Behavior of Cackling Canada Geese during brood rearing
Ada C. Fowler, Craig R. Ely
1997, The Condor (99) 406-412
We studied behavior of Cackling Canada Goose (Branta canadensis minima, cacklers) broods between 1992 and 1996 on the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge in western Alaska. An increase in time spent foraging by goslings during our study was weakly correlated with an increase in the size of the local breeding...
Variation in incubation periods and egg metabolism in mallards: Intrinsic mechanisms to promote hatch synchrony
Margaret C. MacCluskie, Paul L. Flint, James S. Sedinger
1997, The Condor (99) 224-228
We investigated factors affecting incubation time and metabolic rates of Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) eggs incubated under constant environmental conditions. Time required to reach the star-pipped stage of hatch varied significantly among females, but not with laying sequence or egg size. Metabolic rate of eggs varied positively with position in the...
Proximate composition and energy density of some North Pacific forage fishes
Thomas I. van Pelt, John F. Piatt, Brian K. Lance, Daniel D. Roby
1997, Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology (118) 1393-1398
Mature pelagic forage fish species (capelin, sand lance, squid) had greater lipid concentrations than juvenile age-classes of large demersal and pelagic fish species (walleye pollock, Pacific cod, Atka mackerel, greenling, prowfish, rockfish, sablefish). Myctophids preyed on by puffins have at least twice as much lipid per gram compared to mature...
Winter activity patterns of American martens (Martes americana): Rejection of the hypothesis of thermal-cost minimization
Gary S. Drew, John A. Bissonette
1997, Canadian Journal of Zoology (75) 812-816
Despite their temperate to subarctic geographic range, American martens (Martes americana) possess a thermally inefficient morphology. The lack of morphological adaptations for reducing thermal costs suggests that marten may use behavioral strategies to optimize thermal budgets. During the winters of 1989–1990 and 1990–1991, we radio-collared and monitored the diel activity...
Trophic relationships of albatrosses associated with squid and large-mesh drift-net fisheries in the North Pacific Ocean
Patrick J. Gould, Peggy H. Ostrom, William Walker
1997, Canadian Journal of Zoology (75) 549-562
The diets of Laysan (Diomedea immutabilis) and black-footed albatrosses (D. nigripes) killed in squid and large-mesh drift nets in the transitional zone of the North Pacific Ocean were investigated by examining the contents of the digestive tracts and determining δ13C and δ15N values in breast-muscle tissue. The results show that...
Exposure of Spectacled Eiders and other diving ducks to lead in western Alaska
Paul L. Flint, Margaret R. Petersen, J. Barry Grand
1997, Canadian Journal of Zoology (75) 439-443
Lead poisoning, resulting from ingestion of spent shot, has been identified as a cause of mortality in Spectacled Eiders (Somateria fischeri) on the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska. We examined lead-exposure rates of adult and juvenile Spectacled Eiders and other diving ducks, using atomic absorption spectrophotometry of blood samples. Additionally, we X-rayed...
Migration by radio-tagged pacific golden-plovers from hawaii to Alaska, and their subsequent survival
O.W. Johnson, N. Warnock, M.A. Bishop, A.J. Bennett, P.M. Johnson, R.J. Kienholz
1997, The Auk (114) 521-524
Many Pacific Golden-Plovers (Pluvialis fulva) and other shorebirds winter in the Hawaiian Islands. This is the first landfall for mid-Pacific migrants after overwater flights of 4,000 km or more from Alaska (Johnson et al. 1989, Johnson and Connors 1996). Previous findings (sightings of marked birds and wing-length measurements) showed Alaska...
Specimen banking of marine organisms in the United States: Current status and long-term prospective
P.R. Becker, S.A. Wise, L. Thorsteinson, B.J. Koster, T. Rowles
1997, Conference Paper, Chemosphere
A major part of the activities conducted over the last decade by the National Biomonitoring Specimen Bank (NBSB) has involved the archival of marine specimens collected by ongoing environmental monitoring programs. These archived specimens include bivalves, marine sediments, and fish tissues collected by the National Status and Trends and the...
