Abby Powell, PhD (Former Employee)

Most king (Somateria spectabilis) and common eiders (S. mollissima v-nigra) breeding in the northwestern Nearctic migrate past Point Barrow, Alaska. Spring migration counts have been conducted there since 1953; during 1976–1996, both species declined > 50% for unknown reasons. To evaluate population trends, counts in 2003, 2004, 2015, and 2016 were compared to earlier counts. King eider...

Hatch-year Semipalmated Sandpipers (Calidris pusilla) use river deltas along the Beaufort Sea as their first stops during fall migration. However, these sites are subject to extreme changes in water levels that affect available foraging habitat. We examined relationships between timing of fall migration and storm surges, with respect to forage availability, using different water level...

Most of the king (Somateria spectabilis) and common eiders (S. mollissima v-nigra) nesting in northern Alaska and northwestern Canada migrate past Point Barrow, Alaska, during the spring and fall migration. Yellow-billed loons (Gavia adamsii) also migrate past Point Barrow and are a species of international conservation concern. Spring migration counts of eiders have been conducted...

Deep-sea sponge grounds are relatively understudied ecosystems that may provide key habitats for a large number of fish and invertebrates including commercial species. Glass sponge grounds have been discovered from the tropics to polar regions but there are only a few places with high densities of dictyonine sponges. Dictyonine glass sponges have a fused skeleton, which stays intact when...

The quantification of prey remains is a common method for estimating the diet of a variety of birds. However, these estimates may be subject to biases based on prey body type, nesting habitat, and collection date. To better understand biases and limitations associated with this method, we compared it with two others commonly used to characterize diet: direct observation of parents...

River deltas along Alaska’s Beaufort Sea coast are used by hatch-year semipalmated sandpipers (Calidris pusilla) after leaving their terrestrial natal sites, but the drivers of their use of these stopover sites on the first “hop” of fall migration are unknown. We quantified sandpiper temporal distribution and abundance as related to food resources at three river deltas during the...