U.S. Department of the Interior

Alaska Support Office Park Science Anchorage, Alaska Connections to Natural and Cultural Resource Studies in Alaska’s National Parks

Winter 2002 “The act of creating a park is really an act of faith in all of the is also providing new insights into the world around us. Table of Contents grand possibilities of the future. It is a contract with the future.” As part of our “contract with the future,” Alaska Park —Dr. Shirley Malcom, National Park Advisory Board Science can connect the public with their national parks The Great Eruption of 1912______5 and the natural and cultural resources found there. Alaska’s Digging up Dreams: The Razor Clam Welcome to our first issue of Alaska Park Science. This national parks serve to teach, inform, inspire and motivate Industry in Kukak Bay, Alaska ______13 new semi-annual journal will share what we are learning in people. In the end, we hope the national parks will inspire Alaska’s national parks through the study of their vital cul- and encourage people to make a difference. Surprising Humpback Whale Songs tural and natural resources. in Glacier Bay National Park ______17 Some of the best places in this country have been chosen Rob Arnberger as parks. These places are landscapes and historic shrines Regional Director, Alaska Region Little Known Mulchatna Villages Emerging in which we feel wonder, reverence, respect — and respon- National Park Service After 120 Years of Solitude ______23 sibility. We are immensely proud that such places exist and that we are successfully preserving this natural and cultural The Retreat of Exit Glacier ______27 heritage for future generations. As concepts of American ideas and values evolve, protecting living ideas is gaining Science News______32-39 prominence nation-wide. The National Park Service not only Cover photograph © Alaska Volcano Observatory protects places, but also the ideas they represent. Page 3 photograph © National Park Service Sharing these ideas and what we have learned in our resource studies is essential. The National Park Service Alaska Park Science strives to connect education with research and science, Editor: Monica Shah for education can serve as the bridge between knowledge Project Leads: John Quinley and Jane Tranel, and responsibility. Education tools like Alaska Park Science Alaska Public Affairs Office, email: [email protected] will also serve as the connection between the public who Park Science Journal Board: own the resources and those given the responsibility to Ted Birkedal, Team Leader for Cultural Resources; manage them. The National Park system has been called Alex Carter, Team Manager for Biological “America’s greatest university without walls.” The benefits Resources Team; Joy Geiselman, Deputy Chief, Biological Science Office of almost 400 sites in this “university” system will enrich the USGS Alaska Science Center; educational offerings provided to the public. Sue Huse, Natural Resources Specialist; National parks are important scientific laboratories, in John Quinley, Assistant Regional Director addition to providing fabulous places for people to visit. for Communications; Because they are among the places least changed by people, Jane Tranel, Public Affairs Specialist; parks provide unique research opportunities. Nationally, Ralph Tingey, Associate Regional Director for Resources and Education this role has been advanced by the National Park Service’s Funded By: The Natural Resources Challenge Natural Resource Challenge, an effort funded by Congress Produced By: to expand the scope and quality of science in parks. Alaska has benefited from this initiative and from the many part- nerships built around expanding and sharing the knowledge gained in park areas. Research by the US Geological Sharing Alaska’s Natural and Cultural Heritage Survey-Alaska Science Center, universities and other agencies

2 About the Authors

Jennifer Adleman is a geologist with the Alaska Volcano Observatory U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Science Center and a graduate student at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

John Branson is a historian for Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Port Alsworth, Alaska.

A.S. Frankel works for Marine Acoustics Incorporated.

Chris Gabriele is a wildlife biologist for Glacier Bay National Park.

Susan Huse is a biologist for the Alaska Support Office.

Katherine Johnson is a historian for Katmai National Park and Preserve, and a PhD candidate in Public History at Washington State University.

3 4 The Great Eruption of 1912

by Jennifer Adleman explosively hurling the molten rock sky- tally. Wildlife on Kodiak Island and in the — geologist with the Alaska Volcano ward, where it chilled quickly to volcanic Katmai region was decimated by ash and Observatory U.S. Geological Survey Alaska ash and pumice. The volume of pumice and acid rain from the eruption. Bears and Science Center and a graduate student at ash rushing out of the vent was so great that other large animals were blinded by thick the University of Alaska, Fairbanks not all of it became airborne. A flood of ash and many starved to death because pumice spilled out of the choked vent and large numbers of plants and small animals On the afternoon of June 6, 1912, a flowed as a pyroclastic flow—a dense, were smothered in the eruption. Birds volcanic eruption cloud rose 100,000 ft (32 tumbling mixture of pumice blocks, fine blinded and coated by volcanic ash fell km) into the sky above the Katmai region, ash, and hot gas—that moved down the to the ground. Even the region’s prolific 280 miles (450 km) southwest of Anchorage former Ukak River valley to form the nearly mosquitoes were exterminated. Aquatic on the (Fig. 1). Explosions flat topography seen in the Valley of organisms in the region perished in the were even heard in Cordova, over 370 miles Ten Thousand Smokes today (Fig. 2) ash-clogged waters. Salmon, in all stages of (600 km) away from the Alaska Peninsula. (Fierstein, 1984). life, were destroyed by the eruption and its Winds pushed the ash cloud east and with- During the next three days, life on aftereffects. From 1915 to 1919, southwest- in a few hours, ash from a huge volcanic Kodiak Island was immobilized during the ern Alaska’s salmon-fishing industry was eruption began to fall on Kodiak Island, 60-hour eruption. Darkness and suffocat- devastated (Fierstein, 1998). The biological approximately 100 miles (170 km) south- ing conditions caused by the falling ash impact was far worse overall than that of Within the broken edifice of a decapitated east of the volcano. Within several hours and sulfur dioxide gas rendered villagers the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989 (Fierstein is a lake 2 miles (3 km) wide.

© Alaska Volcano Observatory ash fell on Vancouver, British Columbia and helpless (Fig. 3). Among Kodiak’s 500 and Hildreth, 2001). Seattle, Washington. The next day the ash inhabitants, sore eyes and respiratory The impact to the land did not cease cloud passed over Virginia, and by June problems were widespread. Water became when the eruption ended. A number of 17th it reached the skies above Algeria in undrinkable. Radio communications were moderate sized lahars—volcanic debris Africa (Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001). disrupted and visibility was nil. Roofs in the flows consisting of rapidly flowing mixtures While those on board the steamship village collapsed under the weight of more of water, mud, and rock debris—resulted Dora in the Shelikof Strait, between Kodiak than a foot of ash. Buildings were destroyed from the 1912 eruption. The most publi- Island and the Alaska Peninsula, watched as avalanches of ash rushed down from cized lahars occurred a few years after the towering eruption cloud, pulses of nearby hillsides (Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001). the eruption itself. A landslide, triggered magma from beneath the volcano continued On June 9th Kodiak villagers saw the by earthquakes during the 1912 eruption, to reach the earth’s surface. As the magma first clear, ash-free skies in three days, but dammed the Katmai River in Katmai depressurized, gases quickly escaped, their environment had changed fundamen- Canyon. The Katmai River remained

5 tacular member of the monument system.” approaches the still-hot rock beneath ©AlaskaVolcano Observatory ©NationalGeographicSociety © NationalGeographicSociety (Glimpses of Our National Monuments, . These few remaining fumaroles Volcanic particles suspended in the air, 1930). tap a deep heat source—molten rock Griggs and others believed that the below ground. This is quite different from dust and sulfurous aerosols, from the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes was a the “rootless” heat source of the extinct 1912 eruption were detected within modern-day example of how the geyser fumaroles, which was actually the cooling days over Wisconsin and Virginia and basins of Yellowstone Park were formed of the ash-flow itself (Fig. 6) (Fierstein, 1984). over California, Europe, and North as the region’s volcanoes first ceased their The origin of the magma expelled in the activity (Glimpses of Our National 1912 eruption has been a topic of great America within two weeks… Monuments, 1930). This turned out not to interest. In fact, in 1953 more than forty be the case. By the 1930s, the valley-filling years after the eruption, Dr. Garniss Curtis ash had cooled enough to allow liquid of the University of California discovered water to pass freely through without it that the main vent for the great eruption depression 2 miles (3 km) wide, called a turning to steam (Fig. 6). Today, the Valley of was not Mount Katmai, as previously caldera (Fig. 4) (Fierstein and Hildreth, Ten Thousand Smokes is largely smokeless. thought, but a new vent, now plugged by 2001). Although in the 1950s Dr. Curtis Warm vapors rise from a few places around the dome Griggs and his party named discovered what happened during the 1912 the Novarupta vent and along the margins Novarupta (Fig. 7). Curtis postulated that eruption, researchers continue to attempt of Baked, Broken, and Falling Mountains so much molten rock was removed from to understand how and why the magma as the groundwater percolating through beneath Mount Katmai that Katmai’s from underneath Mt. Katmai erupted underground fractures turns to steam as it summit collapsed to form a volcanic through the vent at Novarupta.

© NationalGeographicSociety Research, Exploration and Katmai National Park and Preserve Volcanic particles suspended in the air—dust and sulfurous aerosols—from the 1912 eruption were detected within days over Wisconsin and Virginia and over California, Europe, and North America Figure 4. within two weeks (Fierstein and Hildreth, Top: Mount Katmai by R.F. Griggs of the 2001). Beginning in 1913, before anyone 1915 and 1916 expedition had set foot in the Valley of Ten Thousand Middle: Novarupta Steam Smokes, the transport of the volcanic ash Bottom: Present day Katmai Lake cloud, reported as a dust veil as far east as Greece and Algeria, led to pioneering work on atmospheric turbidity and the effect of aerosols on climate (Kimball, 1913; Volz, 1975; Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001). Modern scientific study in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes began in the 1950s Figure 3. Drifts of ash in the village of Kodiak, June 1912 by W.J. Erskine (Norris, 1996), and nearly 30 years later

7 The Great Eruption of 1912 © NationalGeographicSociety Katmai National Park and Preserve was Recent studies of the 1912 eruption have designated, encompassing the Valley of allowed researchers to further investigate Ten Thousand Smokes and surrounding the processes and hazards associated regions. Around that time, part of the with large explosive volcanic eruptions. ongoing U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Recently published estimates of total vol- fieldwork culminated in surface and canic material erupted in 1912 at Katmai bedrock geologic maps of the region. The include 4 cubic miles (17 cubic km) of ash University of Alaska, Fairbanks Geophysical fall and 2.6 cubic miles (11 cubic km) of Institute (UAFGI), the USGS, and later the ash-flow deposit, with 3 cubic miles (13 Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), and cubic km) of liquid magma (Fierstein and others, continue to unravel the mysteries Hildreth, 2001). of 1912. The 1912 eruption of Novarupta was the twentieth century’s most voluminous erup- The Katmai Cluster tion, and one of the five largest in recorded Scientists now refer to the volcanoes history. Among historical eruptions it is one surrounding the Valley of Ten Thousand of the few to have generated a large volume Smokes as the Katmai Cluster, a 15 mile- of pumiceous pyroclastic flow that came to Figure 5. Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, photo by D. B. Church long (25 km) line of volcanoes along the rest on land instead of in water. Over the © JenniferAdleman,NationalParkService,summer1999 © JenniferAdleman,NationalParkService, summer1999 Alaska Peninsula (Fig. 1). Recent work in last two decades, detailed studies of the the Katmai area has established an eruptive Katmai region’s eruptive deposits have history for each of these volcanoes by map- contributed to a better understanding of ping the distribution of erupted materials. how volcanoes work, including the concur- Radiometric dating identifies minimum rent production of tremendously high and maximum ages for the different lava ash plumes and ground hugging ash flows, flows. Combined with mapping, these © JenniferAdleman,NationalParkService,summer1999 radiometric dates help narrow down the timing and frequency of past eruptions. The Katmai Cluster includes (from north- east to southwest) Snowy Mountain, , Mount Katmai, Trident Volcano, Novarupta volcano, Mount Mageik, Mount Martin, and Alagogshak volcano (Fig. 8). All but Alagogshak have erupted within the last 6,000 years, often explosively, and produced lava flows,

domes, and widespread ash deposits. No Figure 7. Today, the blocky lava dome of Figure 6. fewer than 15 eruptive episodes have origi- Novarupta sits in the ash-and-debris-filled Left: Fossil fumarole along Windy Creek in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. nated from the Katmai cluster within the volcanic crater, created by a cataclysmic vol- canic eruption in 1912 that rained ash over Right: Ground water moving through welded tuff and into the River Lethe in the Valley of last 10,000 years (Fierstein and Hildreth, southern Alaska, western Canada, and the Ten Thousand Smokes. 2001). Pacific Northwest (Fierstein, 1998).