An 18 million year record of vegetation and climate change in northwestern Canada and Alaska: Tectonic and global climatic correlates
J. M. White, T. A. Ager, D.P. Adam, E. B. Leopold, Gaisheng Liu, H. Jette, C. E. Schweger
1997, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology (130) 293-306
We reconstruct long-term vegetation/paleoclimatic trends, spanning the last 18 million years, in Alaska. Yukon and far western Northwest Territories. Twenty-one average percentage spectra for pollen and spores are assembled from eight surface/subsurface sections. The sections are dated independently or by correlation. Pollen and spore ratios indicate the direction of change...
Effects of spring environment on nesting phenology and clutch size of Black Brant
M. S. Lindberg, J.S. Sedinger, Paul L. Flint
1997, Condor (99) 381-388
We studied the effects of timing of spring snowmelt on nesting phenology, nest site selection, and clutch size of Black Brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) breeding at the Tutakoke river colony, Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska. In late springs, brant nested later: however, time between peak arrival at Tutakoke and nest initiation (6...
Nesting ecology of Townsend's warblers in relation to habitat characteristics in a mature boreal forest
Steven M. Matsuoka, Colleen M. Handel, Daniel D. Roby
1997, Condor (99) 271-281
We investigated the nesting ecology of Townsend's Warblers (Dendroica townsendi) from 1993-1995 in an unfragmented boreal forest along the lower slopes of the Chugach Mountains in southcentral Alaska. We examined habitat characteristics of nest sites in relation to factors influencing reproductive success. Almost all territory-holding males (98%, n = 40)...
Spatial and temporal variability of microgeographic genetic structure in white-tailed deer
Kim T. Scribner, Michael H. Smith, Ronald K. Chesser
1997, Journal of Mammalogy (78) 744-755
Techniques are described that define contiguous genetic subpopulations of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) based on the spatial dispersion of 4,749 individuals that possessed discrete character values (alleles or genotypes) during each of 6 years (1974-1979). White-tailed deer were not uniformly distributed in space, but exhibited considerable spatial genetic structuring. Significant...
Soluble trace elements and total mercury in Arctic Alaskan snow
E. Snyder-Conn, John R. Garbarino, Gerald L. Hoffman, A. Oelkers
1997, Arctic (50) 201-215
Ultraclean field and laboratory procedures were used to examine trace element concentrations in northern Alaskan snow. Sixteen soluble trace elements and total mercury were determined in snow core samples representing the annual snowfall deposited during the 1993-94 season at two sites in the Prudhoe Bay oil field and nine sites...
Recovery strategies for the California clapper rail (Rallus longirostris obsoletus) in the heavily-urbanized San Francisco estuarine ecosystem
Theodore C. Foin, E. Jacqueline Garcia, Robert E. Gill Jr., Steven D. Culberson, Joshua N. Collins
1997, Landscape and Urban Planning (38) 229-243
The California clapper rail (Rallus longirostris obsoletus), a Federal- and State-listed endangered marsh bird, has a geographic range restricted to one of the most heavily-urbanized estuaries in the world. The rail population has long been in a state of decline, although the exact contribution of each of the many contributing...
Grizzly bear predation rates on caribou calves in northeastern Alaska
Donald D. Young Jr., Thomas R. McCabe
1997, Journal of Wildlife Management (61) 1056-1066
During June 1993 and 1994, 11 radiocollared and 7 unmarked grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) were monitored visually (observation) from fixed-wing aircraft to document predation on calves of the Porcupine Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) Herd (PCH) in northeastern Alaska. Twenty-six (72%) grizzly bear observations were completed (???60 min) successfully (median duration =...
Distribution and stability of eelgrass beds at Izembek Lagoon, Alaska
David H. Ward, Carl J. Markon, David C. Douglas
1997, Aquatic Botany (58) 229-240
Spatial change in eelgrass meadows, Zostera marina L., was assessed between 1978 and 1987 and between 1987 and 1995 at Izembek Lagoon, Alaska. Change in total extent was evaluated through a map to map comparison of data interpreted from a 1978 Landsat multi-spectral scanner image and 1987 black and white...
