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Birding in Cordova, Alaska
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The Copper River Delta...
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The Copper River Delta is one of the world's great wetlands. Flowing into the Gulf of Alaska, the Copper River forms the second largest contiguous network of wetlands on the Pacific Coast of North America. The 700,000 acre Delta is a tapestry of numerous shallow ponds, inter-tidal sloughs, and braided glacial streams. These areas are woven together by strands of sparsely vegetated mud flats, sedge marshes, alder and willow thickets and small stands of spruce and cottonwood forest.
The inter-tidal mudflats of the Copper River Delta are key stopover areas for millions of shorebirds during spring migration. Resting for only a brief few days, these intercontinental migrants rest and refuel on the vast coastal wetlands of the Delta. Many of these shorebirds have traveled from as far south as Central and South America. Indeed, the Copper River Delta is so important to shorebird survival that in May 1990 it was dedicated as the first Hemispheric Site by the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.
Many species of waterbirds, shorebirds, and passerines can be seen at the time of the Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival, as the birds pass through to their northern breeding areas. The pristine waters of adjacent Prince William Sound, provide the opportunity to view a great diversity of marine wildlife. In addition to exceptional birding opportunities, observant visitors may spot Steller's sea lions, harbor seals, sea otters, porpoises and killer whales.
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Birds of the Delta
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Unusual sightings are italicized...
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Loons, Grebes, Herons
Common Loon
Yellow-billed Loon
Pacific loon
Arctic loon
Red-throated Loon
Western Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Horned Grebe
*Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Red-faced Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Sandhill Crane
Waterfowl
Tundra Swan
Trumpeter Swan
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Emperor Goose
Canada Goose (Dusky)
Cackling Goose
Brant Mallard
American Black Duck
Gadwall
Green-winged Teal
American Wigeon
Eurasion Wigeon
Northern Pintail
Northern Shoveler
Blue-winged Teal
Garganey Cinnamon Teal
Ruddy Duck
Wood Duck
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Tufted Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Common Eider
King Eider
Steller's Eider
Black Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Surf Scoter
Harlequin Duck
Oldsquaw
Barrow's Goldeneye
Common Goldeneye
Bufflehead
Common Mergenser
Red-breasted Mergenser
*Hooded Mergenser
*Smew
*American Coot
Jaegers, Terns, Gulls
Pomarine Jaeger
Parasitic Jaeger
Long-tailed Jaeger
Glaucous-winged Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Bonaparte's Gull
Common Black-headed Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Mew Gull
Herring Gull
Glaucous Gull
Thayer's Gull
Slaty-backed Gull
Sabine's Gull
Ivory Gull
Arctic Tern
Aleutian Tern
Caspian Tern
Alcids
Common Murre
Thick-billed Murre
Pigeon Guillemot
Marbled Murrelet
Kittlitz's Murrelet
Ancient Murrelet
Tufted Puffin
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Shorebirds
Black Oystercatcher
Semipalmated Plover
*Killdeer
*Mongolian Plover
*Eurasion Dotteral
Black-bellied Plover
Lesser Golden-Plover
*Marbled Godwit
*Bar-tailed Godwit
*Hudsonian Godwit
*Bristle-thighed Curlew
Whimbrel
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Solitary Sandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
Wandering Tattler
Red-necked Phalarope
Red Phalarope
Short-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
Stilt Sandpiper
Common Snipe
Ruddy Turnstone
Black Turnstone
Surfbird Rock
Sandpiper
Red Knot
Dunlin
Sanderling
Curlew Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
Rufous-necked Stint
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Ruff
Upland Sandpiper
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Raptors
Golden Eagle
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Northern Goshawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Osprey
American Kestrel
Peregrine Falcon
Merlin
Gyrfalcon
Short-eared Owl
Great horned Owl
Great Grey Owl
Snowy Owl
Western Screech-Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Northern Hawk-Owl
Boreal Owl
Grouse
Spruce Goose
White-tailed Ptarmigan
Rock Ptarmigan
Willow Ptarmigan
Passerines
Common Nighthawk
Vaux's Swift
Anna's Hummingbird
Rufous Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Woodpeckers
Northern Flicker
Red-brsted Sapsucker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
3-toed Woodpecker
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Flycatchers & Larks
Eastern Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Western Wood-Pewee
Say's Phoebe
Alder Flycatcher
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Horned Lark
Swallows
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
N. Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Jays, Magpies & Crows
Steller's Jay
Gray Jay
Black-billed Magpie
Northwestern Crow
Common Raven
Chickadees, Nut- hatches, & Creepers
Black-capped Chickadee
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Boreal Chickadee
Brown Creeper
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Winter Wren
Kinglets & Thrushes
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Townsend's Solitaire
Swainson's Thrush
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Varied Thrush
American Robin
Northern Wheatear
Northern Shrike
Water Pipet
Yellow Wagtail
American Dipper
Bohemian Waxwing
European Starling
Wood Warblers, Sparrows & Buntings
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Townsend's Warbler Yellow Warbler
Macgillivray's Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Northern Waterthrush
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
American Tree Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Golden-crowned Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Red-winged Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Finches
Pine Siskin
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbill
Pine Grosbeak
Common Redpoll
Rosy Finch
Brambling
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