8 Photos ©AlaskaVolcano Observatory The chance of a Novarupta-scale installed in 1963. Katmai seismicity consists eruption occurring in any given year almost entirely of earthquakes that can be is small, but such cataclysmic volcanic caused by regional or local tectonic forces. events are certain to happen again in Some of the earthquakes appear to result Alaska. In 1912, Alaska was sparsely from rock failure under loading conditions along with local increases in the number of populated and there were few earthquakes associated with hydrothermal airplanes. Now, over six hundred fluids. Earthquakes occur along fractures thousand people live in Alaska, and formed near the Mount Trident and aircraft carrying more than 10,000 Novarupta area during the 1912 eruption. passengers and millions of dollars in These fractures may now serve as horizontal cargo pass over Alaska’s historically paths for migrating fluids and/or gases from active volcanoes each day. nearby cooling magma bodies. At Mount Katmai, earthquakes may also occur along the ring-fracture systems created during the timing of caldera collapse relative collapse of the mountains summit in 1912. to magma withdrawal, and the distance Circulating hydrothermal fluids and/or pumice and ash may travel from the source seepage from the caldera-filling lake may (Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001). contribute to the occurrence of these earthquakes (Moran, in press). Katmai Quakes Generally, earthquake activity beneath Magma(s?) of Katmai a volcano increases before an eruption Studies have proposed conflicting models because magma and volcanic gas must first for the magmatic plumbing system that fed force their way up through shallow under- the mechanism that triggered the eruption ground fractures and passageways. When at Novarupta and collapse of Mount magma and volcanic gases or fluids move, Katmai. One model of the eruption requires they may cause rocks to break or cracks to a single, chemically zoned, magma cham- Figure 8. vibrate. When rocks break, high-frequency Some volcanoes of the ber beneath Mount Katmai (Hildreth and Katmai Cluster. earthquakes are triggered; however, when Fierstein, 2000). Another model requires cracks vibrate either low-frequency earth- that the large pocket of molten rock that Top: Alagogshak volcano quakes or a continuous shaking called supported the former summit of Mount Middle: Four peaks in the volcanic tremor is triggered (Tilling, 1997). Katmai was injected with magma from background are Trident Volcano, Fourteen earthquakes of magnitude 6 to 7 another source and triggered the eruption and the dome in the center is Novarupta. rocked the region, and countless smaller of 1912 (Eichelberger, 2000). This model shocks occurred before, during and after the requires that the magma under Katmai Right: Mount Griggs 1912 eruption of Novarupta (Fierstein, 1998). traveled six miles (10 km) west through an The volcanological significance of earth- underground channel to explode through quakes in Katmai National Park has been the surface at Novarupta (Eichelberger, debated since the first seismograph was 2000). An experimental investigation,

9 The Great Eruption of 1912

160o 140o 120o ALASKA VOLCANO 24 MONITORED o OBSERVATORY 0 VOLCANOES ALASKA CANADA

ALASKA FAIRBANKS

*The Katmai Group includes: Snowy Griggs Wrangell Katmai Spurr ANCHORAGE Fairbanks Novarupta Redoubt Trident Iliamna JUNEAU Mageik *Katmai Group(7) Dawson Martin 0 Augustine ALEUTIAN BERING SEA Aniakchak 0 Isanotski PACIFIC OCEAN ISLANDS Makushin Fisher Anchorage Pavlof Venimanof o Dutton 0 Kanaga Shishaldin Dillingham Great Sitkin 0 500 mi Juneau Akutan Westdahl Novarupta Kodiak 0 1000 km

Ketchikan Figure 10. Volcanoes monitored by the Alaska Volcano Observatory as of summer 2002.

(2000) determined that the Katmai summit greatest hazard posed by eruptions of most collapse compensates for only 40% of the Alaskan volcanoes today is airborne ash — o 0 Vancouver magma erupted in 1912. Studies in the even minor amounts of ash can cause the Seattle Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes continue engines of jet aircraft to fail during flight to look for evidence of the plumbing (Fig. 9) (Fierstein, 1998). 0 600 KILOMETERS system and triggering mechanisms at the Today, the heavy ash fall produced by Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. a Novarupta-sized eruption in southern 0 400 MILES Alaska would bring the state’s economy to Alaska’s Active Volcanoes: a standstill, create health problems, close

Figure 9. Great-circle and other air-traffic routes (blue lines) between selected cities Katmai and Beyond roads and airports, disrupt utilities, and (Casadevall et. al., 1999) would have been disturbed greatly by the 1912 ashfall from The chance of a Novarupta-scale erup- contaminate water supplies for hundreds of Novarupta. (Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001). tion occurring in any given year is small, but miles. Promptly restoring normal life would such cataclysmic volcanic events are certain depend heavily on community spirit, civic performed in a laboratory, concluded that the magma ascended from greater depth, it to happen again in Alaska. In 1912, Alaska organization, and pre-eruption planning the Katmai magma in the upper crust prior did so slowly (Coombs, 2001). Many scientists was sparsely populated and there were few (Fierstein, 1998). to eruption must have been 1,470º-1,560º F deviate on almost every aspect of the type airplanes. Now, over six hundred thousand Throughout the western (800º-850º C) in temperature. The same of plumbing system and mechanisms that people live in Alaska, and aircraft carrying an increased focus on volcanic disasters laboratory studies also suggest that the pre- triggered the eruption at Novarupta and the more than 10,000 passengers and millions began after the 1980 eruption of Mount St. eruptive storage and crystal growth of the subsequent collapse of Mount Katmai. To of dollars in cargo pass over Alaska’s Helens in Washington State. However, it erupted magma was at a shallow depth, or if complicate matters, Fierstein and Hildreth historically active volcanoes each day. The was the 1986 eruption of Alaska’s

10 180 miles (290 km) Alaska Fairbanks, and the State of Alaska that formed the Valley of Ten Thousand hydrologic studies. Researchers continue southwest of Anchorage that prompted Division of Geological and Geophysical Smokes, a sizeable amount of monitoring to focus on understanding how volcanoes the formation of the Alaska Volcano Surveys. AVO uses federal, state, and and research instruments have been work, and on monitoring Alaska’s active Observatory and an increase in volcanic university resources to monitor and study deployed throughout the state. Today, volcanoes and mitigating risks associated monitoring along the Alaska Peninsula, the Alaska’s hazardous volcanoes, to predict Katmai’s well-established seismic net- with volcanic activity. and throughout the North and record eruptive activity, and to miti- work and benchmark stations are now More information can be found on Pacific. The Alaska Volcano Observatory gate volcanic hazards to life and property augmented with satellite imagery, periodic the USGS website www.usgs.gov or (AVO) is a joint program of the USGS, the (Fig. 10). field-based Global Positioning System the National Park Service website Geophysical Institute of the University of Now, nearly a century since the eruption (GPS) surveys, and gas, geochemical and www.nps.gov/katm.

CITED REFERENCES Glimpses of Our National Monuments. 1930. Rozell, Ned. 2001. Casadevall et. al. 1999. Pamphlet. The Sudden Disappearance of Mount Katmai. World map of volcanoes and principal Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. Alaska Science Forum. aeronautical features. Griggs, R. F. 1922. University of Alaska Geophysical Institute, Fairbanks, U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations The Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. AK. 1551. July ,16, 2001. Map I-2700. Washington, D.C.: The National Geographic Society. Tilling, R.I. 1997. Coombs, M. L., and J. E. Gardner. 2001. Guffanti, M., ed. et. al. 2001. Monitoring Active Volcanoes. Shallow-storage conditions for the rhyolite of the 1912 Volcanism in National Parks: Summary of the Workshop U.S. Geological Survey General-Interest Publication. eruption at Novarupta, Alaska. Convened by the U.S. Geological Survey and National Voltz, F.E. 1975. Geology. Geological Society of America. 29(9):775-778. Park Service, 26-29 September 2000, Redding, California. Distribution of turbidity after 1912 Katmai Eichelberger, J. C. et. al. 2000. U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-435. eruption in Alaska. Eruption of andesite triggered by dike injection: Kimball, H.H. 1913. Journal of Geophysical Research. 80:2643-2648. Contrasting cases at Karymsky volcano, The effect upon atmospheric transparency of the erup- Wilson, F.H. et. al. 1999. Kamchatka and Mount Katmai, Alaska. tion of Katmai volcano. Monthly Weather Review. Digital Data for the Geologic Framework of the Royal Society of London Philosophical Transactions. U.S. Department of Agriculture Weather Bureau Alaska Peninsula, , and the 358:1465-1485. 41:153-159. Alaska Peninsula Terrane. Fierstein, J. 1984. Moran, S. C. 2002. U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 99-317. Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes Evidence for different high-frequency earthquake-gen- Katmai National Park and Preserve. Anchorage, AK. erating process in Katmai National Park, Alaska, from Alaska Natural History Association. stress tensor inversions of fault plane solutions. Fierstein, J. et. al. 1998. Submitted to the Bulletin of the Seismological Society Can Another Great Volcanic Eruption Happen in Alaska? of America. USGS Fact Sheet 075-98. Norris, F. B. 1996. Fierstein, J. and W. Hildreth. 2001. Isolated Paradise An Administrative History of the Preliminary Volcano-Hazard Assessment for the Katmai Katmai and Aniakchak National Park Units. Volcanic Cluster, Alaska. National Park Service Alaska System Support Office, USGS Open-File Report 00-489. Anchorage Alaska. Alaska Volcano Observatory, Anchorage, AK. Seattle, WA: Government Printing Office.

11

Digging up Dreams: The Razor Clam Industry in Kukak Bay, Alaska Photograph courtesyofAlutiiqMuseum andHeritageCenter By Katherine Johnson is this extraordinary collection of photo- The Kukak Bay cannery was located on — historian for Katmai National Park and graphs that expose a cross-cultural, multi- the eastside of the Alaska Peninsula, direct- Preserve, and a PhD candidate in Public aged industrial society where both men ly across from Kodiak Island. The deep History at Washington State University and women worked, ate, and recreated harbor carved by Pleistocene glaciers cra- together. Still, glaringly absent from the dled the cannery from the gale force winds Seventy-six years ago, a young woman collection are photographs of Kukak’s can- and provided fishing vessels a safe port from Homer brought her camera to work. ning process. Lack of light probably limited along the volatile Shelikof coastline. On a Her name was Frieda Neilson and her pho- the photographer’s ability to shoot inside rare day, the surrounding landscape offered tographs reveal an adventurous journey to the buildings. But through the eye of her our young photographer a panoramic view Kukak Bay, Alaska where she worked as camera lens, this young clam-clipper shows of the fiery Aleutian Mountain Range, but a clam-clipper at a small cannery during us life beyond the dark canning lines. on more typical days, Pacific storms ca 1925—from the collection of Gladys Olsen, Kodiak Island. The cannery gang out the summer of 1925. Now, after years of Through her collection of photographs, brought long episodes of fog and rain to the for a 4th of July picnic at Swikshak Beach. abandonment, vandalism, and fire, all that Frieda Neilson takes us along as she jour- cannery (U.S. Government 1924). remain at Kukak are rubble piles of wood neys to Kukak on the steamship Redondo. In 1923, industry insiders heralded Far-left: ca 1925—from the collection of and corrugated metal, skeletal ruins of She invites us on her explorations of Kukak as “the best equipped and most Gladys Olsen, Kodiak Island. Kukak was tucked in the undulating hills that bunkhouses, and rusted machinery scat- Kukak’s vast hillsides and we attend her efficient clam cannery on the Pacific Coast” surrounded Kukak Bay. This photograph tered along a rocky shore. swimming parties in the surrounding bay. (Oliphant 1924). Despite its notoriety, was taken from the Superintendent’s As the Katmai wilderness continues to We relish with her the rare delight of fresh Kukak was just one of many Alaskan can- House, which had a panoramic view of both the cannery and the harbor. reclaim the last historical remnant of the watermelon and anxiously await the fall neries that canned razor clams from 1916 Photograph courtesy of Alutiiq Museum and Heritage Center commercial razor clam industry, efforts to arrival of the Alaska steamship coming to to 1964. The clamming industry itself began preserve this part of Alaska’s past are transport both product and people south. on the Oregon Coast by early twentieth Left-top: ca 1925—from the collection of currently underway by historians and Contrary to belief that early cannery life century entrepreneurs. These early canners Gladys Olsen, Kodiak Island. Three cannery workers find time to play music along archeologists working for Katmai National was gloomy, oppressive, and inhospitable, played a vital role in the development Kukak’s “cannery row.” Park and Preserve. These photographs not these photos depict a liberated, varied, and of a U.S. clam industry by pioneering Photograph courtesy of Alutiiq Museum and Heritage Center only provide a unique perspective of daily even fun social life at a cannery. Employees the canning technology used to pack

