Where to Watch Birds and Other Wildlife in the World/Destinations/Where to Watch Birds and Other Wildlife in Alaska

Grizzly Bear in Katmai National Park by Francesco Veronesi.

ALASKA

Grizzly Bear and Humpback Whale
As well as Black Bear, Killer Whale, Musk Ox, Moose and Sea Otter, and a chance of Beluga and Wolf
And one of the greatest concentrations of large mammals in the world; over one and a quarter million Northern Fur Seals on the Pribilof Islands
Together with one of the greatest concentrations of birds in the world; about three million seabirds on the Pribilof Islands
Some of North America's and the world's most spectacular birds including Bald Eagle, Varied Thrush and Bohemian Waxwing
As well as some of North America's and the world's most spectacular localized birds including Hawk and Snowy Owls, Horned and Tufted Puffins, Spectacled, Steller's and King Eiders, Red-legged Kittiwake, Aleutian Tern, and nesting shorebirds such as Bristle-thighed Curlew and Rock Sandpiper
All in some wonderful settings

Alaska is a big state and impossible to cover well in a couple of weeks, even considering the excellent internal air network. This account deals with the main part of the state as well as some islands. Southeastern Alaska is dealt with separately. This is where it is possible to see Humpback Whales bubble-net feeding, as well as Grizzly and Black Bears fishing for Salmon, Steller's Sealions and a calving glacier, on cruises between Wrangell and Petersburg which visit Frederick Sound.

Major sites off the beaten track include the Chilkat River near Haines in northern Southeastern Alaska where hundreds of Bald Eagles gather during the winter, especially in November; Round Island off southwest Alaska where it is possible with a permit from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to see Walruses; the Aleutian Islands where Whiskered Auklets can be seen near Dutch Harbor around the Baby Islands which are accessible by boat in suitable weather conditions, usually in the second half of June, and Humpback Whales may be seen scooping up herring and krill amongst millions of Short-tailed Shearwaters in the Unimak Pass in July; and Barter Island in the Arctic NWR off the northeast coast where Polar Bears usually gather in September, especially around the Bowhead Whales killed by the Inupiat Eskimos. Warbelow's Air Ventures run tours to the island which is accessible by air from Fairbanks.

Another way to visit Alaska is to join one of the few cruises which sail between Alaska and Russia usually via the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands, as well as Kamchatka, and the Kuril and Commander Islands. The Aleutian Islands, which form a chain nearly 1600 km (1000) miles long, support over ten million seabirds including Whiskered Auklet, and additional birds possible at sea on such a cruise include Laysan and Black-footed Albatrosses.

Best Wildlife in Alaska

Mammals
Humpback (mostly Jul-Aug) and Killer Whales, Grizzly (Brown), Kodiak (Brown) and Black Bears, Musk Ox (reintroduced), Moose, Northern Fur Seal, Steller's Sealion, Caribou (Reindeer), Dall's Sheep, Arctic Fox, Sea Otter, Dall's Porpoise, Muskrat, Hoary Marmot. Also a chance of Beluga, Wolf, North American Porcupine and American Beaver.

Birds
Bald Eagle, Snowy Owl, Northern Hawk Owl, Tufted and Horned Puffins, Crested and Parakeet Auklets, Spectacled, Steller's and King Eiders, Gyr Falcon, Red-legged Kittiwake, Aleutian Tern, nesting shorebirds such as Bristle-thighed Curlew, Rock Sandpiper, and Grey and Red-necked Phalaropes, Varied Thrush and Bohemian Waxwing, as well as Snow Goose, Harlequin Duck, Common Eider, Sandhill Crane, American Black Oystercatcher, Wandering Tattler, Hudsonian Godwit, Black Turnstone, Pomarine and Long-tailed Skuas, Brunnich's and Pigeon Guillemots, Marbled, Kittlitz's and Ancient Murrelets, Least and Rhinoceros Auklets, Rufous Hummingbird, Steller's Jay, Arctic Warbler, (Red-spotted) Bluethroat, Northern Wheatear, Yellow Wagtail, Smith's Longspur, Grey-crowned Rosy Finch and Arctic Redpoll. Also a chance of Emperor Goose, White-billed Diver, Golden Eagle, Sabine's Gull, McKay's Bunting, Two-barred Crossbill, Pine Grosbeak and Asian birds very rare in North America (mostly late May-early June and September, mainly on the Pribilof Islands and Attu Island in the Aleutians).

Other Natural Wonders of Alaska

Glaciers There are over 5000 glaciers in Alaska, the most famous of which include those which reach the sea in Kenai Fjords NP and the 16 in the 30 km (19 mile) section of the Chugach Mountains of Southeastern Alaska known as College Fjord.

Best Sites for Wildlife in Alaska

The elusive Moose by Ray Wilson. They may be big but they are remarkably difficult to see.

