .t .+· + 'sl... ~tv . OS Trinity Isla 't. Hennig Rock ; +Oneida Rock + Figure 2. Sanak Islands (scale 1:250.00). 5 boat, and departed Sanak on 12 May. Since the available dates of the reconnaissance were governed by a rigid schedule associate~ with other work in the Aleutians, we were forced to examine the area too early to properly document the breeding of seabirds. Most species do not begin incubation until at least late May, and some ~ species do not come to land until later in the .month. Prior to nesting, seabirds tend to arrive at colonies for a few days and then abruptly leave again; thus, population fluctuations before laying tend to be very pronounced. We circumnavigated all or most of the seven larger, named islands in the Pavlofs except Dolgoi, the largest of these islands, and Outer Iliasik. Also, all of the named isl~nds surrounding Sanak, except for the Trinity Islands, were visited. Besides Dolgoi, Outer Iliasik, and the three Trinity Islands, five small islands (Olga, Entrance, Omega, Kennoys, and Clay) were not visited. Besides circumnavigating each island with an inflatable, we went ashore to search for seabird burrows and evidence of foxes as well as obtain other biological information. Since it was too early for nesting of most species, the only seabirds counted were cliff-and surface-nesters. Sea otters (Enhydra lutra) and other marine mammals sighted off islands were recorded. All Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) nests were recorded on USCGS nautical charts with other 6 observations. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Terrestrial mammals Voles. Observations of terrestrial mammals are summarized in Table 1; Voles, probablly tundra voles (Microtus oeconomus), were found on all of the Pavlof Islands, except Inner Iliasik, and on 12 of the 19 islands visited around Sanak. Vole populations on some small islands, such as Jude, Gunboat, and Inikla were amazingly high, amounting to several burrows per square meter. On many islands voles had literally consumed nearly all of the standing dead plant material, causing erosion in some locales. Voles probably were introduced to these islands as an additional food source for ·.· introduced foxes. Voles are absent from the Sandman Reefs, situated between the Pavlof Islands and Sanak (Bailey and Faust 1980). Of all the known islands south of the Alaska Peninsula only Chankliut, south of Chignik, has comparable densities of voles, and worse erosion because of steep slopes (Bailey and Faust 19 81) • Foxes. Six of the seven larger Pavlof Islands have introduced foxes; red foxes (Yulpes vulpes) occur on Inner Iliasik, Ukolnoi, and Poperechnoi. Although we did not land on Dolgoi and Outer Iliasik, both 7 Totals (25 islands} 18 8 5 10 X = present F = formerly present P = probably present *Not surveyed (8): Olga, Entrance, Omega, Kennoys, Clay, Trinity, Outer Iliasik, and Dolgoi. 8 reportedly have red foxes (Murie 1959). Red foxes actually were seen on Ukolnoi and Poperechnoi but were indicated by tracks on Inner Iliasik. No foxes are believed present on Goloi, th0ugh arctic foxes once were there (Uttecht, pers. comm.) •. Wosnesenski is the only island in the Pavlofs currently inhabited by arctic foxes. Arctic foxes were found Still surviving on seven of the Sanak Islands (Table 1): they disappeared from Peterson, Mary, Ulma, Gunboat, Sisters, Caton, and Telemitz islands. Sanak Island originally had introduced red foxes which subsequently were trapped off by the 1950's, but a cattleman released arctic fox pups from nearby Elma Island in the early 1970's (Bendixson and Uttecht, pers. comm.). Only four named islands in the Sanak group escaped fox introductions. No foxes are on the Trinities. Since the small islands surounding Sanak were included in the Aleutian Islands NWR established in 1913, records are available concerning fox farming leases on these islands. The earliest record for arctic or blue fox introductions on surrounding islands was in 1916 on Gunboat, Umla, and Elrna isl~nds, where they have since disappeared, except for on Elrna. Introductions on other islands followed between 1922 and 1933. Refuge records reveal that the greatest number of pelts (293) removed by 1936 carne from Caton, 4,400 acres in size and the 9 island which had arctic fox. Curiously, no remain on Caton, and they may have been inadvertently eliminated by dogs owned by a cowboy who I ! lived! there for several years in the 1970's to watch over ~he island's cattle (Fretwell, pers. cornrn.). The I most I productive fox island ·for its size, assuming I equivalent trapping efforts on surrounding islands, was I Peter~on Island, only about. 