Flying With Starr

08 Jun Flying With Starr

Posted at 00:27h in Blog by Patrick Connor 2 Comments

Written by John Lattanzi

My experience with birds on our passage mirrors my experience with birds in general. That is the more you look, the more interesting they become. Their body and wing shapes in harmony with their prey, Their flight pattern the perfect balance of caloric burn and food capture. Their coloration a disguise from either prey or predator, except for the priority of males breeding plumage.

The great skua, sometimes known by the name bonxie in Britain, is a large seabird.

Also Great Skua’s

When I first started using the Merlin app the sound identification function was like a magic decoder. I knew my backyard birds, but every once in a while someone new popped by and the app could pick out his song amonst the cacaphony of other birds. I could isolate that species and add to the list of my neighbors. The app, sponsored by Cornell U, gives a brief desciption of behaviors and ranges and helps you to get to know your bird. Before you know it you are thinking about habitat and how you might make it more attractive for them.

Merlin Bird App

On Starr’s passage from Japan to the Aleutians birds provided hours of entertainment. The daylight watches were filled with birds but I developed an affinity for the laysan albatross. Maybe because I had the fortunate experience to visit Midway Island for two years during nesting season. I got to observe these awkward walkers bringing food to their fuzzy gray babies and barf that delicious gruel up right into chick beaks. I watched as they exercised their wing muscles and make inaugural flights over the lagoons. I got to see the tigers waiting for the less wary or less capable learners.

Laysan Albratross Sitting in the water

The great Laysan Albatross

Given the lifespan of these birds, thirty four years later, I could be watching the same individuals, parents or chicks, foraging along our track. It felt like a reunion, a connection with old friends. Of all the birds we saw, it was the moli, the laysan, who was looking into the bridge to see who was driving that machine. To the chagrin of my shipmates, I was waving back.

Other bird observations-
It is hard to get a picture of a puffin facing you. Their fly away radius is just outside your squeeze the shutter radius so that all you get is puffin butt. At least they do have cute red feet showing as they depart.

2 Puffins scurrying away!

We saw the three species that inhabit the north pacific, laysan, black foot, and short tailed albatross. Only a couple of individuals of the short tailed and black foot species. Hundreds of the laysan. The short tailed is significantly larger with a yellow head so they really stand out even when just sitting on the ocean. Their take off tempo is much slower than the laysan as their wings are so much bigger. I’m glad to see them as they were near extinct just 70 years ago. I understand their current population is up to 9500. Thanks go to someone who had the foresight to stop hunting and save these magnificent creatures.