Journal Privilege Bay, North Slope, Alaska 21 June I began to reconnoitre, with my first stop being the ARCO base camp to call on Angus Gavin, resident Mr. Nahina, duck counter + wildlife surveyor for the oil companies. His report: early year that froze up again. Ducks galore, particularly A. acuta and even a few A. platyrhynchos. He also told me they had yearly flights of Limnodromus griseus as well as scolopaceus! According to Gavin both Belderson + Spectacled Eider nest within the oil fields commonly, as do Branta bernicla m., B. canadensis, Aythya marila, the A. platyrhynchos this year (no evidence yet for nesting) are unusual, and probably relate to the incredibly high W. Slope dabbler density of this year [J. Bertonek of Alaska D. Fish + Game reports his aerial transects up a minimum of 100%]. Gavin obviously has his heart in ducks, and may not be the best source for shorebird info. He did comment on lower than normal Ph. lobatus and Ph. fulicarius densities, as well as an absence of Tryngites in a usual lurking spot south of Angel Pingo. Pectoral sandpipers and Semipalmated Sandpipers are in good number, he says. After finishing up Gavin (1930) I cut off in the truck for a broad regional survey, driving first out to the West Dock area and then all the way to the Kup River. This road system via some ways is fantastic, allowing, for example, me to see more acreage of tundra, than in 3 hrs driving that I had in 2 entire years at Barrow on foot. Judging from obvious bleeding Gavinachia, Somateria spectabilis, and other large waterfowl the roads have been adapted to — perhaps not by these species — the larger ones which may still be breeding in lower density or with reduced success — but probably by most shorebirds. My warning is simple — if the large birds appear to be breeding in number than the smaller ones probably are even more so, being more tolerant of human activity. But one very real concern that I have is for the possibility of an altered melt-off regime. All these roads and ground + dust will cause the snow to melt several weeks early, changing the thermal regime, exposing the vegetation to colder temperatures and light earlier than expected, and also making run-off early. This may directly affect the migration, or it may affect the invertebrates — i.e. the sandpiper prey. Anyway, I cruised about until