320 acres in .size, but one from which · 147 pelts valued at $8500 were removed by 1936. Mary Island is of special interest since lease records reveal that red foxes were initially introduced in 1924, follo~ed by arctic foxes 9 years later. Only nine pelts I evide~tly were removed from this island, and it appears I I that trappers first removed red foxes before introducing I I blues~ realizing that the two species-are incornpat~ble i on the same island. It also suggests that red foxes I have 1 larger horne ranges on islands and achieve lower I densities, one of the reasons besides generally lower I pelt yaluei that red foxes were removed from many islands throughouti Alaska and replaced by arctic foxes. I It islarnazing to see how small an island will support a I fox pbpulation for decades. Inikla, Wanda, and Finney's ! I islands are all less then 80 acres, yet they still have I I foxes~ despite extensive inbreeding. However, in this area on the more protected north side of Sanak where many of these small islands are close together it is 10 possible that some foxes have swum to different islands. The smallest island in Alaska with residual foxes where such a possibility of emigration or immigration does not exist is 160-acre Adugak Island in the eastern Aleutians. The complete history df fox introductions in the Sanak Islands is still darkled because several small islands mentioned in lease records (Saranna, Nicolai, Simsilla, and Trithe) are not on current USCGS charts or USGS maps. Also, not all of the islands around Sanak were visited. We did not have time to examine the three Trinity Islands off the southwest end of Sanak, though the largest island, site of a large gull colony was landed on in 1978 with a helicopter prior to a survey of the Sandman Reefs (Bailey and Faust 1980). No foxes were present, and it is very unlikely that they were ·~ ever released on any of these islands, which are difficult to land on. Unequivocally several of the islands in the Sanak Reefs would be excellent choices for release of sterile red foxes to see whether they would eliminate established arctic fox populations. Moreover, local red foxes could be readily obtained from Dolgoi or other islands in the Pavlof Islands, roughly 50 miles northeast. Cattle. Several of the islands in the Sanak a~ea 11 have a long history of grazing (Table 1). Hundreds graze Sanak itself, which formerly had at least two villages (Sanak and Pauloff Harbor) and is owned by Native corporations; Caton, an original part of the Aleutian Islands Refuge, has been leased for grazing for many years and still has over 100 cattle, though they should be removed in 1984. Cattle wander onto Rabbit and a nearby unnamed island, Long, Wanda, Finney's and Clifford islands from Sahak during low tides. There is no practical away to keep cattle off these islands two of which are refuge-owned. In the Pavlofs cattle are present only on Wosnesenski and Dolgoi. Nearly all of Dolgoi and about half of Wosnesenski is owned or selected by Natives. The lease on the latter island was administered by the BLM prior to inclusion in the Maritime Refuge in 1980. Although we did not visit Dolgoi, a few cattle were later spotted from the air (Stortz, pers. comm.). Localized overgrazing is evident on all islands we examined, especially in the Sanak area. Seabirds Since the reconnaissance was conducted in early May because of a fixed vessel schedule, only limited information on species composition, distrubution, or abundance of breeding seabirds could be obtained. Albeit some birds were evidently at breeding sites, few 12 birds had begun to nest. The presence of most breeding birds on various islands was ascertained by noting burrows, feathers, eggshell fragments, and nests from the previous summer, as well as from the observation and calls of birds which had arrived. Some species, such as the Horned Puffin (Fratercu1a :QQ..:rnicu1ata), usually do not appear at colonies until late May (pers. obs.). Previous partial cursory surveys of the Pavlof Islands (Sowls ~ al. 1978) have indicated low numbers of nesting seabirds probably because of the presence of foxes. JUde, a tiny island lying 18 miles east of Wosnesenski, though riddled with vole burrows also has hundreds of.Ancient Murrelet (~nth1iborarnphus antiguus) burrows. We found egg membranes and shell fragments from the previous nesting season and heard a few flying birds calling at about midnight. According to a partial reconnaissance of the Pavlofs in 1973 by L. Sowl, E. Bailey, and others (Sowl 1982), 3000 Pigeon Guillernots (Cepphus co1urnba) were sighted around Jude Island on 15 June, a remarkable number for so small an island (20 acres). In 1973 the only other significient colonies recorded were on the Pinnacle, Clay Island, Kennoys, the northeast tip of Wosnesenski, Egg, and islets around Dolgoi (Sowls ~ al.l978, Sowl 1982). All observations in 1973 were more than a month later than ours. Since no landings were made in 1973, no information on nocturnal nesters was obtained. 13 Sanak and ambient islands once had huge colonies of burrowing seabirds, particularly Ancient Murrelets and Cassin's Auklets (Ptychorampb•m aleuticus), but they were extirpated before 1937 when Murie visited the area (Murie 1959, Gabbielson and Lincoln 1959). The reason given for their disappearence was exploitation of fisheries and introduction of foxes. Since Murie's visit the only documented data from the area were reports by Kurhajec in 1976 of the presence of gulls on Mary and Peterson islands and 800 gulls nesting on Clifford Island (Sowls . ~ 2~· 1978) 0 The last observation is curious because of foxes on Clifford, a low, flat island. Perhaps this visit was before the reintroduction of foxes on Sanak. The only other known seabird information for the Sanak- area was the previously refe~enced incideni&l visit to one of the Trinity Islands in June 1978 (Bailey and Faust 1980). Obviously prior to our 1983 survey there was practically no data available for the Sanak area, and unfortunately because we were there about a month too early, we were not able to contribute much more information. Nevertheless, we were able to provide some additional data on the area's breeding avifauna, though mainly only in the realm of species distribution. An account of the presence of breeding seabirds in the Sanak Islands is depicted in Table 2 and a description follows by species: - ' . Table 2. Distribution of breeding seabird populations in the Pavlo4 Islands and Sanak Islands, Alaska. .bG CJ (1j """"0 0 l-1 Q) ~ """ ·ri ,.0 Ul s •ri •ri :>... (1j Ul (1j jj 0 ~ (1j """"""(1j '0 p Ul ·ri ::r: Q) ::t: jj ,..c: jj jj N :::> r-i .j.l "4-1 CJ •ri Q) H Q) Ul "-' ~ 4-1 '-" Q) 0 Ul Ul •r-l ro 4-1 jj 0 jj Q) Q) o· 0 jj """ s .j.l Q) """Q) r-i jj Q) """Q) ro l-1 Q) ro :>, ro ..0 r-i:::> ~ "0 p. 0 Ul """jj l-1 Ul r-i "0 ....; jj ;:;~:· '-" Ul CJ ;:l 0 ~ 0 Q) 0 •ri Q) ·ri ro ;:l t\j (1j 0 p., jj p., """ """ s p., p:: s ecies 'J :::> :::::: H A Cf.l E--1 ...:I :::<:: :::> 0 ~ Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel p )p )p )p p )p p )X ) ) ) ) ) Leach's Storm-Petrel X :>2000 p X Double-Crested Cormorant X ,X Pelagic-Cormorant p X Red-faced Cormorant p Black Oystercatcher p p p p p p p p p p Glaucous-winged Gull 50 3000 300 1000 X 250 6000 200 200 Black-legged Kittiwake 500 Pigeon Guillemot p p p Ancient Murrelet >1000 >1000 >100 >1000 >100 p P. Cassin's Auklet X Parakeet Auklet X Tufted Puffin p X 2000 700 1000 4000 400 p p >200 p p = Present X = Probable nesters 15 Storm-Petrels. On 10 May we saw both Fork-tailed and Leach's storm-petrels (Oceanodroma furcata and ~ leuco-rhoa) and Cassin's Auklets flying about the vessel's lights while we were anchored on the norti. side of Sanak, indicating that these species nested on some of the islands around Sanak or were birds from the Sandman Reefs to the north, where huge colonies exist (Bailey and Faust 1980). We found evidence of storm- petrels nesting on seven islands, and they probably bred on at least one other (Table 2) • In most cases there is no way to distinguish burrows of Fork-tailed from Leach's Storm-Petrels. Both species definitely used Peterson and Lida islands, and an adult Leach's Storm- Petrel was found in a burrow on the former island ~fter probing scores of empty burrows. After dark both storm- petrels were heard vocalizing at Peterson, one of the ·.