They come by the thousands. No, make that the millions.
Not the people; the birds.
Every spring, shorebirds -- mostly dunlins and western sandpipers -- battle storms and travel as far as 1,900 miles in 48 hours to layover and feed on Southcentral Alaska tidal flats for about a two-week period before setting flight for their nesting grounds in western Alaska, specifically the Yukon-Kuskowim Delta.
Their layover is short.
''It all happens quick, in about a 10-day to two-week period,'' said Stan Senner, executive director of Audubon Alaska. That period comes in early May.
Some of the same shorebirds can be seen near Anchorage on the Upper Cook Inlet mudflats, but to see ''the main pulse'' of the migration, a trip to Cordova or Homer is in order, Senner said. The shorebirds favor the vast tidal flats of Homer and Cordova for the small invertebrates and fly larvae on the surface or down in the mud.
Festivals for all
Both towns host shorebird festivals in early May. The Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival and the Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival.
At both events, numerous workshops and viewing opportunities are planned. And in both places, birdwatchers will see thousands of dunlins and sandpipers, but each site offers distinct advantages, said Senner, who is a guest speaker at the Cordova festival.
''I usually tell people that the attraction of Cordova is a larger number of birds, a smaller number of people and a more wilderness setting. You can get off the road in Cordova. In Homer, you're pretty much limited to the Homer Spit.''
As many as 2,500 people attend the Homer festival.
Homer's easy to reach
Homer is a little easier to get to and offers a chance to see a greater variety of migrating birds, Senner said. For example, bird watchers in Homer are more likely to see Pacific golden plovers and surfbirds.
This is the 10th year of the Homer festival. The keynote speaker at this year's event is Frank Todd, a recognized expert on waterfowl and penguins. He created the ''Penguin Encounter'' exhibit at Sea World in California and he led projects that resulted in the first captive breeding of 10 bird species. He is currently a senior research fellow at Hubbs/Sea World Research Institute in San Diego.
The festival is focusing on wildlife photography. Leading wildlife photographers Karen Hollingsworth, Simyra Taback, Roy Toft and Mark Kirkland will hold workshops.
More than 25 species of shorebirds from as far away as Asia, Hawaii and South America lay over in the Kachemak Bay area.
The most commonly seen birds during the festival are western and least sandpipers; dunlins; short-billed dowitchers; greater and lesser yellowlegs; common snipe; and black-bellied, golden and semi-palmated plovers; Hudsonian, marbled and bar-tailed godwits; and surfbirds, according to festival organizers. Another 236 species of birds can also be spotted in the Homer area.
Most festival events are free, but registration is suggested. Registered participants receive a wildlife refuge centennial pin, a birding map and special festival coupons.
Cordova gets 215 species
The Copper River Delta festival is in its 18th year (2007).
Organizers say 215 species of birds can be found on the delta and as many as 5 million shorebirds lay over during the migration.
Aside from the dunlins and sandpipers that pass through the area, organizers point out that the Copper River Delta is also home to trumpeter swans, dusky Canada geese, mallards, northern pintails, and shovelers. Other birds that populate the marine environment include, black oystercatchers, common murres, marbled murrelets, harlequin ducks, and black-legged kittiwakes.
