During 2008, ABR, Inc., conducted wildlife
surveys for selected birds and mammals in the
Colville River Delta and Northeast Planning Area
of the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska
(NPRA) in support of the Alpine Satellite
Development Project (ASDP) of ConocoPhillips
Alaska, Inc. (CPAI). The wildlife studies in 2008
were a continuation of work initiated by CPAI’s
predecessors, ARCO Alaska, Inc., and Phillips
Alaska, Inc., in the Colville River Delta in 1992
(Smith et al. 1993, 1994; Johnson 1995; Johnson et
al. 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999a, 1999b, 2000a, 2000b,
2001, 2002, 2003a, 2003b, 2004, 2005, 2006a,
2006b, 2007a, 2007b, 2008b; Burgess et al. 2000,
2002a, 2003a) and in the NPRA in 1999 (Anderson
and Johnson 1999; Murphy and Stickney 2000;
Johnson and Stickney 2001; Burgess et al. 2002b,
2003b; Johnson et al. 2004, 2005, 2006b, 2007b).
Avian surveys in the NPRA were resumed in 2008
after being discontinued in 2007 due to delays in
permitting for the CD-5 drill site. The ASDP
studies augment long-term wildlife monitoring
programs that have been conducted by CPAI (and
its predecessors) across large areas of the central
Arctic Coastal Plain since the early 1980s (see
Murphy and Anderson 1993, Stickney et al. 1993,
Anderson et al. 2008, Lawhead et al. 2008).
The primary goal of wildlife investigations in
the region since 1992 has been to describe the
distribution and abundance of selected species
before, during, and after construction of oil
development projects. We report here the results of
avian surveys in 2008 that were conducted in the
Colville River Delta and northeastern NPRA. CPAI
began producing oil on the Colville River Delta in
2000 with the Alpine Development’s CD-1 and
CD-2 drill sites, and augmented oil production in
2006 with the CD-3 and CD-4 drill sites. CPAI
plans additional oil and gas development sites in
NE NPRA as part of the Alpine Satellite
Development Project (BLM 2004): CD-5 (Alpine
West), CD-6 (Lookout), and CD-7 (Spark), and a
newly proposed site named Fiord West (Figure 1).
Readers are directed to prior reports for wildlife
information from previous years.
Surveys in 2008 were designed to provide
data on the distribution, abundance, and habitat use
of 5 focal taxa (common names followed by
Ieupiaq names): Spectacled Eider (Qavaasuk),
King Eider (Qifalik), Tundra Swan (Qugruk),
geese (Nibliq), and Yellow-billed Loon (Tuullik)
(scientific names and Iñupiaq names listed in
Appendix A). These 5 taxa were selected in
consultation with resource agencies because of 1)
threatened or sensitive status, 2) indications of
declining populations, 3) restricted breeding range,
4) importance to subsistence hunting, or 5) concern
by regulatory agencies for development impacts.
Monitoring a collection of focal species provides
both in-depth data on individual species trends and
responses to a changing environment, as well as a
general overview of ecosystem health. Data
collection for a suite of indicator species with
diverse life histories and habitat needs is an
efficient way to monitor a multi-species system,
obviating the need to study all species that breed in
the study area. Ground-based surveys for nesting
birds were not conducted in 2008. Required state
and federal permits were obtained for authorized
survey activities, including a Scientific or
Educational Permit (Permit No. 08-013) from the
State of Alaska and a Federal Fish and Wildlife
Permit—Threatened and Endangered Species
[Permit No. TE012155-3 issued under Section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (58 FR
27474-27480)]. Similar avian species were
monitored in the Kuparuk Oilfield on the eastern
border of the Colville River Delta in 2008
(Anderson et al. 2009). Aerial surveys for
Steller’s Eiders (Igniqauqtuq) near Barrow
(Obritschkewitsch 2008), Alaska and banding of
snow geese (Kafuq) on the Colville River Delta
(Ritchie et al. 2008) also were supported by CPAI.
Studies of caribou (Tuttu) and other large
mammals in the ASDP area in 2008 are reported in
Lawhead and Prichard (2009). Additional studies
on the use of the ASDP area by grizzly bears
(Akjaq) were conducted by the Alaska Department
of Fish and Game (ADFG) with support from
CPAI in 2002–2008. CPAI also supported the Polar
Bear (Nanuq) Conservation Program lead by the
U.S. Geological Survey’s Alaska Science Center,
in its efforts to capture, mark, and monitor polar
bears in the central Beaufort Sea.
Wildlife study objectives were developed and
study progress was reported through a series of
agency and community scoping and planning
meetings, beginning in 2001. Annual informational
meetings are held each spring in Nuiqsut to allow
residents to visit with CPAI biologists and other
scientists to share information and discuss
concerns for resources in the Colville Delta and
NPRA areas. On 20 March 2008, biologists
attended a science fair at the school during the day,
followed by an open community meeting in the
evening where they presented findings of recent
research. In 2007, a meeting was scheduled with
the Kuukpik Subsistence Oversight Panel and slide
shows were presented on current studies at an open
house on 19 June 2007. The open house was
attended by approximately 40 people from the
village of Nuiqsut. During the summer field season
in 2008, CPAI posted weekly updates on bulletin
boards in the post office, store, and community
center in Nuiqsut. Updates were also emailed to
key representatives of the Kuukpik Subsistence
Oversight Panel (KSOP), Kuukpik Corporation,
and the Department of Wildlife of the North Slope
Borough. The updates reported on surveys (for
example, type of aircraft used, altitude of aircraft,
and species enumerated) conducted the previous
week and the schedule of surveys for the upcoming
week. The open house meetings and weekly
updates served to keep local residents informed on
the progress and results of studies conducted by
CPAI in the area near Nuiqsut.
