Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge (AMNWR) Would Not Be Indicative of Weather Patterns for the Entire Complex
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Mercury Concentrations in Multiple Tissues of Kittlitz's Murrelets (Brachyramphus Brevirostris)
Marine Pollution Bulletin xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Marine Pollution Bulletin journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/marpolbul Mercury concentrations in multiple tissues of Kittlitz's murrelets (Brachyramphus brevirostris) ⁎ Leah A. Kenneya, , Robb S.A. Kalera, Michelle L. Kisslingb, Alexander L. Bondc, Collin A. Eagles-Smithd a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK, USA b U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Juneau, AK, USA c Ardenna Research, Potton, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2QA, United Kingdom d U.S. Geological Survey, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Corvallis, OR, USA ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Keywords: Mercury (Hg) is a non-essential, toxic metal that is distributed worldwide. Mercury biomagnifies in food webs Blood and can threaten the health of top predators such as seabirds. The Kittlitz's murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris) Eggshell is a seabird endemic to Alaska and the Russian Far East and is a species of conservation concern in the region. We Excrement determined Hg concentrations in eggshells, guano, blood, and feathers of Kittlitz's murrelets sampled from four Guano locations in Alaska. Mercury concentrations in eggshells, guano, and blood were low compared to other seabird Feather species. Mean Hg concentrations of breast feathers from Adak Island and Glacier Bay were significantly greater Seabird than those from Agattu Island or Icy Bay. Two Kittlitz's murrelets at Glacier Bay and one Kittlitz's murrelet at Adak Island had Hg concentrations above those associated with -
Miles, A.K., M.A. Ricca, R.G. Anthony, and J.A. Estes. 2009
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Vol. 28, No. 8, pp. 1643–1654, 2009 ᭧ 2009 SETAC Printed in the USA 0730-7268/09 $12.00 ϩ .00 ORGANOCHLORINE CONTAMINANTS IN FISHES FROM COASTAL WATERS WEST OF AMUKTA PASS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA, USA A. KEITH MILES,*† MARK A. RICCA,† ROBERT G. ANTHONY,‡ and JAMES A. ESTES§ †U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Davis Field Station, 1 Shields Avenue, University of California, Davis, California 95616 ‡U.S. Geological Survey, Oregon Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, 104 Nash Hall, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 §Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Center for Ocean Health, 100 Schaffer Road, University of California, Santa Cruz, California 95060, USA (Received 2 October 2008; Accepted 6 March 2009) Abstract—Organochlorines were examined in liver and stable isotopes in muscle of fishes from the western Aleutian Islands, Alaska, in relation to islands or locations affected by military occupation. Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus), Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis), and rock greenling (Hexagrammos lagocephalus) were collected from nearshore waters at contemporary (decommissioned) and historical (World War II) military locations, as well as at reference locations. Total (⌺) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) dominated the suite of organochlorine groups (⌺DDTs, ⌺chlordane cyclodienes, ⌺other cyclodienes, and ⌺chlo- rinated benzenes and cyclohexanes) detected in fishes at all locations, followed by ⌺DDTs and ⌺chlordanes; dichlorodiphenyldi- chloroethylene (p,pЈDDE) composed 52 to 66% of ⌺DDTs by species. Organochlorine concentrations were higher or similar in cod compared to halibut and lowest in greenling; they were among the highest for fishes in Arctic or near Arctic waters. Organ- ochlorine group concentrations varied among species and locations, but ⌺PCB concentrations in all species were consistently higher at military locations than at reference locations. -
Prehistoric Aleut Influence at Port Moller
