Strategy for Data Collection
The strategy for colony monitoring includes estimating timing of nesting events, reproductive success, population trends, and prey used by representative species of various foraging guilds (e.g., murres are offshore diving fish-feeders, kittiwakes are offshore surface-feeding fish-feeders, auklets are diving plankton-feeders, etc.) at geographically dispersed breeding sites along the entire coastline of Alaska.

Monitoring Sites
A total of 10 sites on Alaska Maritime Refuge located roughly 300 to 500 km apart, are scheduled for annual surveys, and at least some data is available from all of these in most years. In addition, colonies near the annual sites are identified for less frequent surveys to "calibrate" the information gathered at the annual sites. Data provided from other research projects (e.g., those associated with evaluating the impacts of oil spills on marine birds) also supplement the monitoring database.

Annual Monitoring Field Stations
(from north to south around the coast)

• Cape Lisburne
• St. Paul
• St. George
• Buldir
• Kasatochi - No annual monitoring since the volcanic eruption of 2008. 
• Aiktak
• Chowiet
• E. Amatuli
• St. Lazaria

Examples of Target Species for Seabird Monitoring