Left-bottom: ca 1925—from Frieda life at a razor clam cannery, but they con- played card games, made music, and even minced clams. Because clams are extremely Nielson’s photo album. “First watermelon tribute to a larger cultural resource project took comfort in pets. And behind these perishable, this innovative canning method of the Season!” Frieda Neilson and the designed to preserve and interpret the daily activities, unobtrusively stood a one permitted the sale of minced razor clams to superintendent’s son enjoy the first taste of fresh melon. history of this obscure Alaskan industry. year-old Kulak Cannery — looking as fresh markets located beyond local regions National Park Service photograph Bringing the Kukak Cannery back to life and hopeful as its young photographer. (Sunday Oregonian, 1916). By 1914, clam

13 Digging up Dreams: The Razor Clam Industry in Kukak Bay, Alaska National ParkServicephotograph National ParkServicephotograph canners moved to Grays Harbor, …the era of great social crusades resonated Washington, and eventually, reached the in the social and work experience at Kukak rich clam beds near Cordova, Alaska in and certainly debunked the stereotype that 1916. Success of these clam canners canneries were sparse, oppressive, and inspired a brief rush of young dreamers to harsh working environments. northern shores, each hoping to uncover his fortune buried in the Alaskan mud. One of those dreamers was Elmer E. Hemrich, ca 1925—from Frieda Nielson’s photo album. “Two Lovers” was all Frieda Neilson wrote to whose expectations alone marked Kukak, describe the last photograph in her Kukak as indeed, significant. photo album. The Hemrich family’s fame came not from canning clams, but rather, from brew- ing beer. Both Hemrich’s father and uncle clam cannery on Polly Creek. Due to little that canneries were sparse, oppressive, owned breweries from Seattle to Aberdeen; success, Palmer sold his interests to the and harsh working environments. Instead, his uncle was, in fact, the president of near monopolistic salmon packers. Still Kukak’s management provided quite Seattle Brewing and Malting Company, determined to realize the potential of the opposite situation. Today Frank the company that made one of Seattle’s first Alaska’s razor clam beaches, in 1923 McConnaghy is still considered a pillar of nationally recognized products — Rainier Hemrich incorporated a new company, Kodiak for contributing to the community, Beer. In 1916, the family’s brewing enter- Hemrich Packing, and with capital from everything from personal loans to church ca 1925—from Frieda Nielson’s photo album. “Cookie Jim,” the cannery cook and a prises came to a halt when Washington East Coast investors, built the Kukak donations (Pestrikoff, 2001). Kukak even cannery worker pose for the camera in front State adopted Prohibition, four years Cannery, twenty miles south of Swikshak served as one of the first radio broadcasting of the cannery building, which protruded before national voters passed the Volstead Beach (Fribrock, 1999). stations in Alaska: in 1923, Elmer’s brother out over the deep waters of Kukak Bay on Kukak’s main pier. Act. Seeking financial alternatives, Hemrich In 1925, the same year the Kodiak became KNT’s licensee and transferred the

Photograph courtesyofAlutiiqMuseum andHeritageCenter looked to the flourishing razor clam photographer captured Kukak in time, station from Aberdeen to Kukak Bay. The industry in his hometown of Aberdeen. In Hemrich brought on highly respected station transmitted only 100 feet and sup- 1915, Hemrich and his father had incorpo- superintendent, Frank McConnaghy to run posedly played concert music for one hour rated the Surf Packing Company and in the Kukak clam operation. Both Hemrich and per day. Although KNT only lasted one 1916 Elmer Hemrich traveled north to McConnaghy were from Aberdeen, where year, it illustrates Hemrich’s attempt to prospect Alaska’s razor clam beaches the Populist Movement enjoyed the great- improve, perhaps even enrich, the daily (Fribrock, 1999). est support of any other third party in experience of his employees (Broadcasting Hemrich began his journey in Chignik, Pacific Northwest history (Schwantes, 1989). Station Directory). Alaska, a small fishing village on the Populists advocated an assortment of social Hemrich never realized the success from eastside of the Alaska Peninsula. While and economic reforms, which in some clams as his family did from beer. For hugging the shoreline of Shelikof Strait, respects were transplanted in Kukak Bay. nearly a decade, the clam canner fought Hemrich “discovered” probably the most Perhaps neither McConnaghy nor competitive East Coast markets, labor prolific razor clam beach in Alaska, known Hemrich consciously administered a pro- strikes, and poor clam seasons, even rumors ca 1925—from the collection of Mary Olsen, today as Swikshak Beach. On arrival in gressive and populist managerial style, but that President Harding died from eating Kodiak Island. A tender delivers a boatload Anchorage, Hemrich convinced a trapper the era of great social crusades resonated in Alaskan shellfish. Hemrich exhaustively of live razor clams to the cannery from Swikshak Beach located 20 miles south of named George Palmer to invest in Surf the social and work experience at Kukak solicited potential investors and ultimately Kukak Bay Packing, and together they built a small and certainly debunked the stereotype leased Kukak to other clam packing

14 Photograph courtesyofAlutiiqMuseumandHeritageCenter companies. In 1936, Kukak was crippled tains integrity of location, association and by fire during its most promising season feeling and is significant as a site. Echoing (Seward Gateway, 1934). Although a new NHPA is clam digger Ralf Peiltsch, who company rebuilt Kukak, the cannery never told a NPS researcher, “Until the last chunk achieved its operational potential. When of cannery machinery sinks into the earth, Congress repealed Prohibition in 1933, it (Kukak) still means something to some- Hemrich battled for three more years, and one.” (Peiltsch, 2001) The Kukak Cannery then surrendered in 1936 when the once and the men and women who were optimistic clam canner deserted Kukak and involved it its construction and operation returned to the beer brewing business in contributed significantly to the develop- Aberdeen (Alaska Sportsman, 1948). 1949 ment of the commercial clamming industry was the final year Kukak processed clams, in Alaska. The site evokes a sense of although Swikshak remained an important industry occurred in 1964 when the Good taining to the Alaskan clam industry and its the forward-minded attitudes in which, clamming beach through the 1960s. Friday Earthquake destroyed Kodiak clam meaning to Katmai National Park and Preserve. despite a hostile and remote environment, Briefly after Hemrich left, the clam busi- canneries and dropped clam beds in Since Kukak was a major clam canning a modern and complex facility was built. ness surged upward along with the boom- Cordova (Pacific Fisherman, 1965). facility, the site provides historians a better But perhaps more importantly, for ing Dungeness crab fishery. Crab fishermen In 1931, the Kukak Bay Cannery was context in which to understand this obscure Hemrich or our young photographer, paid Swikshak diggers a high price for absorbed into the federal management industry and the people who pioneered its Frieda Neilson, Kukak was a place that razor clams and used the succulent shellfish system when a presidential proclamation development on the Pacific Coast. embodied the Alaskan Dream. for bait (Nickerson, 1975). Despite the good expanded the boundaries of what was then The National Historic Preservation Act More information can be found on bait prices, the market conditions for Katmai National Monument (Clemens and (NHPA) mandates that the National Park the National Park Service website minced clams declined, forcing a series of Norris, 1999). Recent decades have worn Service evaluate historic properties found www.nps.gov/katm. consolidations among clam canners. By the down the Kukak Cannery to a dilapidated on federal land. The law states “the spirit 1960s only the industrial giant, the Alaska state, but the site’s contributing resources, and direction of the Nation are founded Note: Frieda Neilson’s photographs are Packers Association, could compete in the coupled with historical research and photo- upon and reflected in its historical her- housed in the Lake Clark-Katmai National minced clam market. The fatal blow to the graphs, yield significant information per- itage.” Indeed, the Kukak Cannery main- Parks collections in Anchorage, Alaska.

REFERENCES Nickerson, Richard. 1975. Schwantes, Carlos A. 1989. A Critical Analysis of Some Razor Clam Populations in The Pacific Northwest: An Interpretive History. Alaska Sportsman. August 1948. Alaska. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. University of Nebraska Press. “The Mystic Makes a Water-Haul.” Oliphant, F.H. 1924. Seward Gateway. April 13, 1934. Broadcasting Station Listings as of March 1925. Report on Clam and Salmon Packing. “Kukak Gives Promise of an Active Season.” Taken from Ray-O-Vac’s “Radio Trouble Finder 7” Broadcasting Station Directory. Pacific Fisherman. January 25, 1965. The Sunday Oregonian. April 23, 1916. “Canned Clams Suffer in Earthquake.” “Clam Industry Started from Poverty Stricken Oregon Clemens, Janet and Norris, Frank. 1999. Home.” Building in an Ashen Land: Historic Resources Study of Peiltsch, Ralf. 2001. Katmai National Park and Preserve. Personal communication, interviewed February 26, U.S. Government. 1924. Alaska Support Office, National Park Service. 2001 in Astoria, Oregon. United States Coast Pilot from Yakutat to Arctic Ocean. Fribrock, Dorothy. 1999. Pestrikoff, Nick. 2001. Sockeye Sunday, A History of Snug Harbor. Seattle. Personal communication, interviewed May 16, 2001 in Kodiak, Alaska. 15 16 Surprising Humpback Whale Songs in Glacier Bay National Park

by C. M. Gabriele Natural History of Humpback Whales a series of sounds made in a predictable — wildlife biologist for Glacier Bay Humpback whales (Megaptera novaean- order. In the case of humpback whales, the National Park gliae) are migratory baleen whales that song is typically about 15 minutes long, spend summers in high latitude feeding punctuated when the whale surfaces to and A. S. Frankel grounds and in the winter migrate to breathe. It is thought to be a mating-related National ParkServicephotograph — works for Marine Acoustics Incorporated tropical mating and calving grounds. For display because it primarily occurs during southeastern Alaska humpbacks, the winter the winter and is performed only by males. Exciting research in Glacier Bay migration entails a 2,500-mile swim to the All males in a breeding ground sing essen- National Park is leading researchers to Hawaiian Islands, the largest of three main tially the same song, but singers make reevaluate previous concepts about hump- wintering areas in the North Pacific. The improvisations that others adopt, resulting back whale singing. Prior to the present other wintering areas in the North Pacific in progressive change in the song. Despite research, humpback whales were thought are near the Baja Peninsula in Mexico and much research in the years since songs were to sing rarely in their summer feeding near Japan and the Philippines. The great- first scientifically described (Payne and areas, and songs were predominantly est numbers of humpbacks occur in McVay 1971), the functions of the songs associated with the winter mating season. Hawaiian waters from January to April each remain unclear. Male humpbacks may sing With the installation of an underwater year, although some whales can be found as a sexual advertisement to females, for acoustic monitoring system in May 2000, as early as November and as late as June. male-male coordination, or as maintenance Humpback whales migrate from Alaska to researchers have found that humpback In the mid-twentieth century, biologists of space between competing males. Hawaii for their winter mating and calving season. Humpback whale song is typically whales sing frequently in Alaskan waters, employed by commercial whalers exam- Based on the sex ratio of calves associated with the mating season, but in late summer and early fall. The acoustic ined thousands of carcasses, discovering (Glockner 1983), we assume that there is research at Glacier Bay has revealed that monitoring system, intended primarily to that humpbacks do not feed in their winter nearly a 1 to 1 ratio of adult males to whales frequently sing in Alaska in the fall. record ambient noise and vessel traffic, has grounds, and that both male and female females in the population. Male-male com- provided many hours of humpback and reproductive organs are inactive in the petition is a key feature of the humpback killer whale vocalizations relevant to a summer (Chittleborough 1955, 1958, whale mating system because most females Left: In the past decade, there has been growing concern about disturbance and variety of research interests. By describing Nishiwaki 1959). give birth every other year, causing the ratio other effects of man-made noise on marine Alaska whale songs and comparing them of available males to females to be at least mammals. Aerial behaviors like this head- with recordings made in Hawaii, advances 2 to 1. Many researchers believe that song slap are used as a social signal among Why Whales Sing in the Mating Season whales, but can also indicate disturbance. will hopefully be made in current knowl- Humpback whale song is among the may be a form of acoustic competition, National Park Service photograph edge about the functions of the songs and longest and most complex vocalizations analogous to the vigorous and sometimes the humpback whale mating system. made by any animal. Essentially, a song is injurious physical competition among

