Arctic Birds: Bluethroat

A Bluethroat male perches atop of a small willow to sing in early-June

NPS/Jared Hughey

Luscinia svecica
Family: Muscicapidae

The Bluethroat is easily near the top of a birder’s list of birds to see in Alaska, and when found, a memorable experience. This Old World chat has a widespread breeding distribution across Europe and Asia, but in North America only occurs in Alaska from the Seward Peninsula across the northern foothills of the Brooks Range and barely into Yukon Territory, Canada. Despite the male’s spectacular rufous and blue bib, the Bluethroat’s small size and secretive nature make it a more difficult species to find. Gates of the Arctic is a great place to track one down.

Species Profile

Breeding habitat: Breeds in wet dwarf-shrub tundra and arctic tundra habitats in expanses of dense thickets of low willow (often Salix pulchra), usually situated along streams, lakes, and in other sites with poor drainage. Nest usually placed under a cottongrass tussock or dense shrubs.

Where to find in the park: Found across the northern foothills and river valleys north of the Continental Divide, including the Noatak, Killik, Anaktuvuk, and Itkillik river valleys, as well as areas along the headwaters of the John River.

Migration: Long-distance migrant, departing Alaska in August and returning in late-May into mid-June. Birds that breed in Alaska and Canada are thought to winter in southeast China, although the global population winters from Spain to central Africa and across south Asia.

Behavior: Bluethroats are most easily observed when males are singing to secure a breeding territory and attract a female. Follow the sound of a singing male, and with some patience, you will likely spot the bird perched in a willow or performing a display-flight. Once singing activity decreases around mid-June, they are once again elusive and much more difficult to find.

Interesting fact: Bluethroat songs showcase an impressively large and varied repertoire that consists of whistles, rattles, cricket-like sounds, and mimicry of other bird species. In Western Alaska, researches have recorded Bluethroats mimicking 30 different species including American Golden-Plover, Bar-tailed Godwit, Lapland Longspur, Eastern Yellow Wagtail, and Wilson’s Warbler.

Conservation and management: Considered to be of least conservation concern, both globally and in Alaska.

Bluethroat abundance in Alaska.

Fink, D., T. Auer, A. Johnston, M. Strimas-Mackey, O. Robinson, S. Ligocki, W. Hochachka, C. Wood, I. Davies, M. Iliff, L. Seitz. 2020. eBird Status and Trends, Data Version: 2019; Released: 2020. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York.

References

Fink, D., T. Auer, A. Johnston, M. Strimas-Mackey, O. Robinson, S. Ligocki, W. Hochachka, C. Wood, I. Davies, M. Iliff, L. Seitz. 2020. eBird Status and Trends, Data Version: 2019; Released: 2020. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. https://doi.org/10.2173/ebirdst.2019

Guzy, M. J., B. J. McCaffery, and N. Collar (2020). Bluethroat (Luscinia svecica), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi-org.arlis.idm.oclc.org/10.2173/bow.blueth.01