· best former fox islands which now probably has the greatest breeding seabird populations and diversity (eight species) in the area. Though Fork-tailed Storm- Petrels sometimes begin laying in early May or earlier in the Barren Islands (Manuwal 1980), we found no eggs or adults in burrow~. Judging from vocalization and last year's burrow numbers, probably over 2000 Leach's Storm-Petrels use Peterson Island: Both Peterson and Lida island are free of voles, and the latter never had foxes. Cormorants. Double-crested Cormorants 16 (Phalacrocorax auritu~) W0;~ present on Peterson and Umla islands and probably bred there. A big colony on open slopes exists on Cherni Island in the Sandman Reefs (Bailey and Faust 1980). Little cliff habitat is available in the Sanak Islands for Red-faced and Pelagic cormorants (E.._ auritus and E.._ pe1agicus). The latter two species were noted flying off the cliffs on the east side of Poperechnoi. Oystercatchers. American Black Oystercatchers (Haematopus backmani) occurred on ten fox-free islands (Table 2). There is much favorable nesting habitat for this species, and their breeding population would greatly expand if foxes were removed from other islands. Gulls. Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus giaucescens) were congregated on eight islands, and many appeared territorial and about to begin-best-building on six of these. The largest numbers of birds occurred on Umla and Peterson islands, where an estimated 6000 and 3000 adults, respectively, were present. The low, flat islands in this region provide ample habitat for gulls, but little material for nest-building was available on several islands because of enormous populations of voles. Voles undoubtedly are incidentally consumed by gulls. Because of the paucity of nesting material the actual number of gulls which successfully nest is probably much lower than the potential nesters in Table .. 17 2 indicate. Approximately 1;;u;: ,_•i'JtL~ of gulls nef;tr·<; on the largest of the Trinity IslanJs in 1978 (Bailey and Faust 1980). Kittiwakes. An apparent colony of approximately 500 Black-legged Kittiwakes. (Rissa tridactyla) was found on an unnamed islet east of Haystack Rock on the south side ~ of Sanak (Figure 2). The construction of nests had not begun at the time of our visit on 11 May. Guillemots. Pigeon Guillemots were recorded at three islands and probably actually nest on all islands having suitable shoreline boulder habitat. Murrelets. Ancient Murrelets occur on at least six islands around Sanak. Judging from a rough estimate of burrow numbers, at least 1000 birds probably nest on Sisters and Peterson. An egg from the previous summer was found in a burrow on the latter island, and murrelets were heard after dark. The numbers in the Sanak Reefs are apparently relicts of mammoth populations existing before fox farming. The only Marbled Murrelets (Brachyramphu~ marmoratus) seen on the survey were one off Poperechnoi Island and two near Finneys. Auklets. Although Cassin's Auklets were noted about the boat's deck lights north of Sanak, none were found on any islands, but based on their often distinctive burrowing habitat and burrow characteristics, they -,_ .. JH probably nest on Peterson Island. As previously mentioned, they were numerous around Sanak when biologists visited the area in 1895 prior to fox introductions (Murie ~959). Cassin's Auklets appeared to be the slowest species to recolonize islands in the Sandman Reefs after tne disappearance of foxes (Bailey and Faust 1980). A few Parakeet Auklets (Cyclorrbyncus psittacula) may nest on the tiny unnamed island in the entrance to Pauloff Harbor, as this is the only place where this species was sighted. Puffins. We found Tufted Puffins (Fratercula cirrhata) on all islandi without foxes except for the unnamed one east of Haystack Rock. Peterson Island appeared to have the largest number based on old burrows. Since Horned Puffins frequently used burrows on similar nearly level islandi in the nearby Sandmans (Bailey and Faust 1980), they undoubtedly nest on several islands around Sanak, but they do not appear until late May or early June. About 400 pairs were believed nesting on the largest of the Trinity Islands on 27 June 1978 (Bailey and Faust 1980). Raptors lm..l.Q. Eagles. Though the survey was too early to ascertain breeding populations of seabirds, Bald Eagles (Halia~tus leucocephalus) were nesting in early May. In the Pavlof Islands (including Jude) eagles nested on '. 