17 Surprising Humpback Whale Songs in Glacier Bay National Park

males for females. Although scientists do glacial fjord system in southeastern Alaska. focuses on individually identified whales, We chose the highest quality Alaska record- not fully understand song function, its The seafloor in the area is the remnant of a we monitored songs remotely. Therefore, ings to compare with songs recorded of importance in humpback whale social life glacial moraine, which is flat and sporadi- no opportunities to determine the identity of whales in the Hawaiian islands in winter is clear, given that an individual male will cally rocky at a depth of 40-60 meters. individual singers existed nor if different 2000 and 2001, and measured their degree sing for hours, and a chorus of whale song Glacier Bay and the surrounding area is song episodes were made by the same whale. of similarity on a variety of acoustic param- can be heard all day and night during the inhabited by 50 to 100 humpback whales Alaska Recordings: We listened to and eters. We extracted individual song units winter in Hawaii. between June and August, and a much made digital recordings of underwater (notes) from the digitized recordings using smaller number of whales from September sound using an anchored hydrophone and customized detectors written in Matlab Processing and Recording through May (Gabriele et al. 1999). Since computerized monitoring system near the computer software. We used the computer Alaska Songs 1985, approximately 355 different hump- mouth of Glacier Bay. A submerged cable, program Acoustat (Fristrup and Watkins The humpback whale songs reported backs have been individually identified in five miles long, connects the hydrophone to 1993) to quantitatively make 97 measure- here were recorded during acoustic moni- the area, including at least 36 known adult a custom built computer and Digital Audio ments of each unit’s frequency, temporal toring to characterize ambient noise in males. Although the Park has a long-term Tape (DAT) recorder at Park Headquarters. and contour characteristics. Glacier Bay National Park, a steep-walled population monitoring program that Using this system we recorded humpback

National ParkServicephotograph whale vocalizations directly onto the Description of Song Recordings computer hard disk (80 kHz sampling rate) We discovered that humpback whales or onto the DAT recorder (48 kHz sam- frequently sing while they are in the Glacier pling rate). All of the recordings were Bay area from August through November archived onto compact disks for future use (Table 1); however we heard no songs earli- and analysis. er than August, despite the presence of From May 20, 2000 - March 8, 2001 and whales. After November, no songs were July 13, 2001 - June 20, 2002, the acoustic heard in the Park, probably due to the monitoring system was automated to make absence of whales. Humpbacks do sing 30-second ambient noise recordings on a after November in other areas, resulting in set schedule. Longer recordings of whale the songs heard during migration by inves- songs could only be made if a person tigators monitoring vocalizations in the was present to detect the song and make a open ocean (Clapham and Mattila 1990, recording. The monitoring was variable Abileah et al. 1996, Norris et al. 1999, Watkins during the summer months since staff were in the field several days per week. From September through mid-January, hydrophone The songs recorded in the Park monitoring occurred approximately 30-40 were solos, not the multiple-whale hours per week. No acoustic monitoring was possible between March and late June chorus that is typical in wintering 2001, due to equipment problems. However, grounds. Non-song whale monitoring between March and mid-June vocalizations in the background 2002 detected no whale song as the animals were rarely heard, although feeding Satellite photograph of Glacier Bay, showing the location of the hydrophone. Population moved into the area, suggesting the same monitoring shows that Glacier Bay hosts 40-60 humpback whales in the summer, and smaller was probably true in 2001. whales can be quite vocal. numbers in the fall. Comparison to Hawaii Recordings:

18 National ParkServicephotograph et al. 2000, Charif et al. 2001). Acoustic mon- Differences from Previous Studies itoring continued through mid-January in Prior to this study, humpback whale both 2001 and 2002, but no additional songs had rarely been recorded in Alaska whale songs were heard. During the spring waters. In southeastern Alaska, Baker et of 2002, as whales began to migrate back in al. (1985) reported hearing singing from the area, no songs were heard. a group of whales in late December 1979 The songs recorded in the Park were and early January 1980. McSweeney et solos, not the multiple-whale chorus that is al. (1989) detected only two occurrences typical in wintering grounds. Non-song of humpback whale song in five summers whale vocalizations in the background of effort (August 25, 1979 and September were rarely heard, although feeding whales 3, 1981), and concluded that whale song can be quite vocal. Song sessions were in southeastern Alaska was a rare occur- sometimes preceded by or ended with rence. Two factors may account for the episodes of unstructured vocalizations. difference from our results. First, although Song sessions were considerably shorter the dates of their acoustic monitoring than reported in the Hawaii wintering were not specified, we suspect that these grounds, where whales often sing continu- investigators did not monitor in September ously for hours. The longest song session and October. Secondly, our study used observed during this study was 4.5 hours, a remote hydrophone, which allowed us on November 8, 2000, but most sessions a much greater flexibility with regard were much shorter (Table 1). The sessions to weather, sea conditions and daylight Installing the hydrophone, mounted on its customized aluminum anchor, near the mouth of were quite variable in length and were sig- than would be feasible with vessel-based Glacier Bay. The hydrophone anchor sits on the sea floor at 30 meters deep and is connected by a five-mile cable to a listening station at Park headquarters. nificantly longer in 2000 than in 2001. monitoring. Based on the apparent loudness and quali- The humpback whale songs we record- ty of the recordings, singers recorded in ed in Glacier Bay occurred earlier and et al. 1987). However, it is unclear why Singing in Feeding Grounds 2001 also tended to be farther away from were more prevalent than songs previous- whale song in southeastern Alaska began It appears that (presumably male) the hydrophone than singers in 2000. The ly documented in any feeding area. in late August while those in Stellwagen humpbacks sing sporadically in between apparent decrease in singing in 2001 and Humpback whales sang quite commonly Bank were not observed until November, feeding bouts in the autumn. Since there the whales increased distance from the in late summer and fall in Glacier Bay, since humpbacks are present in both were no visual observations of the singers hydrophone were probably due to lack of corroborating findings from Stellwagen areas throughout that time period. Details recorded, very little can be said about their whales in the area, which is known based Bank, a feeding area off Cape Cod in the of acoustic monitoring effort in the behavior or the presence, proximity, or on population monitoring during the sum- North Atlantic, where whale songs were Stellwagen Bank study may reveal the identity of other whales in the vicinity. mer and fall (Doherty and Gabriele 2001). recorded in November and May (Mattila source of this difference. In mid-summer, humpback whale song

Year # Days Song Observed # Hours Song Observed Date of First Song Date of Last Song Mean session length in minutes (std dev) Maximum session length in minutes

2000 18 21.9 29 August 16 November 73.1 (62.7) 270 2001 11 2.8 23 August 9 November 15.7 (13.1) 48

Table 1. Statistics on song occurrences in Glacier Bay 2000 and 2001

19 Surprising Humpback Whale Songs in Glacier Bay National Park National ParkServicephotograph water acoustic monitoring program that made these discoveries possible originated from concerns that vessel-generated noise could harm endangered humpback whales in Glacier Bay. These whales could be con- sidered ‘auditory specialists’, because acute hearing appears essential to their ability to navigate, socialize, detect predators, find food and find mates. The whales rely on sounds, which can travel for miles, since vision is limited by underwater visibility. This visibility may be several body lengths or less, especially in the plankton-rich feeding habitats. Man-made noises added to typical ocean noise can make it more difficult for whales to hear vocalizations, may interfere with listening for predators or prey, and may cause changes in vocal behavior. Studies have shown increases in hump- back whale song tempo and length in the presence of vessel noise and other man-made sources (Norris 1995, Miller et appears to be rare or non-existent although (Chittleborough 1955, Nishiwaki 1959). not know whether autumn whale songs or al. 2000). Now that it is known humpbacks other vocalizations are heard. Although the Behavioral indications of increased male other behaviors directly result in reproduc- sing in Glacier Bay, we must consider the monitoring effort was less in the summer, hormonal activity in the autumn are tive success. The occurrence of humpback potential effects of vessel noise on singers this does not account for the lack of songs probably often subtle. Overt observations, whale singing and other behavior typical of and listeners. Most readers have probably in May through late August. however, have included singing and the mating season may indicate that even not considered underwater noise pollution With a sufficient acoustic monitoring aggressive behavior between whales in when males and females forgo migration, as an important form of habitat degrada- effort we believe that song recordings Sitka Sound (J. Straley pers. comm.) and a they may not be sacrificing the opportunity tion for marine species. As natural sound- could be made in any area where hump- known mature male apparently pursuing a to mate. Even in light of new discoveries, it scape issues gain attention in National back whales congregate in the autumn. known mature female in Glacier Bay (J. seems likely that humpback whale song will Parks across the country, we hope that The increase in song in late summer and Doherty pers. comm.). retain its mysteries for years to come. attention to preservation of natural sound fall may correspond with the beginning The prevalence of humpback whale environments in underwater habitats will of seasonal hormonal activity in male song in Alaska may indicate that the full Implications for Human Impacts result as well. humpbacks prior to the migration to range of mating behavior can occur in the on Whale Habitat To hear recordings of humpback whale winter grounds. Studies of the reproductive autumn and winter in northern waters. In the past several years, there has been sounds recorded during this study, visit tracts of male humpbacks revealed that Some humpback whales of mixed ages and growing concern about the effects of man- the Park’s website at: testis weights in the wintering areas are sexes have been observed wintering in made noise on marine mammals (National http://www.nps.gov/glba/learn/ much greater than in the feeding areas southeastern Alaska (Straley 1999). We do Research Council 1994, 2000). The under- preserve/projects/acoustics/index.htm.

20 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS gratefully acknowledge the expertise of National Park, NSWC and Mantech of Dolphin Discoveries in Kona, Hawaii. The Glacier Bay National Park under- Blair Kipple (NSWC) and Russ Dukek helped with the installation and mainte- We thank Jess Grunblatt, (NPS Alaska water acoustic monitoring program is (Mantech Inc.) for system design and for nance of the system, proving that it takes Support Office) for making the satellite conducted in cooperation with the U.S. their creativity and patience during those a village to maintain a hydrophone. Hawaii image of Glacier Bay available. Navy Naval Surface Warfare Center bleak times when cable repair seemed humpback whale songs were made avail- (NWSC) in Bremerton, Washington. We impossible. Numerous staff at Glacier Bay able by the generosity of Claudia Merrill,

