Summary

Description

This report presents a census of colonial waterbird sites at Lake Louise and Slikak lake on 21 and 22 July 1981 respectively. Both Lake Louise and Skilak Lake are accessible from the southcentral Alaska road system, Lake Louise 55 km northwest of Glennallen and Skilak Lake 30 km east of Soldotna. Censuses were made from a small inflatable boat powered by an outboard motor. Nesting islands were circumnavigated while 34 observers counted the adult birds and chicks. In two cases observers were landed on islands to facilitate the counting of chicks. The results of our counts and additional colony information are given in the Colony Status Records Appendix lae. Breeding colonies on Skilak Lake are under the jurisdiction of USFWS, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Lake Louise islands are privately owned, but the gravel bar on which Arctic Terns Sterna paradisaea nest is probably owned by the State of Alaska.