19 all island visited except Wosnesenski and Goloi. Four of the seven nests we noted were on Ukolnoi. A total of 37 eagles was sighted in the Pavlofs~ all nests inspected still had eggs. A total of eight eagle nests on eight islands and 18 adults were spotted in the Sanak Islands~ all birds were still incubating. Peregrine Falcons. No eyries were located; individual birds were seen at Poperechnoi, Caton, and Clifford islands. The nearest known eyrie is on Cherni Island, 15 miles north of Sanak (Bailey and Faust 1980). Hawks and Owls. We saw a Short-eared Owl(Asio flammeus) on Jude Island~ Rough-legged Hawks (Buteo lagopus) nested on Caton, and one bird was sighted on Wosnesenski. Waterfowl Except for on Wosnesenski Island, little waterfowl habitat exists in the Pavlofs. One large lake and several smaller ones exist on this large island, where we observed 2 Tundra Swans (~ colgmbianus) 20 Brant (Branta bernicla), Mallards (lill.ru2. platyrhyncos), Greater Scaup (Aytha marila), Common Mergansers (Mergus merganser), White-winged Scoters (Melanitta fusca) and Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus). The last two species were especially common in the Pavlof Islands, as we recorded about 300 birds of each. A 20 Common1 Eider (Sr}!~\i 1 LE'.Lili molli~sirna) was noted at I Popere~hnoi. Except for on Caton, Long, and Sanak islands, little fresh water habitat is available in the Sanak area. Sanak Island itself has outstanding waterfowl habitat, and pfior to the introauction of foxes and cattle many waterfbwl must have nested there. This is further substa~tiated by the fact that 22 nests of four species of du~ks were found in dense grass on the tiny central island in the Trinities in 1978 (Bailey and Faust 1980). This ~epresents amazing insular density and diversity I which 1 probably is attributable to the availability of I only 1 remnants of suitable habitat after fox 1ntro. dl uc t'1ons on most of the islands. Also, it is intere!sting to note that there is no fresh water on the I ! Trinit~ saltwater Islands; so ducks must ·.·be using or commuting to lakes on Sanak and other nearby larger I island~. Though our survey in 1983 was in early May, we I still ~ound Mallards already nesting on Sisters, Umla, i and In~kla islands, the latter of which is the only one with ~oxes. Probably very few ducks successfully nest I • on an~ islands where foxes still thrive • I Waterf~wl in the Sanak area not seen earlier in the Pavlofis included Northern Shoveler (~ c1ypeata), • ! Amer1cian Green-winged Teal (A::... :Q.recca),. Northern Pintail (A:.a_ acuta), Bufflehead (Bucepha1a. a1beo1a), Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus Qerrator), and Emperor Goose (Anser i 21 I I i canagibus). Although Emperor Geese (15) were noted only I i on Mar¥ Island, surveys made earlier during the winter II shouldj reveal many more Emperor Geese, Brant, and sea ducks, I as they are reportedly abundant around Sanak most I winter~ (Jones pers. cornm.). A notable aggregation of nearlylI 90 Buffleheads wAs observed near Elma Island. I i I Shoreb~rds I Beside~ oystercatchers, shorebirds were relatively I I scarce! in the Pavlof and Sanak islands, probabl¥ ! refleclting the general presence of foxes on the islands i havingl the best marshes and beaches. Sightings included Rock ~andpiper (Calidris ptiiocnemis), Least Sandpiper I (~ m!inutillg.) • Ruddy Turnstone (Areng.rig. interpres) , I Sem1pallma• I ted Plover {Charadri1,m semipalmatus) , and I Wanderling Tattler (Heteroscely§ jncanys)~ I I. P asser11nes I I Altho~gh we visited the islands too early for all I migradts to have arrived (Bailey 1974) • Passerine I diverslity was very limited and included common Raven I (Corv~s corg.x), Song Sparrow (Melo§piza melodia), I Savandah Sparrow (Pa§§ercylys §andwichen§is), Fox .. Sparr1wI (Pg.