LITERATURE CITED Abileah, R., Martin, D. and Lewis, S.D. 1996. Gabriele, C.M., Doherty, J.L. and Lewis, T.M. 1999. National Research Council. 2000. Long-range acoustic detection and tracking of the Population characteristics of humpback whales in Marine mammals and low-frequency sound: humpback whale Hawaii-Alaska migration. Glacier Bay and adjacent waters: 1999. Progress since 1994. MTS/IEEE Oceans 96 1:373-377. Report for Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press. Baker, C.S., et al. 1985. Glockner, D.A. 1983. Nishiwaki, M. 1959. Population characteristics of summer and late-season “Determining the sex of humpback whales (Megaptera Humpback whales in Ryukyuan waters. humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in novaeangliae) in their natural environment.” In Scientific Reports of the Whales Research Institute southeastern Alaska. Communication and Behavior of Whales, edited by R. 14:49-87. Marine Mammal Science 1(4):19-28. Payne, Boulder, Colorado: Norris, T. F. 1995. Chittleborough, R.G. 1955. Westview Press. pp. 447-464. Effects of boat noise on the singing behavior of hump- Aspects of the reproduction of the male humpback Mattila, D.K., Guinee, L.N. and Mayo, C.A. 1987. back whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). M.S. Thesis. whale Megaptera nodosa, (Bonaterre). Humpback whale songs on the North Atlantic San Jose State University. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research feeding grounds. Norris, T.F., Mc Donald, M. and Barlow, J. 1999. 6: 1-29. Journal of Mammalogy 68:880-883. Acoustic detections of singing humpback whales Charif, R.A., Clapham, P.J. and Clark, C.W. 2001. McSweeney, D., Chu, K.C., (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the eastern North Pacific Acoustic detections of singing humpback whales in Dolphin, W.F. and Guinee, L.N. 1989. during their northbound migration. deep waters off the British Isles. North Pacific humpback whale songs: a comparison of Journal of the Acoustical Society of America Marine Mammal Science 17:729-750. southeast Alaskan feeding ground songs with 106:506-514. Clapham, P.J. and Mattila, D.K. 1990. Hawaiian wintering ground songs. Straley, J.M. 1999. Humpback whale songs as indicators of Marine Mammal Science 5:139-148. Overwintering North Pacific humpback whales in migration routes. Miller, P. J. O., Biassoni, N., Alaskan waters. Marine Mammal Science 6:155-160. Samuels, A., and Tyack, P.L. 2000. Poster presented at the 13th biennial meeting of the Doherty, J. L. and C. M. Gabriele. 2001. Whale songs lengthen in response to sonar. Society for Marine Mammalogy, Kihei, Maui, Hawaii, Population characteristics of humpback whales in Nature 405: 903. December 1999. Glacier Bay and adjacent waters: 2001. National Research Council. 1994. Watkins, W.A., et al. 2000. Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Low-frequency Sound and Marine Mammals: Current Seasonality and distribution of whale calls in the Fristrup, K. M. and Watkins, W.A. 1993. Knowledge and Research Needs. North Pacific. AcouStats: acoustic measurements for marine animal Washington, D.C.: National Research Council. Oceanography 13:62-67. sound characterization. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

21 22 ainlPr evc htgahPhoto courtesyofDaveMcmahan National ParkServicephotograph

Little Known Mulchatna Villages Emerging

Figure 2: Archeological survey crew After 120 Years of Solitude members traveling by jet boat on the Mulchatna River in May 2002. by John Branson Adventures, Inc. mated much of the local Dena’ina popula- Left to right: Matt O’Leary of the BIA-ANCSA office, George Alexie of the — historian for Lake Clark National Park The Mulchatna River is a 160 mile-long tion. Earlier epidemics during the Russian Nondalton Tribal Council, and Alan Boraas and Preserve, Port Alsworth, Alaska river that begins at Turquoise Lake, with era had probably already thinned the local of College. its upper portion designated a Wild and population from an estimated 400 in 1800 During the past two years a multi-agency Scenic River. It is the major tributary of the to 180 in 1880 (Petroff claimed 180 people archeology crew has conducted the first , which drains into Bristol lived in the “Mulchatna villages” in 1880). archeological survey on the middle part Bay near Dillingham. The Mulchatna coun- By the end of the decade, permanent settle- of the Mulchatna River in southwestern try has long been rich in fish and game and ments probably ceased to be occupied Alaska (Fig. 1). Led by a state archeologist, in the days before Russian contact those except on trapping and hunting trips. Most Dave McMahan, and National Park Service abundant resources sustained the Dena’ina of the people who survived the scarlet fever historian John Branson, the crew has located on its upper reaches and Yup’ik epidemic relocated to historic Kijik village the outlines of 17 Dena’ina Athapaskan on its lower stretches. Russian explorers on Lake Clark. house sites in the Mulchatna River valley. probably visited by the 1790s but docu- The survivors were urged to move to Most of the Dena’ina houses were large, mentation of their activities is sparse. Kijik by the Russian Orthodox priest from multifamily, semi-subterranean dwellings Certainly during the Russian era, the Nushagak in order to attend the newly with one to five rooms, which are now Mulchatna Dena’ina had access to Russian built Holy Cross Church. In addition, the heavily vegetated and difficult to discern. trade goods. By 1850 Russian Orthodox trading posts at present-day Iliamna were Figure 3: Bill Trefon, Sr., president of the In addition to McMahan and Branson, priests were in the area, and by the late much more accessible from Kijik than from Nondalton Tribal Council, holds a the crew included representatives from 1880s, prospectors had arrived in the the more remote Mulchatna. The growing mid-nineteenth century Russian copper Nondalton Tribal Council (Bill Trefon, Sr. Mulchatna country (Fig. 4). To d a y, t h e commercial salmon industry on tea kettle at a Dena’ina Mulchatna village in May 2000. and George Alexie), and Bureau of Indian Mulchatna River draws thousands of offered employment opportunities for the Affairs ANCSA Office (Matt O’Leary) people each year: subsistence fishermen, Kijik people; however, the commercial (Figs. 2, 3). Participating agencies and hunters, and trappers on the lower river; fishery was a double-edged sword.

Left: Figure 5: Red and Gladys Vail with organizations included the Lake and sport hunters, fishermen, and floaters on Commercial salmon traps near the mouth their daughter-in-law, Marie Andrews at the Peninsula Borough, Nondalton Tribal the upper and middle parts. of the Nushagak reduced escapement to Vail camp in 1933-1934 on the Mulchatna Council, the Kijik Corporation, and the It is known that the villages on the the Mulchatna River spawning grounds, River. This cabin has collapsed and was documented by the survey crew. National Park Service, with local logistical Mulchatna were abandoned by the late thus diminishing the primary food source Photo courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. William Andrews support donated by Northern Wilderness 1880s after a scarlet fever epidemic deci- of the Dena’ina and making their subsis-

23 Little Known Mulchatna Villages Emerging After 120 Years of Solitude Photo courtesyofDaveMcmahan tence lifeways more tenuous. In short, Dillingham based trappers built cabins and as the 19th century closed and the 20th trapped animals along the survey area. In century dawned, the Mulchatna villages were fact, two trappers in the 1940s located ruins too isolated and resource poor to sustain of three large multi-family houses. At the large populations. time, they thought Russians had built the The Mulchatna River, from where the houses, which is why they called the area Mosquito River enters up to its head at “Russian Slough”. Many older people in Turquoise Lake, is the ancestral homeland Dillingham still use the term to describe for many people from Nondalton, a that channel ofthe Mulchatna River; Dena’ina Athapaskan village of about 250 however, no one in Nondalton had knowl- people located near the outlet of Lake edge about a Dena’ina village along the Clark. Many of those living in Nondalton Mulchatna called “Russian Slough”. When trace their families to Kijik, and to the the archeology crew located the same villages along the Mulchatna (Fig. 5). The three houses, they recognized the classic Mulchatna has always had special signifi- Dena’ina multifamily style. “Russian Slough” cance to the people of Nondalton. In fact, should more properly be called “Dena’ina a priority to protect cultural sites from Slough” (Fig. 6). inappropriate development has partially The late archeologist, James VanStone, guided land selections made by the Lake and from the Field Museum of Natural History Figure 1: Landsat map of the Lake Clark-Iliamna region of southwestern Alaska. The portion Peninsula Borough along the Mulchatna. in Chicago conducted the first surveys on of the Mulchatna River being surveyed for archaeological resources is shown. Oral histories compiled from Nondalton the lower Mulchatna River in the 1960s.

Photo courtesyofMarieMillett elders describe at least three historic This last spring Choggiung Ltd., the Native Dena’ina villages near confluences of major village corporation of Dillingham, used a tributaries of the Mulchatna River. During grant from the National Park Service to the survey, archeologists located the rec- survey the lower Mulchatna and Nushagak tangular outlines of Dena’ina houses near rivers for archeological resources. In the some of the reported sites. In addition, they late 1970s the National Park Service con- found several others whose existence was ducted a brief archeological survey near the beyond living memory. McMahan believes source of the Mulchatna River at Turquoise some of the sites might be one or more of Lake. But it was not until May 2000, when Petroff’s 19th century “Mulchatna villages”, the present joint effort began, that any while others may be as much as several intensive archeological survey was under- hundred years old. taken on the resource-rich middle portions Another part of the project is to locate of the river. In short, the middle Mulchatna and document early 20th century prospector- River was terra incognita for archeologists trapper cabins and camps in the study area. until May 2000. After two years of archeo- Figure 4: Dena’ina men acted as guides and packers for early twentieth century prospectors Interviews and historic photographs are logical fieldwork a glimpse into the cultural in the Mulchatna River valley. In this 1908-1909 photograph from Bonanza Creek, miners (the Milletts) and Dena’ina men are shown together. Standing from left to right are O.B. being collected from some of those who history of the Mulchatna River is beginning Millett, Gerasim Balluta, Hugh Millett, Marka Karshekoff, Trefon Balluta, and Yacko Evan. once lived on the Mulchatna. During the to emerge. Sitting are Theresa Millett and two unidentified mining engineers. 1920s through the 1940s a number of In 2001 McMahan was back on the

24 © NationalParkService Mulchatna to extract charcoal for radiocar- bon dating from the hearths of a few Dena’ina house sites. Through radiocarbon dating and careful excavation of test pits, the crew hopes to date Athapaskan occu- pancy on the river. Based on similar work already done at the Kijik National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service, it is known that Dena’ina people have been living in southwestern Alaska for at least the past 800 years. If the survey continues, McMahan and his colleagues will be able to shed light on the length and extent of Dena’ina history on the Mulchatna River. That history will also certainly involve contact with their down- stream Yup’ik neighbors and with prospec- tors in the late 19th century. More information can be found on the National Park Service website www.nps.gov/lacl.

Figure 6: Archeologist Dave McMahan writes notes in a Dena’ina house depression at “Russian Slough” in May 2001.

REFERENCES O’Leary, Mathew. 2001. Notes on the 2001 Upper Mulchatna River Survey. Balluta, Andrew. 1980-2002. Bureau of Indian Affairs, ANCSA Office. Interviews and personal communications. O’Leary, Mathew. 2002. Ellanna, Linda J. and Andrew Balluta. 1992. Notes on the 2002 Upper Mulchatna River Survey. Nuvendaltin Quht’ana: The People of Nondalton. Bureau of Indian Affairs, ANCSA Office. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.

25 26 Courtesy ofAnchorageMuseumHistory andArt,McC1935-1A The Retreat of Exit Glacier

by Susan Huse by the advance and retreat of glaciers. The mountain peaks during the year than melts — biologist for the Alaska Support Office, park is capped by the largest icefield entire- during the summer. As the snow pack National Park Service ly contained within the United States, builds up and thickens, its weight com- Harding Icefield, a 300 square mile expanse presses the snow beneath and turns it to ice. As thousands of visitors hike up the Exit covering a mountain range under ice several As more and more snow and ice accumu- Glacier valley this summer, they will benefit thousand feet thick. late, the glacier grows. The weight of the ice from work completed in 2001 by Joel Exit Glacier is one of 38 glaciers that high in the mountains begins to push the Cusick, a mapping specialist for the National flow out from the Harding Icefield. During ice below, down the mountain, and it Park Service. His work has recreated the the early nineteenth century, the glacier actually flows very slowly down through history of Exit Glacier’s movement over the almost reached the Resurrection River, the valley. The movement of the glacier last 200 years, using techniques such as approximately 1.25 miles (2 km) below its scrapes the ground beneath, scouring the aerial photography and tree coring to present location. In the last 200 years, the valley floor, and carrying along the dis- identify and date the extent of the glacier. glacier retreated exposing the valley below. lodged rocks and debris. Rock avalanches His findings will help further biological The exposed valley is a natural laboratory from the peaks and the valley surrounding research and park planning, and it will help where we can see the processes of life the glacier add more debris. With time the visitors gain insight into the magnitude reclaiming a barren landscape: moss, lichen growing glacier becomes a jumbled mix of Exit Glacier in 1948, photo taken by Steve and the time scale of glacier movements. and fireweed colonize the bare rock; rock and ice. McCutcheon. Scientists studying plant and soil growth followed by grasses, shrubs, alders, and Even as the snow falls in the colder alpine in a glacial environment gain a chronology cottonwood; and finally, a spruce-hemlock environment at the top of the glacier, the Left: Over 100,000 visitors hiked to Exit Glacier this past summer. of the valley’s exposure, which helps deter- forest grows where 200 years ago only ice accumulation zone, the ice is continually

