liffs filled with nesting colonies of hundreds of thousands of seabirds attract birders to the Bering Sea Islands known as the Pribilofs where you can see Tufted and Horned Puffins, Crested Auklets, Parakeet and Least Auklets, Common and Thick-billed Murres, Red-legged and Black-legged Kittiwakes, Pelagic and Red-faced Cormorants, Northern Fulmars and everpresent Glaucous Gulls. The best bet for successful photography is to position yourself where a cliff face is separated by a narrow crevice so you can photograph birds across the ledge using a telephoto lens.

Attractive McKay's Buntings join Snow Buntings on the Pribilofs' rocky tundra areas, along with Gray-crowned Rosy Finches. Shorebirds include Bar-tailed Godwits, Rock Sandpipers, Red-necked Phalaropes and rare Bristle-thighed Curlews. Exciting seaducks to look for include Harlequin Ducks, Oldsquaws and scoters. Common Elders can be found regularly, but also watch for Spectacled, King and Steller's Eiders. Considering the close proximity of these islands to Siberia, the opportunities to find a vagrant seabird, passerine or shorebird from Asia is very likely. Get accustomed to checking every bird you see during your stay, just in case a rarity presents itself.

There is only one hotel on St. Paul Island, appropriately named the the King Eider Hotel. The island is only 14 miles long and eight miles wide, so you can enjoy hiking along the many trails in search of birds, although a bus provides transport across the island. Contact St. Paul Island Tours (800) 544-2248 and Alaska Photo Tours (907) 733-3051.

The Pribilofs are a grand location to see nesting seabirds of the North Pacific, including Red-faced Cormorants, and a variety of alcids like Parakeet and Crested Auklets.

View a Bird Checklist for this region:

• Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge -- Aleutian Islands Unit