Kenai Fjords NP Humpback and Killer Whales, Sea Otter, Dall's Porpoise, Tufted and Horned Puffins, Marbled, Kittlitz's and Ancient Murrelets, Rhinoceros Auklet.
Kenai Peninsula Black Bear, Moose, Bald Eagle, Aleutian Tern (Homer Spit), Harlequin Duck, Varied Thrush, Marbled and Kittlitz's Murrelets (Homer Spit), Rufous Hummingbird. Also a chance of Beluga (Turnagain Arm).
Denali NP Grizzly Bear, Moose, Caribou (Reindeer), Dall's Sheep, Gyr Falcon, Golden Eagle. Also a chance of Wolf, American Beaver and Northern Hawk Owl.
McNeil River SGS Grizzly Bears fishing for salmon (Jul-Sep, mainly July and the first half of September). Visitor permits available by lottery only.
Katmai NP Grizzly Bears fishing for salmon at Brooks Falls (Jul-Sep, mainly July and the first half of September) and close-up views at Wolverine Creek near Redoubt Bay Lodge. Also Moose and Sea Otter.
Kodiak (Island) NWR Kodiak (Brown) Bear, Sea Otter, Northern Fur Seal, Steller's Sealion.
Nome Musk Ox, Caribou (Reindeer), Gyr Falcon, Aleutian Tern, Bristle-thighed Curlew, Harlequin Duck, Golden Eagle, Sandhill Crane, Long-tailed Skua, Arctic Warbler, (Red-spotted) Bluethroat, Northern Wheatear, Yellow Wagtail, Arctic Redpoll. Also a chance of Grizzly Bear, Moose, North American Porcupine, Snowy Owl, Emperor Goose and Sabine's Gull.
Barrow Snowy Owl, Spectacled, Steller's, King and Common Eiders, nesting shorebirds such as Baird's and Pectoral Sandpipers, Long-billed Dowitcher and Grey Phalarope, Pomarine Skua. Also a chance of White-billed Diver, Buff-breasted Sandpiper and Sabine's Gull.

Pribilof Islands
St Paul Huge colonies of Northern Fur Seals, Arctic Fox, spectacular colonies of seabirds with Tufted and Horned Puffins, Parakeet, Crested and Least Auklets, Common and Brunnich's Guillemots, and Red-legged Kittiwakes, Rock Sandpiper, Harlequin and Long-tailed Ducks, Lapland and Snow Buntings, Grey-crowned Rosy Finch. Also a chance of McKay's Bunting and Asian birds very rare in North America.
Gambell (St Lawrence Island) Breeding and migrating seabirds including Little Auk. Also a chance of Spectacled and Steller's Eiders, Emperor Goose, White-billed Diver, Ivory Gull and Asian birds very rare in North America.

Best Times for Wildlife in Alaska

June is the best time for birds. Humpback and Killer Whales are usually present from May to October with peak numbers in July-August, and Grizzly Bears usually fish at this time, mainly in July but also during the first half of September. After late June to mid-July mosquitoes and other insects make life hell but their numbers usually fall steeply after mid-August, which is the best time to look for Grizzly Bears foraging for berries in Denali NP.

Recommended Books etc. for Alaska

Travellers' Wildlife Guides: Alaska by D Paulson and L Beletsky. Arris Books, 2007.

Mammals of North America by R W Kays and D E Wilson. PUP, 2009 (Second Edition).

Mammals of North America by F A Reid. Peterson North American Field Guides, 2006 (Fourth Edition).

Field Guide to the Birds of North America edited by J Dunn and J Alderfer. NGS, 2011 (Sixth Edition).

Kaufman Field Guide to Birds of North America by K Kaufman. Houghton Mifflin, 2005.

Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America by D Sibley. Helm, 2003.

Guide to the Birds of Alaska by R H Armstrong. Alaska Northwest Books, 2008. (Fifth Edition).

A Birder's Guide to Alaska by G C West. ABA, 2008 (Second Edition).

Mammals of North America eGuide. PUP.

Sibley eGuide to Birds of North America. Cool Ideas. Available from mydigitalearth.com.

iBird Explorer PRO. Mitch Waite Group. Available from ibird.com.

National Geographic's Handheld Birds. NGS.

Trip Reports for Alaska

Many trip reports, some for Alaska, are posted on the websites listed here. On some of these websites some reports are independent and some are posted by tour companies who organize tours to Alaska. These tour companies and others also post their own reports on their websites, which are listed under 'Some Organized Tours to Alaska' below.

The best website for trip reports is Travelling Birder

but these are also worth a look

Birdtours
Fatbirder
Jon Hornbuckle
Mammal Watching

Local Guides and Tours in Alaska

The costs of organized tours partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ. If you are travelling independently, employing such local guides will greatly increase your chances of seeing the wildlife you wish to see.

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Accommodation in Alaska

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Some Organized Tours to Alaska

There are many tour companies who organize tours to see mammals, birds, other wildlife and other natural wonders. The cost of these tours vary considerably according to such variables as the airlines used, the number of days the tours last, the number of sites visited, the number of people in the group (an important consideration if you wish to see such wildlife as rainforest mammals and birds), the number of tour leaders, the standard of accommodation and transport, and the percentage profit the company hopes to make. Generally, where the number of days tours last and the number of sites visited are similar, the cheapest tours are those that use the cheapest airlines, accommodation and local transport, that have the largest groups with the least number of leaders, and that make the least amount of profit. The most expensive tours tend to be those which are exceptionally long, use the most expensive accommodation (ridiculously lavish in some cases, even for single nights) and which make the most profit. Some tour costs partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ.

While tour companies organize tours with set itineraries many also organize custom tours for individuals and private groups who instead of taking a tour with a set itinerary want to follow their own itinerary to suit their own personal tastes, whether it be mammals, birds, other wildlife, other natural wonders or even man-made attractions, or a mixture of them all. Many organized tours with set itineraries are also fast-paced and target as many species as possible, whether they are mammals, birds or other wildlife or everything, which usually leaves little time to enjoy the best sites and individual species, but on a custom tour those taking part can specify the pace and the sites and species they wish to concentrate on. Custom tours also suit people who like to travel with people they already know, rather than with a group of strangers, and people with partners with different interests. Individuals and small groups will almost certainly have to pay more than the price of an organized tour with a set itinerary but a large group of friends may be able to travel for less than the price quoted for a set tour.

Tour companies who run organized tours or can arrange custom tours to Alaska include the following.

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