Under high overcast skies and calm winds our 2026 participants entered the science room for day one of seabird camp.
“Hey, I remember you.”
“Are we going to do the same things we did last year?”
“When are we going outside?”
“I heard we’re going to do a TikTok dance!”
Supported by interns from a concurrent leadership camp and three camp leaders we got right to it, tackling seabird basics. What is a seabird? Where do they live? What are some unique adaptations they have? We refreshed our field ID skills and built field guides. Then we took our binocular wielding for a test run in the playground with a fun binocular bird bingo. After revealing the hidden message, “the ocean is our habitat”, we hit the trail, taking a meandering bird walk out towards Reef and putting what we just learned to work. It’s late June and there are lots of flowers out. We passed (Nootka) lupines, beach peas, Kamchatka rockcress and geraniums. We survived a thick hoard of swarming gnats and an exhausting trek across beach grass covered sand. In sum, we enjoyed exercising our bird identification in the wild.
“I saw this one, the glamorous-winged gull.”
“It’s a red-faced cormorant! Or was it a blue-faced? Is there a blue-faced cormorant? I think it’s flying to its nest over there.”
“I like the swan.”
“Wait, that’s a tufted puffin? Oh, I see the horned puffins too!”
“There’s a seal down there!”
“Why are these rocks red?”
We returned with just enough time to refuel before meeting up with SUTMI (the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island’s Saaqudgaan Unangam Tunungin & Maqaxtangin Intensive program). We sang and danced, and played games to practice our colors, counting, and not laughing. Light and passing showers weren’t enough to dampen the fun, and we wrapped up the day with smiles, and thanks to our guests. Txin Qaĝaasakuqing (Thank you). Everyone is looking forward to what the rest of this week brings.
