Story last updated at
In the summer, seabirds nesting on Gull Island and other rock outcroppings offer the chance to see black-legged kittiwakes, tufted and horned puffins, red-faced cormorants, murres and, of course, gulls. A short water taxi ride brings close-up viewing, but you can also watch the Gull Island rookeries through the Pratt Museum’s remote camera. Kayaking around Gull Island or in any of many small bays offers intimate and silent birding. You can bird by ear in the spring on hiking trails like the Calvin and Coyle Trail near Paul Banks Elementary School on East End Road.
Winter and fall birding shows off hardy Alaska birds, like ravens, crows, Steller’s jays, magpies, black-capped chickadees, nuthatches, pine grosbeaks and bald eagles. After the Christmas bird count — up to 67 species in some years — Homer’s Eagle Lady, Jean Keene, begins feeding eagles out of her home on the Homer Spit. Hundreds of eagles come to Keene’s feeding station next to the Seafarer’s Memorial, and cluster on the beaches and nearby light poles to wait for a snack. Eagle feeding has become controversial in Homer, with other people feeding eagles beyond Keene’s compound and others protesting this activity.
Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center maintains the Bird Alert Info Line at 235-7337 (235-PEEP). A checklist of Kachemak Bay birds, with birding hot spots and other information, is at “A Birder’s Guide to Kachemak Bay,” www.birdinghomeralaska.org.
The Homer Spit’s wide open vistas, and its mix of land, shore and sea habitats, is a good place to start birding in Homer. The Spit is also the focus of the annual Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival, which features an intense birding experience as 100,000 shorebirds in 25 species pass through the bay in early May.
Return to Tour Guide
We encourage you to add your comments. To prevent spam, comments with links are manually approved during the normal business day. Please be respectful of others with your comments, bear in mind anyone in the community may be reading your comments.