National Park Service photograph mine when plants began to reestablish and and rock existed. Exit Glacier is accessible melting in the warmer regions at the bot- the soil chemistry began its progression by road and thousands of park visitors tom of the glacier, the ablation zone. When from glacial till to forest soil. have an opportunity to experience the the accumulation at the top pushes the glacier firsthand. ice down through the valley faster than the Kenai Fjords National Park ice melts at the bottom, the front edge of Kenai Fjords National Park lies along Understanding Glaciers the glacier advances. When the ice at the the Kenai Peninsula coast in southcentral To map the history of a glacier’s move- bottom melts faster than the ice is pushed Alaska, just southwest of Prince William ments, one must first understand how downhill, the glacier recedes. Sound. The park landscape is a dramatic glaciers work. Alpine glaciers, like Exit During a recession, the ice and rock juxtaposition of land and water, shaped Glacier, form when more snow falls on continue to flow downhill to the toe of the

27 The Retreat of Exit Glacier

National ParkServicephotograph Anchorage, undertook the task of recreating Exit Glacier’s retreat as one part of his Once the photographs were scanned University of Alaska-Anchorage Master’s and georeferenced, reconstructing the thesis. To identify and map the changes, Cusick had to use several techniques to leading edge of the glacier during the piece together the history of Exit Glacier. past 50 years was a straightforward process: trace the edge of the glacier Using Aerial Photographs as it appears in the photograph for The easiest way to map a glacier’s changes is to look at historic aerial photo- each date. graphs. The edge of the ice can be traced on the photograph and dated to when the photograph was taken. Cusick compiled photographs from collections around the the photographs and on the ground. He state, including federal and state agencies, determined the real-world coordinates of libraries and museums, the University of each control point with a Pathfinder Pro Alaska, the City of Seward, and Aeromap XR GPS receiver and fed these data into the US Inc. The series of photos almost covered GIS. Once the photographs were scanned a 50-year span: 1950, 1961, 1973, 1974, and georeferenced, reconstructing the Roadside sign showing the extent of Exit Glacier in 1899. 1978, 1984, 1985, 1993, 1996, 1997, and leading edge of the glacier during the past 1998. Unfortunately, although nearby 50 years was a straightforward process: Seward was incorporated in 1903, the Exit trace the edge of the glacier as it appears in glacier. As the ice melts, rock deposits are recede again, this moraine is left behind Glacier area had little commercial value and the photograph for each date. left on the ground in front of the leading outlining the leading edge of the glacier. If photos found prior to 1950 were oblique. edge of the glacier, glacial till. In this way a a glacier advances after a period of stagna- Oblique photos are not taken looking Using Biological Evidence continuous layer of till is left across the tion, it will plow away the newly formed directly downward, and so they could not But what about the glacier prior to 1950? newly exposed valley floor. There are also moraine. The moraine that marks a glacier’s be used effectively in the computer. Without aerial photographs researchers periods when the ice at the front melts at maximum advance is called the terminal Cusick was able to use some photographs, had neither identified how far down the essentially the same rate as the ice flows moraine. The series of moraines that are which he scanned so they could be used in valley the glacier extended, nor the shape of down. This is called a period of stagnation, left behind as the glacier goes through a digital format. To use the photographs the leading edge. Using the series of linear and the front edge of the glacier stays in one periods of recession and stagnation are together, Cusick needed to georeference moraines left by the receding glacier, they place, neither receding nor advancing. The called linear moraines. These linear them, or specify exact real-world coordi- could determine the shape of the glacier at rock and debris, however, continue to be moraines show a series of glacier outlines nates in the photographs. This then enabled a particular point in time, corresponding to pushed downward to the leading edge of during the recession period. computer mapping software known as periods of stagnation. To determine the age the glacier where it is deposited as the ice GIS (Geographic Information Systems) to of the moraines and reconstruct the history melts away. If a period of stagnation lasts Mapping Glaciers Over Time overlay each photograph exactly on top of of the glacier, researchers relied on analyz- for several years, the till will build up higher In particular, how can a researcher the others, correcting for scale, direction ing natural processes that take place in the and higher at the stationary leading edge, reconstruct the retreat of a glacier as it melts and center point. In order to georeference wake of the glacier. creating a long mound of rock at the front back? Joel Cusick, a mapping specialist the photographs, Cusick identified control One of the best methods for aging a of the glacier. When the glacier begins to at the National Park Service’s office in points that were clear landmarks both in moraine is by aging the lichens growing on

28 National ParkServicephotograph the rocks. When the glacier first recedes creating the moraine, it is barren. Lichen spores soon settle on the rocks and begin to grow, growing at a constant rate deter- mined by the local climate. To calculate that rate, researchers compare lichen from nearby surfaces they can date. For instance, gravestones are completely clean when they are placed in a cemetery and inscribed on each gravestone is the date it was put there. Or slag piles from the railroad construction in Portage, north of Seward, might be used for determining lichen growth rates. Portage is too far away, however; its climate is less maritime and not adequately repre- sentative of the Exit Glacier area. In the end, no useful sources for lichen growth rates were found, since the glacier is in a relatively underdeveloped area. Cusick had to find another method.

Dendrochronology - using tree rings to reconstruct history A very common biological technique, known as dendrochronology, assigns dates to environmental events in the past by counting tree rings. As a tree grows, its

Right: The hike from the parking lot to Exit Glacier is approximately a half mile long.

Far Right: Exit Glacier is one of 38 glaciers that flow out from the Harding Icefield.

29 The Retreat of Exit Glacier Courtesy ofPageSpencer, National ParkService species that will live for a hundred years? rings appear at the height you cut. The Exit Several species of trees and shrubs grow Glacier Forelands, however, are within a in the Exit Glacier Forelands. Alder establish national park where trees are protected. very quickly on disturbed areas and are Cusick could not cut down the trees. typically the first trees to colonize the Instead he used tree cores, drilling out a moraines; however, they do not live long narrow tube of the trunk and counting the enough to date older moraines. Birch trees rings on the core. are not common enough to use consistently. Cusick visited each moraine and select- Therefore, researchers eliminated alder ed trees on the top, distal (farthest from the and birch as useful markers. Black cotton- glacier) and proximal (closest to the glacier) wood trees (Populus balsamifera ssp. tri- sides. The tree with the widest trunk may chocarpa) are prevalent along the moraines, not be the oldest, since harsher conditions, and live long enough to date many of the such as cold glacier breezes or a rocky sub- pre-1950s moraines. Unfortunately the strate, can affect a tree’s growth. Its trunk rings of cottonwood can be indistinct, may seem narrower than younger trees that because the wood cells do not vary greatly started under more favorable conditions. from spring to fall. Cottonwood centers So, Cusick used a combination of trunk size can also be rotten, losing the earlier rings. and trunk appearance to select older trees Cusick relied on averaging multiple counts for coring. for the best estimate of age. Sitka spruce The next step was to determine the (Picea sitchensis) takes much longer to grow number of years it takes for specific species on the moraines, but it can live a long time to begin growing on a moraine — this is and has distinct rings. Therefore, it was used known as the ecesis interval. This interval trunk continually grows outward. In spring date the moraine using trees, a researcher extensively for dating the older moraines. depends upon the tree species and upon and early summer the trees grows a soft must first decide how long after a glacier When determining the age of a tree, the the local climate conditions. Cottonwoods light-colored wood with larger cells. As retreats from a moraine does it take for a most accurate method is to simply cut colonize much sooner than spruce, and growth slows in late summer and fall, the particular species to start growing there. down the tree right at ground level and therefore have a shorter ecesis interval. tree cells are much smaller and darker. It is Does it grow the next day, the next year, the count the rings on the stump. If you count Previous research showed a wide range of this difference between the early and later next decade? If the moraine is very old, will rings that are above ground level, the tree intervals for spruce, 5 to 60 years. Crossen growth rates that creates the characteristic the first trees have died already, or is there a may have grown a few years before the (1997) calculated an ecesis interval of 5 ring pattern within the trunk. By counting years for cottonwood and 25 years for the number of rings, researchers can deter- spruce for Portage, Alaska. To determine mine the number of years of growth, i.e., a whether Crossen’s research would be tree’s age. When determining the age of a tree, the most accurate method is to simply cut applicable to Exit Glacier, Cusick com- Using the oldest tree, if you subtract its down the tree right at ground level and count the rings on the stump. If you count pared his cores to moraines that were dated age from the year it was sampled, and then from the photographs. One of the photo- rings that are above ground level, the tree may have grown a few years before the subtract the number of years it took for a graphs showed a moraine being formed in rings appear at the height you cut. The Exit Glacier Forelands, however, are within tree to establish on the moraine, you have 1950, and the oldest cottonwood on this the year the moraine was created by the a national park where trees are protected. Cusick could not cut down the trees. moraine dated to 1956, according to the glacier. Sounds easy, until you get started. To core. Since the moraine was still being

30 formed in 1950, Cusick calculated a 5-year visit each moraine, sample the oldest trees Exit Glacier advanced from the Harding than 11 moraines and retreated more than lag, corresponding exactly with Crossen. and determine the age of each moraine. Icefield during the Little Ice Age, burying 1.25 miles (2 km). The glacier had an aver- Cusick then sampled spruce on several Using the moraine dates, Cusick could this existing forest and advancing to a age retreat of roughly 6/10 of a mile each moraines to calculate an ecesis interval for reconstruct the history of Exit Glacier and maximum marked by the terminal moraine century or one kilometer each century. spruce. With just a small number of trees, its dramatic retreat up the valley. dated to 1815. he calculated an average interval of 26 years The Little Ice Age (LIA) was a time With the warming trend of the 1800s, Discussion for spruce. Crossen’s estimate was similar, of global cooling from approximately 1350 Exit Glacier began to retreat from its By identifying the chronology of the Exit but based on a larger sample size, so Cusick to 1870 AD. During this time glaciers 1815 maximum. Very slowly, the glacier Glacier retreat, Cusick has furthered both used Crossen’s estimate of a 25-year ecesis expanded in the northern regions, moving retreated 230 feet (70 m) from 1815 to research and education at Kenai Fjords interval for spruce. down the mountains and scouring the 1889, averaging about 3.1 ft/year (1 m/yr) National Park. Knowing the dates when the vegetation that had been in the valleys (see Table 1). The glacier then retreated valley floor was exposed, researchers have The Reconstructed below. Park Service personnel recently much more rapidly between 1889-1899, the opportunity to study the processes of Exit Glacier History discovered evidence of a buried forest interspersed with periods of stagnation, vegetative and soil succession. A variety of With the moraines mapped and the ecesis dating back to at least 1170 AD high in the which are marked by linear moraines questions can be explored: How does a intervals determined, Cusick could now Forelands near the current glacier’s edge. (1889, 1891, 1894 and 1899). During this rocky, barren expanse slowly become a time, the glacier retreated 1680 ft (512 m), forested valley? How do soils develop and Date Distance of Retreat Retreat Rate about 168 ft/yr (51 m/yr). plants colonize the area? How do insects, (Year A.D.) ft (m) ft/yr (m/yr) The next fifteen years was a period of a birds and mammals move in and an ecosys- 1815 – 1889 230 (70) 3 (1) slow but steadyretreat, as the glacier tem evolve? 1889 – 1891 299 (91) 151 (46) retreated only 42 ft/yr (13 m/yr). In the Visitors to the park can imagine the 1891 – 1894 446 (136) 147 (45) years between 1914 and 1917, Exit Glacier power of glacial forces by seeing firsthand 1894 – 1899 187 (57) 935 (285) experienced its most rapid retreat. In just 3 the effects of the glacier. As visitors proceed 1899 – 1914 630 (192) 43 (13) years, the glacier retreated 908 ft (277 m) up the valley towards the glacier, they are 1914 – 1917 909 (277) 302 (92) or almost a foot per day. From 1917 to also taking a trip through time. Interpretative 1917 – 1926 974 (297) 108 (33) 1973, Exit Glacier continued to retreat with signs show when the glacier retreated past 1926 – 1950 469 (143) 23 (7) 1950 – 1961 692 (211) 62 (19) periods of slow to moderate retreat. There points along the way. Similar to hikers in the 1961 – 1968 794 (242) 115 (35) were five periods of retreat, with the ice Grand Canyon, visitors can take a walk 1968 – 1973 171 (52) 33 (10) melting fastest between 1961 and 1968 (115 through history and experience geologic ft/yr or 35 m/yr). time in a way no text can ever provide. Total Retreat During the retreat of Exit Glacier from its More information can be found on 1815-1999 6549 (1996) 43 (13) Little Ice Age maximum in 1815 until recent the National Park Service website times, the glacier has left a series of more www.nps.gov/kefj. Table 1: Exit Glacier Retreat Distances and rates through Time

REFERENCES Crossen, K. 1997. Cusick, Joel. 2001. Neoglacial fluctuations of terrestrial, tidewater, and Foliar nutrients in black cottonwood and Sitka alder calving lacustrine glaciers, Blackstone - Spencer Ice along a soil chronosequence at Exit Glacier, Kenai Complex, , Alaska. Fjords National Park, Alaska. Ph.D. thesis, University of Washington. Masters thesis, University of Alaska, Anchorage. 31 Science News National ParkServicephotographs Fossilized for Eternity stone to examine and collect marine fossils Two Parks Recognized has led to the recognition and protection that were up to 400 million years old. of some 3,500 sites throughout the world. Recently, National Park and Numerous species of bivalves, gastropods, as Globally Important Since 1995, the IBA Program has concen- Preserve confirmed something that many trilobites and brachiopods were uncovered Bird Areas trated on identifying and documenting the have known for a long time: there are some in the effort, including a few specimens that top sites throughout the United States — fossils at Denali and at least one of those may never have been identified before. Using scientific information and the those of significance not just on a national fossils is named after a park geologist. In a recent article in the Journal of the recommendations of experts, the American but on a global level. Some of these sites are In July of 1996, Phil Brease, park geolo- Czech Geological Society (Volume 46, Bird Conservancy’s Important Bird Area important in conjunction with other sites; gist, and Pam Sousanes, park physical Number 3-4, Fr´yda, Blodgett and Megl, Program aims to identify and protect a they exist as part of a chain along a migra- science technician, accompanied paleon- 2001), Dr. Blodgett describes a new species network of key sites in the United States tory pathway. Other sites are independent, tologist Robert B. Blodgett from Oregon of Brachiopod (a clam type mollusc) that to further national and global bird and a few support species found nowhere State University on a site investigation at came from the Shellabarger effort, and conservation. Criteria for selection else on earth. Shellabarger Pass. During four rainy days, which he has named the Myriospirifer include the role of each area in the ongo- The goal of the Important Bird Areas they chipped an exposed section of lime- breasei. As Blodgett states in the article, ing effort to conserve wild birds and their Program is not only recognizing sites, but “For Phil F. Brease, U.S. National Park habitats. The American Bird Conservancy also mobilizing the resources needed to Service geologist at Denali National Park, has recognized 100 areas in the United protect them and the bird populations Alaska, who ably assisted one of us States as globally Important Bird Areas they support. Recognition is an important (Blodgett) during late July 1996 in the col- including seven areas in Alaska. These first step, since it raises the awareness of lection of the species.” include Denali National Park and the public and of the managing agencies The genus Myriospirifer lived in shallow Preserve, Bering Land Bridge National about a site’s exceptional value. Moreover, platform ocean environments in Late Preserve, and five U.S. Fish and Wildlife with more than 71 million Americans Devonian time (391-400 million years ago) National Refuges: Alaska Maritime, Arctic, interested in birds, the public is a powerful around Gondwana and Baltica. M. breasei Izembek, Yukon Delta, and Yukon Flats. constituency for bird conservation. is thought to be of Siberian origin, and These Alaska areas share the list with For more information on the America

Myriospirifer breasei lived in shallow arrived in Alaska on a rifted section of that 93 other areas across the United States Bird Conservancy’s Important Bird Area platform ocean environments. continent. In any case, M. breasei is the first including Big Bend National Park (Texas) Program, visit their web site

National Park Service photograph newly discovered species, plant or animal, and Everglades National Park (Florida). http://www.abcbirds.org/ iba/ living or dead that occurs inside the park. The Important Bird Area (IBA) concept aboutiba.html.

32 Alaska Students Gather from the villages of Healy, Tok, and Yakutat. to a panel of Alaska environmental policy- The Sustainable Seas Expedition (SSE), Together, students, teachers, and profes- makers. the Coastal America Partnership, and its to Manage Alaska’s sionals began an exploration of coastal and The Alaska Student Ocean Conference’s Coastal Ecosystem Learning Centers have Oceans for the Future ocean issues, with dynamic field trips primary sponsors included: the Coastal partnered to reach out to students and including coastal hikes, boat trips, and America Partnership, National Geographic teachers from coastal communities As much of the National Park Service computerized marine boating simulations. Society, National Park Service, Alaska around the U.S. to host Student Ocean focuses on partnerships and education, Meshing academic theory with on-the- SeaLife Center, Alaska State Coastal Conferences. The National Geographic coastal parks across the nation continue ground realities, it was a time for questions, Management Program, and NOAA- Society, NOAA, and the Richard and to find creative ways to encourage future discoveries, and more questions. National Marine Fisheries Service and Rhonda Goldman Fund established the SSE stewards of the world’s oceans. Kenai As students began to synthesize a vision Sustainable Seas Expeditions. Other part- in 1998. Coastal America is a partnership of Fjords National Park, based in Seward, for the future of Alaska’s coast and oceans, ners who provided staff and expertise federal agencies, including the Department Alaska, in partnership with state and federal they were treated to a discussion with Dr. included: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, of the Interior and the National Park agencies, Alaska schools, and private Sylvia Earle, a world-renowned figure in the U.S. Air Force, Alaska Vocational Technical Service, established in 1992 to protect, pre- organizations, co-sponsored an event that exploration and preservation of our planet’s Center, Army Corps of Engineers, Kenai serve and restore our coastal watersheds. blends partnerships, education, and marine marine resources. Dr. Earle currently leads Peninsula Borough, Qutekcak Shellfish For more information please visit the protection in new, meaningful, and active the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Hatchery, Alaska Marine Conservation Alaska Student Ocean Conference website ways. The first Alaska Student Ocean Administration’s (NOAA) Sustainable Seas Council, Kenai Fjords Tours, Seward (www.gov.state.ak.us/dgc). If you want to Conference was held April 9-10, 2002, at Expeditions program, which involves Charter Boat Association, The Ocean find out about co-sponsoring a Student the Alaska SeaLife Center, a nonprofit extensive study of our national marine sanc- Conservancy, Alaska Oceans Network, Ocean Conference in your area, visit the research aquarium and National Park tuaries. Keeping her global perspective in Qutekcak Native Tribe, Alaska State Parks, Coastal America website describing Student partner in Seward. The conference will be mind, students were able to further refine a and U.S. Coast Guard. Ocean Conferences (www.coastalameri- an annual event. vision for the future of Alaska’s marine This list of partners may seem over- ca.gov/ text/soc.html). You can also con- Nine teachers, each with a group of five resources and draft recommendations on whelming. However, each one provided a tact Lisa Matlock, Education Coordinator middle and/or high school students, were how Alaska might achieve their goals. vital perspective, helping the students to for the Ocean Alaska Science & Learning selected to receive funding and support to Throughout the process, students also understand not only the complexity of Center partnership between Kenai Fjords attend. The groups came from urban centers explored careers in science and natural ocean and coastal management across National Park and the Alaska SeaLife like Fairbanks, Juneau, Anchorage, and resource management. The final outcome? Alaska, but also the complexity of these Center, at (907) 224-2148 or Palmer, and also represented rural Alaska Students presented their recommendations issues faced by all in the future. [email protected].

33 Science News

New Learning Centers National ParkServicephotograph worked with the park on the project in the Hubbard Glacier weeks leading up to the filming. The crew Closing Russell Fiord At Kenai Fjords National Park, design filmed the birds’ habitat, watched adult of a new learning center is under way. birds flying and bringing food back to the Hubbard Glacier in Wrangell-St.Elias Annual visitation at Kenai Fjords in the past nest and spent time discussing the recovery National Park and Preserve, near Yakutat, 10 years has increased from 60,000 to more of the species with biologists. continued its advance and for a short than 290,000. The present visitor center in “Journeys to Living Laboratories” is a time blocked the entrance to Russell Seward is inadequate for both visitors and six-part series of electronic field trips to Fiord from Disenchantment Bay. Earlier staff. A multi-agency facility incorporating locations where endangered species are this summer, the Glacier closed off the the needs of the NPS, Forest Service, and being studied and protected. The project channel, creating a 39-mile (63 km) long, other partners will be built on an 11-acre site will compare habitat, recovery, survival and ice-dammed lake. The dam eventually near the Alaska SeaLife Center, a popular ecosystems of six endangered and threat- broke open later in the summer. visitor destination and partner with the park. ened species worldwide. In addition to For a few tense weeks before the dam Denali National Park and Preserve has There are 47 peregrine nesting areas in cable and broadcast television programs, broke, water had continued to flow into joined with eight other Alaska national Yukon-Charley Rivers . the efforts will produce on-line classroom the fiord from the glacier, causing the parks to create a world-class center for lessons and activities and a DVD for use water level to rise a half foot per day. The education and research. The center will in classrooms. Other segments will explore Forest Service convened a multidisiplinary provide facilities to support field science tion and education program, each summer the wolves and bears of Yellowstone team of specialists to implement monitor- and research in Denali NP&P and other a few active peregrine aeries are selected as National Park, the piping plovers of ing strategies and reactivate monitoring northern parks. The staff will develop sites for small remote cameras that transmit Assateague Island National Seashore in sites in the impacted area. programs, exhibits, and publications to a video signal to the National Park Service Maryland and the wild dogs and black The last time Hubbard Glacier closed showcase science and its role in preserving visitor center in Eagle. Last summer, visi- rhinos of Mkomazi Game Reserve in the entrance to Russell Fiord was in these parklands. Field seminars, lecture tors and residents watched the amazing Tanzania. May 1986. News media from around the

series, teacher training, Elderhostel pro- growth of chicks from birth to first flight. National ParkServicephotograph grams and distance learning opportunities This year, the aerie on Eagle Bluff, just highlight some of the programs planned. downstream of the historic Yukon River town, will gain a worldwide audience. Air Time for Peregrine This past spring filming began for an electronic field trip that will air in early Falcon Chicks December. The National Park Service, Two one-week-old peregrine falcon with the U.S. Department of Education, chicks in Yukon-Charley Rivers National the Satellite Educational Resources Preserve in Northeast Alaska were on the Commission and One Planet Education, air, long before they were in the air. are the prime sponsors of the peregrine Although there are 47 peregrine nesting program. sites in the preserve and nearby areas, the Two middle school students from Eagle, once-endangered falcons are only recently Amanda Westphall and Garf Hall, partici- recovering from decimation due to chemi- pated with the researchers and the produc- cals such as DDT, which prevented success- tion crew. Both students took an interest in ful breeding. As part of an active preserva- the project last summer, and actively

34 National ParkServicephotograph The results of the data collection benefit the Pacific walrus population and subsistence hunters in both countries, who strive to understand this important resource while co-managing the shared walrus population.

Hubbard Glacier. The Forest Service is 4th Chukotka Walrus taking the lead in the dissemination of information about this significant event; Harvest Monitoring the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is Workshop providing research and technical expert- ise; and an interagency team of Forest For the fourth year, U.S. residents met Service, National Park Service, and USGS with Russian residents at a workshop representatives is providing ongoing mon- conducted in Nome from July 8-12, to itoring. Current information and photo- discuss the walrus harvest on both sides of graphs of Hubbard Glacier can be found the Bering Sea. The National Park Service on the ’s website is funding Kawerak Inc., a regional non- www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass and the profit corporation for a “Chukotka Walrus USGS website www.usgs.gov. Harvest Monitoring Project.” The project National ParkServicephotograph

The last time Hubbard Glacier closed the entrance to Russell Fiord was in May 1986. world converged on Yakutat, and covered of 131 feet (40 m), Russell Fiord could this significant glaciological event. Between drain southward into the Situk River May 29 and October 7, runoff from a drainage, altering a world-class fishery 695 square miles (1,800 square km) area and inundating national forest and private raised the water level in Russell Lake to land. The Situk River is a world-renowned 83 feet (25 m) above sea level. The rising steelhead and salmon stream and the most water inundated alluvial fans, outwash productive stream for its size in Alaska. It plains in front of several tributary glaciers is a primary subsistence and commercial and part of the densely forested fringes stream and has a popular sport fishery with of the former Russell Fiord. Because of many lodges to support visitation. ice calving, the dam narrowed and began Because of the cultural, environmental to break about midnight on October 7, and economic consequences of Russell 1986. Within 24 hours the water level had Lake draining into the Situk River, citizens reached the former high-tide level of and officials of the community of Yakutat, Russell Fiord. as well as representatives of several state In the future, should a stable ice dam and federal agencies, are showing interest The data collected on the harvest is important in documenting and understanding the form and the lake level rise to an elevation and concern about the behavior of trends of the Pacific walrus population.