§serella iliaca), Rosy Finch (Leucosticte arctoa!) Black-billed Magpie (Pica ~), Lapland I Longs~ur (Calcarius lapponicu§), Water Pipit (Aythus i §pino~ettg.), and White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichjg. I atrica!pilla). About 30 Song Sparrows were on tiny I • 22 Peterson Island, which has no foxes. Islands with foxes had far fewer passerines. Curiously no Winter Wrens (Troglodytes troglodytes) were noted on any islands. Marine mammals Harbor Seals. Seals (Phoca yitulina) were noted at ' nine islands and totalled only 59 (Table 3). ~ .Otters. Sea otters occurred around eight islands and totalled over 600 (Table 3). By far the largest concentration, roughly 500, were observed in a small bight on the northern tip of Poperechnoi. Oddly we spotted only 21 otters in the Sanak Islands, an area where they formerly were regarded as abundant. Nearly 1500 were found in the Sandman Reefs in 1978 (Bailey and Faust 1980). River otters (Lutra canadensi§) apparently inhabit Goloi Island, which is nearest the Alaska ·-· Peninsula • .~ Lions. Steller's sea lions (Eumetopias Jubatus) totalled approximately 2500 and were nearly all located on the unnamed rocks east of Haystack Rock where a previously mentioned kittiwake colony also exists. South Rock, lying nearly 2 miles west of those unnamed rocks (Figure 2) is a recognized haulout site (Caulkins and Pitcher 1982). Counts ranged up to 3,200 in 1973; 1,320 adults and 30 pups were recorded in June 1978, the last count. We did not count animals on South Rock itself and do not know whether past counts included the 23 general vicinity or whether the animals usually on South Rock had shifted locations du~ing our early visit to the area. Large !ookeries with over 4,000 pups and nearly the same number of adults counted in 1979 are found on Pinnacle and Clubbing rocks in the Sandman Reefs (Caulkins and Pitcher 1982). Table 3. Marine mammal observations in the Pavlof Islands and Sanak Islands. Steller's Location Harbor Seal Sea Otter Sea Lion Jude Poperechnoi 17 500 3 Ukolnoi 17 52 Wosnesenski 10 57 Goloi 8 20 Peterson 3 Sisters 2 1 South Rock (2 miles east) 2500 Finneys 3 2 Princess Rock 4 4 Elrna 3 14 Inikla 2 2 3 ------~--·------~-- Total 59 650 2506 ACKNOWLEDGr1ENTS Torn Early, Assistant Refuge Manager, Fred Deines, • Biologist at the Aleutian Islands Unit of the Maritime .. Refuge; Leigh McDougal, Biological Technician; and volunteers David McCargo and Chris Arnbroz assisted in the reconnaissance of the islands. We also appreciated the support of the crew of the chartered M/V Western Pacific which provided logistics for the expedition. ------~--~--~~~~------~------~------·------24 LITERATURE CITED Bailey, E. P. 1974. Passerine diversity, relative abundance, and migration at Cold Bay, Alaska. Bird- Banding 45:145-151. Bailey, E. P and N. H. Faust, 1980. Summer distribution and abundance of marine birds and mammals in the Sandman Reefs, Alaska. Murrelet 61:6-19. Bailey, E. P. and N. H. Faust, 1981. Summer distribution and abundance of marine birds and mammals between Mitrofania and Sutwik islands south of the Alaska Peninsula. Murrelet 62:34-42o Bailey, E. P. 1978. Breeding seabird distribution and abundance in the Shumagin Islands, Alaska. Murrelet 59:82-91. Caulkins, D. G. and K. w. Pitcher 1982. Population assessment, ecology, and trophic relationships of Steller sea lions in the Gulf of Alaska. Final report: Research unit 243, ocs Environmental Assessment Program, BLM, USDI, Anchorage, Alaska. Gabrielson, I. N. and F. c. Lincoln 1959. The birds of Alaska. The Stackpole Co., Harrisburg, Pa., and The Wildlife Managament Institute, Washington, D. c. Manuwal, D.A. 1980. Breeding biology of seabirds on the Barren Islands, Alaska. Final Report, u.s. Fish and vlilolife Service-Coastal EcosysteL:s, Anchorage, Alaska. Murie, 0. J. 1959. Fauna of the Aleutian Islands ano Alaska Peninsula. N. Am. Funa 61: 1-406. Sowls, A. L~~ S. A-~ Hatch, ano C. J. Lensink. 1978. Catalog of Alaskan seabird colonies, Office of Biological Services-Coastal Ecosystems, u. s. Fish ano Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska. Sowl L. W. 1982. A reconnaissance of the breeding distribution of colonial nesting seabirds on the south coast of the Alaska Peninsula, May 30-June 19, 1973. Unpublished report, u.s. Fish ana Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska.