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Help save black guillemots nestlings and allow George and the Friends of Cooper Island to continue this long-term research. Find out more.

Behind the scenes: Living on Cooper Island while filming "An Uncertain Future"

Guest blogger: David Wright, Luna Sea Films
David Wright is a documentary filmmaker with over 20 years experience shooting wildlife and science stories for clients including the BBC, Discovery and National Geographic.

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — My flight arrived in Barrow, Alaska, on what the locals said was the best day in the last ten years. Blue [...]

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In the beginning

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — While it seems like I have been at the Cooper Island black guillemot colony forever, there was actually a time when I did not spend the summer in Arctic Alaska wearing long underwear and worrying about polar bears for three months. George E. Watson, who was then a curator of birds at [...]

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Black guillemots show their individuality with reactions to new nest boxes

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — I had no idea when I decided to provide 150 Nanuk plastic cases to protect the Cooper Island black guillemots how much the new nest sites would change the 2011 field season for both the birds and me. It was clear that I would need to arrive at the colony earlier than [...]

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A visit to Cooper Island

Post and photos by guest blogger, Greg O’Corry-Crowe

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — Mid July and I finally get the opportunity to visit Cooper Island and its birds and to work with George Divoky. Over the years George and I had discussed ways to collaborate. If we could only put his unique four-decade long study of black guillemots and [...]

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Solitary scientist at the top of the world

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — The subtitle of Darcy Frey’s 2002 NY Times Magazine article on the early impacts of climate change seen on Cooper Island, referred to me as a “lonely scientist at the end of the earth”.  This wording was likely the work of an editor, who wanted to portray the “forlorn” qualities inherent in [...]

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Holiday greetings

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — Celebrating a solitary Independence Day on Cooper Island with a few hundred black buillemots. While many guillemots are still laying eggs, yesterday I saw the first successful fledge of the year — a barely flying snow bunting that was still being fed by a parent. Snow bunting nests can produce up to seven chicks and feeding [...]

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Early arrival of the first black guillemot egg

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — While at lower latitudes seasonal transitions occur slowly with weeks or months between what one considers winter and summer conditions, in the Arctic this transition is abrupt — taking only a few days. The mainland tundra and offshore islands can be snow-covered one day and then virtually snow-free the next with [...]

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George and the guillemots get used to their new homes

George and Penelope get their first view of Cooper Island from the air.

COOPER ISLAND, ALASKA — While the start of every field season is always an exciting (and frequently stressful) time, this year the start of the Cooper Island field season had more excitement than most.  Preparations began earlier than normal as March and [...]

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The adventures begins

Posted by Penelope Chilton

In Barrow, Penelope stands next to "palm trees" made of baleen whale teeth.

George and I arrived in Barrow, Alaska, seven days ago and luckily for me due to some permitting issues and a head cold we were delayed in Barrow for a few extra days. The delay gave me a chance [...]

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Sponsor a bear-proof nest site

Posted by Lori

Here’s your chance to get involved in the work being done on Cooper Island:

Friends of Cooper Island is initiating a “Nest-Site Sponsorship” program to help pay for nest replacement and our ongoing research on Arctic seabirds. A minimum $100 tax-deductible donation will sponsor a nest site for one year and bring you (or [...]

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