35 Science News National ParkServicephotographs includes an annual workshop that the Alaska’s National Parks Walrus Commission (EWC) has hosted for three consecutive years in Nome. Contain Many The mission of the National Park Service is to protect the diverse species of plants The purpose of the workshop and Unsolved Mysteries and animals found in national parks, including species such as lanternfish and project is to document the subsistence shrews. Given the number of extinctions in the last century, it is easy to see the harvest of walrus in eight hunting villages Why has a rare species of shrew appeared importance of species diversity and the protection of rare species. in Chukotka, Russia. Walrus hunters in at Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve the villages of Enurimo, Inchoun, Uelen, and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Lorina, Yanrakynnot, Novo-Chaplino, Preserve? Why are the normally nocturnal Sireniki and Enmelen provide data and lanternfish at Glacier Bay National Park lanternfish. Lanternfish are named for In the parks of Northwest Alaska, Cape biological samples to researchers. The making daytime appearances? their one-time use as fuel in lanterns. They Krusenstern National Monument, Bering efforts in Russia correspond to similar Thanks to a new natural resources are an important part of the food chain, Land Bridge National Preserve and Noatak efforts in the U.S. in which walrus hunters inventory program in Alaska’s national since they are a rich food source National Preserve, 16 plants considered in the villages of Gambell, Savoonga, parks, we may soon have answers to for many marine mammals, birds and rare or critically imperiled have been Diomede, Wales and Shishmaref provide some of these puzzling questions. As larger fish. Until recently, scientists thought found that were previously undocumented information and biological samples to scientists and citizens around the country these fish were nocturnal, spending the in these parks. One of these, Potentilla walrus harvest monitors. debate issues of resource management, daytime in deep waters and coming to the fragiformis, a handsome flower with five The data collected on the harvest is global warming and appropriate recre- surface at night to feed. Recent fieldwork petals, was known only in Russia and important in documenting and under- ational use in national parks, this found lanternfish at the surface in great has never before been documented in standing the trends of the Pacific walrus inventory program focuses on collecting numbers during the day, but only in North America. population. The results of the data collec- baseline data about resources in national active glacial fjords. It is suspected that At Yukon-Charley Rivers and Wrangell- tion benefit the Pacific walrus population parks. The information can then be useful the water melting from glaciers is cloudy St. Elias, both in eastern Alaska, and subsistence hunters in both countries, in guiding and making scientifically sound enough to hide the lanternfish from researchers from the University of Alaska who strive to understand this important decisions. predators during the day (Mike Litzow, found 10 shrews from the species that is resource while co-managing the shared For instance, at Glacier Bay National U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Science aptly named “tiny shrew.” Before the walrus population. Park and Preserve, marine biologists have Center), changing our knowledge about inventory at these parks began, specimens observed rarely documented behaviors in lanternfish behaviour. had only been found in Central and

36 . Through the new Weather at the Top of June. It sends real-time weather data to Amphibian Flashcards program, we are greatly expanding our scientists at University of Alaska Fairbanks, under-standing of this species’ range and North America and daily updates are posted on the web The Inventory & Monitoring Program habitat requirements. Climbers from the Japanese Alpine (www.denali.gi.alaska.edu). The new wind (I&M) just received 250 copies of The mission of the National Park Club installed an improved weather sta- gauge replaces one that was routinely Amphibians of Alaska. This seven-page set Service is to protect the diverse species of tion at 19,200 feet on Mt. McKinley last destroyed because it could not withstand of waterproof flashcards was developed plants and animals found in national parks, gusts exceeding 200 mph. The resulting and designed to aid in the identification of including species such as lanternfish and National ParkServicephotograph data from the new weather station will be amphibians found in our National Parks. shrews. Given the number of extinctions in of great scientific interest and could also This educational product shows the five the last century, it is easy to see the impor- be an additional forecasting tool for most commonly occurring species of frogs, tance of species diversity and the protection climbers. It was originally placed for that toads, salamanders and newts in Alaska. of rare species. purpose after Japanese adventurer Naomi The Inventory & Monitoring Program will Congress has funded the Inventory and Uemura’s tragic disappearance in 1984, be sending copies to parks for distribution Monitoring Program as a part of a Natural just after he became the first person to to field crews, volunteer groups, schools Resource Challenge to improve science reach the summit alone in winter. and visiting scientists. and stewardship in national parks. The These flashcards are a part of a National Park Service is collaborating with region-wide Opportunistic Survey of scientists and researchers from universities Amphibians. A field form and Geographic and other agencies. The inventory program Information System (GIS) database prod- … weather station at 19,200 feet on will serve as a baseline for long-term mon- uct have also been created to keep track itoring of plants, animals and environmen- Mt. McKinley…sends real-time weather of viable observations by trained staff and tal conditions like air and water quality. It data to scientists at University of Alaska volunteers. This is an exciting new learn- will help park managers and researchers Fairbanks, and daily updates are posted ing resource that scientists, interpreters, better understand arctic and sub-arctic seasonal field crews, local community on the web www.denali.gi.alaska.edu. ecosystems, information essential to members and others can use. The new wind gauge replaces one that was unlocking the mysteries of global warming, routinely destroyed because it could not ecosystem dynamics and natural variation. withstand gusts exceeding 200 mph.

37 Science News National ParkServicephotograph Effects of Low-Level an attempt return the herd to its historical numbers and distribution. The National Military Flights on Park Service has an interest in this herd not only for its intrinsic value but also as Calving Caribou an important component of the Yukon- At an estimated 40,000 strong, the Charley Rivers National Preserve ecology. Fortymile Caribou Herd is one of the The U.S. Air Force. too, has a great interest most prominent caribou herds of Interior in the herd as the entire herd distribution Alaska. Although 40,000 animals is a sub- is overlaid by airspace designated as a stantial number of caribou, this estimate is Military Operations Area. As such, the U.S. well below the historical high of more than Air Force conducts substantial aircraft 500,000 caribou of the 1920s. In addition training over land areas that are critical to to fewer animals, the Fortymile Caribou the well-being of the herd. Herd currently occupies only a fraction of Previous studies on other herds of its historical range. In recent years, the caribou have shown relatively mild herd has been in the news due to the Alaska behavioral responses of caribou to mili- Department of Fish and Game’s efforts to tary jet flights, but no studies have been increase herd production and growth in conducted during the sensitive calving Hollow caribou hair traps substantial air for excellent insulation against the cold. National ParkServicephotograph

period. In May 2002, a new research following low-level military jet overflights. project was initiated through a coopera- Movements of radio-collared caribou and tive effort of the Alaska Department of survival of newborn calves in relation to Fish and Game, the National Park overflight history were also recorded. Service, and the U.S. Air Force. A team Field efforts for this study coincided with of biologists and forward ground con- the calving period and ran from mid-May trollers took to the field in areas just east through early June. Researchers are in the and south of the Preserve. Behavior of process of sorting and organizing the large cow caribou and cows with calves was amount of data collected during this short observed before, during and immediately field season.

Previous studies on other herds of caribou have shown relatively mild behavioral responses of caribou to military jet flights, but no studies have been conducted during the sensitive calving period. Adult bulls can accumulate fat deposits — mostly on their back and rump — that weigh 60 pounds or more in early fall.

38 National ParkServicephotograph

39 The Great Eruption of 1912

o o 62o 164 154

Kuskokwim River © JenniferAdleman,NationalParkService,summer1996. Anchorage dammed for three years until a very heavy ALASKA KATMAI Kenai snowmelt in 1915; the dam was breached

r VOLCANIC ive R CLUSTER and an enormous flood broke out into k A a CookHomer Inlet le icar g utian an KATMAI a volc sh Katmai Canyon. Prior to his exploration of u N VOLCANIC Naknek CLUSTER Lake the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, King Salmon g l in Salmon Egegik K R B risto Becharof botanist Dr. Robert F. Griggs landed on the Lake Bay Kodiak BERING Pilot Point Island shore of Katmai Bay in 1915—nearly 19 Kodiak SEA Area miles (30 km) downstream from Katmai LA SU shown IN EN 56o P below PACIFIC Canyon. There he “found the countryside ALASKA OCEAN Cold Bay ravaged by a great flood whose waters were Figure 2. The Valley of Ten Thousand 0 100 200 KILOMETERS just subsiding.” (Griggs, 1922). Although 0 100 MILES Smokes at sunset, mountains in back are, Griggs called it a ‘flood’, a great volume of left to right, Jule Peak and Griggs (formerly o o o 155 154 30' 154 debris was also transported during this known as Knife Peak).

o event. The tidal-flat area, 6 miles (10 km) 58 45' 0 10 20 KILOMETERS wide, was choked with pumice and ash, This island is now submerged beneath 820 L ake 0 10 MILES Gro s turning upriver stretches of land into feet (250 m) of lake water (Fig. 4) (Fierstein v Kaguyak Naknek e n caldera Lake o quicksand and destroying Katmai village and Hildreth, 2001). Only six miles (10 km) er (already abandoned in 1912). Trees were south of Mount Katmai, the party discov- noski Riv vo R Sa a snapped off near ground level for several ered another newly formed volcanic dome, Iliuk Arm i n Savonoski Village Site b 58o30' o miles by the violent impact of the water, a a crumb cake of gray rock about 1,200 feet Ik w Devils Desk r ag e lu ik Cree R Kukak Hallo Bay v i i k ve Volcano fan of huge boulders was deposited at the in diameter and 150 feet high, which they R r k ka Mt Steller mouth of the canyon, and the water volume named Novarupta (Latin for new vent) (Fig. U Mt Denison was so great that it flooded the valley to a 4) (Rozell, 2001). West of these two volcanic Mt Griggs tn y M ow Kukak Bay depth of approximately 10 feet (3 m) (J. features lay voluminous flows of volcanic V T T S Sn Novarupta Fierstein, personal communication, 2002). ash that filled the valley to as much as Katmai 58o15' caldera 650 feet (200 m) deep. Griggs named this Trident er Mt Volcano tmai Riv k Katmai National Monument and area the “Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes” Ka e Martin re Mt Mageik C Soluk a the Discovery of a New Volcano for the numerous jets of steam ascending eters Alagogshak 2 m Hidden In 1916, the National Geographic from the hot volcanic material covering 1 meter Harbor Society funded an expedition to Katmai led the valley floor (Fig. 5) (Fierstein and 50 centim by botanist Dr. Robert F. Griggs. This was Hildreth, 2001).

58o eters the first group of scientific explorers to visit In 1918 Griggs’ descriptions of these Katmai Village Site Katmai Shelikof Strait the Katmai region. Mount Katmai was spectacular features helped persuade Bay believed to be the source of the material President Woodrow Wilson to designate EXPLANATION erupted over those three days in June 1912. Katmai National Monument, to preserve Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes (VTTS) ash-flow sheet, which erupted from Novarupta in June 1912 Original thickness of Novarupta 1912 ashfall Within the broken edifice of a decapitated the dramatic landscape for future genera- Andesite- dacite stratovolcano Mount Katmai, Griggs and his party saw a tions to experience and for scientific study Pre-1912 Village Sites lake 2 miles (3 km) wide of robin’s egg blue (Guffanti, 2001). In the 1930s Katmai Figure 1. Regional geographic setting of the Katmai volcanic cluster with respect to other water and a small dacite lava dome they National Monument was described as, young volcanoes of the . (modified from Fierstein and Hildreth, 2001) named Horseshoe Island (Griggs, 1922). “not only the largest, but also the most spec-

6 Alaska Park Science Photograph courtesyofAlutiiqMuseumandHeritageCenter National Park Service Alaska Support Office 2525 Gambell Street Anchorage, Alaska 99503-2892 National ParkServicephotograph