12 'i1 Pribilof lis. "' Resale for so 100 150 200 ·o oO Miles .,• t? 0 Not Fig. 1. Map of the Alaska Peninsula and Adjacent Areas. The dotted line across the Peninsula represents the Aleut boundary as determined by Petroff. Some of the important archaeological sites are marked as follows: 1) Port Moller, 2) Amaknak Island-Unalaska Bay, 3) Fortress or Split Rock, 4) Chaluka, 5) Chirikof Island, 6) Uyak, 7) Kaflia, 8) Pavik-Naknek Drainage, 9) Togiak, 10) Chagvan Bay, 11) Platinum, 12) Hooper Bay. PREHISTORIC ALEUT INFLUENCES AT PORT MOLLER, ALASKA 1 by Allen P. McCartney Univ. of Wisconsin Introduction Recent mention has been made of the Aleut influences at the large prehistoric site at Port Moller, the only locality known archaeologically on the southwestern half of the Alaska Penin sula. Workman ( 1966a: 145) offers the following summary of the Port Moller cultural affinities: Although available published material from the Aleutians is scarce and the easternmost Aleutians in particular have been sadly neglected, it is my opinion that the strongest affinitiesResale of the Port Moller material lie in this direction. The prevalence of extended burial and burial association with ocher at Port Moller corresponds most closely with the burial practices at the Chaluka site on Umnak Island. Several of the more diagnostic projectile points have Aleutian affinities as do the tanged knives and, possibly,for the side-notched projectile point. Strong points of correspondence, particularly in the burial practices and the stone technology, lead me to believe that a definite Aleut component is represented at the site. Data currently available will not allow any definitive statement as to whether or not there are other components represented at the site as well. -
Resource Utilization in Unalaska, Aleutian Islands, Alaska
RESOURCE UTILIZATION IN UNALASKA, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA Douglas W. Veltre, Ph. D. Mary J. Veltre, B.A. Technical Paper Number 58 Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Subsistence October 23, 1982 Contract 824790 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report would not have been possible to produce without the generous support the authors received from many residents of Unalaska. Numerous individuals graciously shared their time and knowledge, and the Ounalashka Corporation,. in particular, deserves special thanks for assistance with housing and transportation. Thanks go too to Linda Ellanna, Deputy Director of the Division of Subsistence, who provided continuing support throughout this project, and to those individuals who offered valuable comments on an earlier draft of this report. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. ii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION . 1 Purpose ..................... 1 Research objectives ............... 4 Research methods 6 Discussion of rese~r~h'm~tho~oio~y' ........ ...... 8 Organization of the report ........... 10 2 BACKGROUNDON ALEUT RESOURCE UTILIZATION . 11 Introduction ............... 11 Aleut distribuiiin' ............... 11 Precontact resource is: ba;tgr;ls' . 12 The early postcontact period .......... 19 Conclusions ................... 19 3 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND. 23 Introduction ........................... 23 The precontact'plrioi . 23 The Russian period ............... 25 The American period ............... 30 Unalaska community profile. ........... 37 Conclusions ................... 38 4 THE NATURAL SETTING ............... -
Assessment of Alaska Reindeer Populations and Range Conditions
Paper presented at The First Arctic Ungulate Conference, Nuuk, Greenland, 3-8. September, 1991. Assessment of Alaska reindeer populations and range conditions J. D. Swanson1 and M. H. W. Barker2 1 USDA Soil Conservation Service, 201 E. 9th Avenue, Suite 300, Anchorage, Alaska 99501, U.S.A. 2 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage, Alaska 99508, U.S.A. Abstract: Populations of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) have fluctated greatly since their introduction to Alaska in 1891. In the 1930s, reported numbers exceeded 600,000. Presently, 38,000 reindeer graze 6.2 million ha of rangeland and woodland in Western Alaska (from 66°54'N to 52°07'N latitude). Condition of winter range producing fruticose lichens (Cladina rangiferina, Cladina arbuscula, Cladina stellaris, Cetraria cucullata, Cetra- ria islandica) is of major concern. Monitoring programs have been established for vegetation, fire, reindeer and wildlife. Reindeer have overgrazed lichen resources on some Bering Sea Islands. Wildfires have had the greatest impact on lichen range depletion on the mainland. Overgrazing has been a problem in localized areas. Moose (AIces alces) and muskox (Ovibos moschatus) rarely contribute to major lichen depletion. 60-80% of the mainland and 5-30% of most island winter lichen ranges are presently estimated to be in good to excel• lent ecological condition. Procedures for assessing condition of the lichen ranges are being further refined. Keywords: Alaska, winter, pastures, lichens, population dynamics, sampling techniques Rangifer, 12 (1): 33-43 Introduction Siberian reindeer herders were originally Sheldon Jackson, General Agent of Education brought to instruct local natives in reindeer in Alaska, toured the northern coasts of Siberia husbandry and herding techniques (Brickey, and Alaska in 1890. -
Andrew A. Schaffner; Stephen B. Mathewsf Judith E
Andrew A. Schaffner; Stephen B. Mathewsf Judith E. Zeh* April 21, 1994 Abstract From June 1985 through June 1992 regular aerial surveys over Southeast Alaska, the Gulf of Alaska, and Aleutian Islands were conducted to monitor the distribution and abundance of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus). Furthermore, during 1992 the use of repetitive aerial surveys was introduced to study survey variability. The purposes of our present study were two-fold: (1) To investigate alternative statistical procedures for estimating population trend rates from aerial survey counts, and (2) to apply these procedures to the 1989-92 counts. We focused on 1989-92 because of the more abundant data for that period and to determine the most recent direction of population abundance relative to the well-documented steep decline prior to 1989. We concluded that parametric bootstrapping was the most appropriate interval estimation procedure. For this procedure the 90% confidence interval for the rate of change between the 1989 and 1992 Kenai-Kiska Recovery Plan trend site counts was (-10.19%, 2.62%). For +lJrookery and haul-out sites within the Kenai-Kiska region for which counts were made for both 1989 and 1992, the 90% confidence interval was (-6.20%, 6.81%). For sites outside the Kenai-Kiska region, the 90% confidence interval for the rate of change between 1989 and 1992 was (-37.92%, -6.93%). The parametric bootstrap procedure had the weakness of including data from only pairs of years; thus, 1990-91 information was excluded from the above interval estimates. Consequently, we investigated the use of both generalized linear modeling (GLM) and generalized estimating equations (GEE) as tools for analyzing all four years' data together. -
Resource Utilization in Atka, Aleutian Islands, Alaska
RESOURCEUTILIZATION IN ATKA, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA Douglas W. Veltre, Ph.D. and Mary J. Veltre, B.A. Technical Paper Number 88 Prepared for State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Subsistence Contract 83-0496 December 1983 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS To the people of Atka, who have shared so much with us over the years, go our sincere thanks for making this report possible. A number of individuals gave generously of their time and knowledge, and the Atx^am Corporation and the Atka Village Council, who assisted us in many ways, deserve particular appreciation. Mr. Moses Dirks, an Aleut language specialist from Atka, kindly helped us with Atkan Aleut terminology and place names, and these contributions are noted throughout this report. Finally, thanks go to Dr. Linda Ellanna, Deputy Director of the Division of Subsistence, for her support for this project, and to her and other individuals who offered valuable comments on an earlier draft of this report. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . e . a . ii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION . e . 1 Purpose ........................ Research objectives .................. Research methods Discussion of rese~r~h*m~t~odoio~y .................... Organization of the report .............. 2 THE NATURAL SETTING . 10 Introduction ........... 10 Location, geog;aih;,' &d*&oio&’ ........... 10 Climate ........................ 16 Flora ......................... 22 Terrestrial fauna ................... 22 Marine fauna ..................... 23 Birds ......................... 31 Conclusions ...................... 32 3 LITERATURE REVIEW AND HISTORY OF RESEARCH ON ATKA . e . 37 Introduction ..................... 37 Netsvetov .............. ......... 37 Jochelson and HrdliEka ................ 38 Bank ....................... 39 Bergslind . 40 Veltre and'Vll;r;! .................................... 41 Taniisif. ....................... 41 Bilingual materials .................. 41 Conclusions ...................... 42 iii 4 OVERVIEW OF ALEUT RESOURCE UTILIZATION . 43 Introduction ............ -
Identifying Nesting Habitat of Kittlitz's
Kenney & Kaler: NestingShort habitat Notes of Kittlitz’s Murrelets 73 IDENTIFYING NESTING HABITAT OF KITTLITZ’S MURRELETS BRACHYRAMPHUS BREVIROSTRIS: OLD NESTS LEAD TO A NEW BREEDING RECORD LEAH A. KENNEY1 & ROBB S.A. KALER2 1Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, Homer, AK, USA ([email protected]) 2Migratory Bird Management, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK, USA Received 2 September 2012, accepted 27 December 2012 Kittlitz’s Murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris) is one of the rarest Kittlitz’s Murrelets at Agattu Island (hereafter, Agattu). In 2009, the breeding seabirds in the North Pacific and one of the least known second year of the Agattu murrelet study, we revisited all previously in North America. With a patchy distribution in both Alaska and discovered nests and noted that several nest sites had increased the Russian Far East, the Kittlitz’s Murrelet population in Alaska plant cover compared with the surrounding area. Specifically, nest is estimated at 19 578 individuals (range 8 190–36 193; BirdLife scrapes where a murrelet chick survived for at least 10–15 days International 2012). Owing to its small population size, restricted contained dense mosses (Tetraplodon mnioides; a coprophilous moss distribution, and an apparent rapid population decline, the US Fish usually found growing on fecal materials and animal remains) and and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has proposed Kittlitz’s Murrelet as grasses (Poaceae). Kittlitz’s Murrelet adults provision their young a candidate species for listing under the Endangered Species Act with marine fishes at the nest scrape during the 24–40 day nestling (USFWS 2009). period (Day et al. 1999, Kaler et al. -
A Preliminary Baseline Study of Subsistence Resource Utilization in the Pribilof Islands
A PRELIMINARY BASELINE STUDY OF SUBSISTENCE RESOURCE UTILIZATION IN THE PRIBILOF ISLANDS Douglas W. Veltre Ph.D Mary J. Veltre, B.A. Technical Paper Number 57 Prepared for Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Subsistence Contract 81-119 October 15, 1981 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . The authors would like to thank those numerous mem- bers of St. George and St. Paul who gave generously of their time and knowledge to help with this project. The Tanaq Corporation of St. George and the Tanadgusix Corporation of St. Paul, as well as the village councils of both communities, also deserve thanks for their cooperation. In addition, per- sonnel of the National Marine Fisheries Service in the Pribi- lofs provided insight into the fur seal operations. Finally, Linda Ellanna and Alice Stickney of the Department of Fish and Game gave valuable assistance and guidance, especially through their participation in field research. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . ii Chapter I INTRODUCTION . 1 Purpose . 1 Research objectives . : . 4 Research methods . 6 Discussion of research methodology . 8 Organization of the report . 11 II BACKGROUND ON ALEUT SUBSISTENCE . 13 Introduction . 13 Precontact subsistence patterns . 15 The early postcontact period . 22 Conclusions . 23 III HISTORICAL BACXGROUND . 27 Introduction . 27 Russian period . 27 American period ........... 35 History of Pribilof Island settlements ... 37 St. George community profile ........ 39 St. Paul community profile ......... 45 Conclusions ......... ; ........ 48 IV THE NATURAL SETTING .............. 50 Introduction ................ 50 Location, geography, and geology ...... 50 Climate ................... 55 Fauna and flora ............... 61 Aleutian-Pribilof Islands comparison .... 72 V SUBSISTENCE RESOURCES AND UTILIZATION IN THE PRIBILOF ISLANDS ............ 74 Introduction ................ 74 Inventory of subsistence resources . -
Adak Army Base and Adak Naval Operating Base and Or Common Adak Naval Station (Naval Air Station Adak) 2
N?S Ferm 10-900 OMB Mo. 1024-0018 (342) NHL - WWM, PACIFIC Eip. 10-31-84 Uncled States Department off the Interior National Park Service For NPS UM only National Register off Historic Places received Inventory Nomination Form date entered See instructions in How to Complete National Register Forms Type all entries complete applicable sections ' _______ 1. Name__________________ historic Adak Army Base and Adak Naval Operating Base and or common Adak Naval Station (Naval Air Station Adak) 2. Location street & number not (or publication city, town vicinity of state Alaska code 02 county Aleutian Islands code 010 3. Classification Category Ownership Status Present Use __ district X public __ occupied __ agriculture __ museum building(s) private __ unoccupied commercial park structure both work in progress educational private residence X site Public Acquisition Accessible entertainment religious object in process X yes: restricted government __ scientific being considered .. yes: unrestricted industrial transportation __ no ,_X military __ other: 4. Owner off Property name United States Navy street & number Adak Naval Station, U.S. Department of the Navy city, town FPO Seattle vicinity of state Washington 98791 5. Location off Legal Description courthouse, registry of deeds, etc. United States Navy street & number Adak Naval Station. U.S. Department of the Navy city, town FPO Seattle state Washington 98791 6. Representation in Existing Surveys y title None has this property been determined eligible? yes J^L no date federal _ _ state __ county local depository for survey records city, town state 7. Description Condition Check one Check one __ excellent __ deteriorated __ unaltered _K original site __ good X_ ruins _X altered __ moved date _.__._. -
Aleutian Islands
Journal of Global Change Data & Discovery. 2018, 2(1): 109-114 © 2018 GCdataPR DOI:10.3974/geodp.2018.01.18 Global Change Research Data Publishing & Repository www.geodoi.ac.cn Global Change Data Encyclopedia Aleutian Islands Liu, C.1* Yang, A. Q.2 Hu, W. Y.1 Liu, R. G.1 Shi, R. X.1 1. Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; 2. Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing100101,China Keywords: Aleutian Islands; Fox Islands; Four Mountains Islands; Andreanof Islands; Rat Islands; Near Islands; Kommandor Islands; Unimak Island; USA; Russia; data encyclopedia The Aleutian Islands extends latitude from 51°12′35″N to 55°22′14″N and longitude about 32 degrees from 165°45′10″E to 162°21′10″W, it is a chain volcanic islands belonging to both the United States and Russia[1–3] (Figure 1, 2). The islands are formed in the northern part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. They form part of the Aleutian Arc in the Northern Pacific Ocean, extending about 1,900 km westward from the Alaska Peninsula to- ward the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, Figure 1 Dataset of Aleutian Islands in .kmz format and mark a dividing line between the Ber- ing Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The islands comprise 6 groups of islands (east to west): the Fox Islands[4–5], islands of Four Mountains[6–7], Andreanof Islands[8–9], Rat Islands[10–11], Near Is- lands[12–13] and Kommandor Islands[14–15]. -
I :-:L Library & Information Services
!II•I ALEUTIAN CANADA GOOSE TRANSPLANT FROM BULDIR ISLAND TO AGATTU ISLAND, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA I SUHMER 1984 I by I FREDRIC G. DEINES I Key Words: Aleutian Canada Geese I Aleutian ~slands Rat Island Group Buldir Island Near Island Group I Agattu Island Transplanted gees~ .. Endangered Species I Distribution I I Restrictions: Internal Document - Not for Publication I U. S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS UNIT I ALASKA MARITIME NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE BOX 5251 NAS ADAK FPO SEATTLE, WA 98791-0009 I (ADAK, ALASKA) ARLIS Alaska Resources I :-:l Library & Information Services ,......c.o Anchorage, Alaska I ,......c.o SEPTEMBER 1, 1984 ~ 0 0 0 I LO LO,...... M I M AcgDisk l/Bul-Ag84 I I Executive Summary 1 I List of Expendit~~n Members 2 Acknowledg~ments 2 I Introduction 2 Methods and Materials 4 Capturing the Geese 4. .I Handling the Geese 5 I Results and Discussion 8 Recommendations 16 I Literature Cited 17 Appendix: Appendix A. 1984 Banding Schedules for Wild 18 I Aleutian Canada Geese Released on Agattu Island I. Appendix B. 1984 Incidental Weather, Bird, Mamal 23 and Plant Observations at Buldir I FIGURES: Figure 1: Map of Central and Western 5 I Aleutian Islands Figure 2: Backpack and Goose Cage Illustration 6 I Figure 3: 1984 Goose Release Site, Agattu Island 9 Figure 4: 1984 Goose Capture Sites, Buldir Island 12 I TABLES: Table 1: Goose Tubing Solution 6 I Table 2.: Results of Capture, Banding and Trans- 11 planting of Aleutian Canada Geese from I Buldir Island to Agattu Island, 1984 Table 3: Estimated Age of Goslings Capture 13 & 14 I After First Day and Color Banded Table 4: Geese Exhibiting Some Paralysis 15 at Time of Release ARLIS I Alaska Res:ources Library & Information Service~.