Experimental manipulations of snow-depth: Effects on nutrient content of caribou forage
Noreen E. Walsh, Thomas R. McCabe, J.M. Welker, A.N. Parsons
1997, Global Change Biology (3) 158-164
We investigated the potential effects of global climate change on arctic tundra vegetation used as caribou forage. A total of 96 experimental plots was established at six sites on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, in 1993 and 1994. We erected snow-fences to increase the amount...
Controls on accretion of flysch and melange belts at convergent margins: Evidence from the Chugach Bay thrust and Iceworm melange, Chugach accretionary wedge, Alaska
Timothy M. Kusky, Dwight Bradley, Peter J. Haeussler, Susan M. Karl
1997, Tectonics (16) 855-878
Controls on accretion of flysch and mélange terranes at convergent margins are poorly understood. Southern Alaska's Chugach terrane forms the outboard accretionary margin of the Wrangellia composite terrane, and consists of two major lithotectonic units, including Triassic-Cretaceous mélange of the McHugh Complex and Late Cretaceous flysch of the Valdez Group....
Opening the arctic: The drilling of Umiat #1
L. C. Gerhard
1997, Northeastern Geology and Environmental Sciences (19) 8-13
One of the greatest excitements for a petroleum geologist is to venture into the frontier, to explore and drill "where no man has gone before." Over 50 years ago Bill Rex, a Kansas oilman, was tapped to lead the first oil drilling expedition into the Alaskan Arctic. He successfully assembled...
Permian Tethyan Fusulinina from the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
C.H. Stevens, V.I. Davydov, D. Bradley
1997, Journal of Paleontology (71) 985-994
Two samples from a large, allochthonous limestone block in the McHugh Complex of the Chugach terrane on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, contain species of 12 genera of Permian Fusulinina including Abadehella, Kahlerina, Pseudokahlerina?, Nankinella, Codonofusiella, Dunbarula, Parafusulina?, Chusenella, Verbeekina, Pseudodoliolina, Metadoliolina?, Sumatrina?, and Yabeina, as well as several...
Tectonic evolution of the central Brooks Range mountain front: Evidence from the Atigun Gorge region
C. G. Mull, R.K. Glenn, K.E. Adams
1997, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (102) 20749-20772
Atigun Gorge, at the northern front of the eastern Endicott Mountains, contains well-exposed rocks of the upper part of the Endicott Mountains allochthon and rocks of the structurally higher Picnic Creek or Ipnavik River allochthon. These allochthons contain rocks as young as Early Cretaceous (Valanginian) and are separated by a...
Alternative interpretations of oil spill data
John F. Piatt
1997, BioScience (47) 202-203
In his article "Oil, Seabirds, and Science" (BioScience 46: 587-597), John Wiens attempted to review Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS) damage assessment studies and the politics of EVOS science in one stroke. In my opinion, neither purpose was particularly well served....
Field guide to the Mesozoic accretionary complex along Turnagain Arm and Kachemak Bay, south-central Alaska
Dwight Bradley, Timothy M. Kusky, Susan M. Karl, Peter J. Haeussler
1997, Book chapter, 1997 Guide to the geology of the Kenai Peninsula. Alaska
Turnagain Arm, just east of Anchorage, provides a readily accessible, world-class cross section through a Mesozoic accretionary wedge. Nearly continuous exposures along the Seward Highway, the Alaska Railroad, and the shoreline of Turnagain Arm display the two main constituent units of the Chugach terrane: the McHugh Complex and Valdez Group....
Ephemeral lekking behavior in the buff-breasted sandpiper, Tryngites subruficollis
Richard B. Lanctot, Patrick J. Weatherhead
1997, Behavioral Ecology (8) 268-278
We studied male reproductive behavior of the buff-breasted sandpiper Tryngites subruficoills for three yean on a 16-km2 study site in northern Alaska to document variation in male lekking behavior and to explore the causes of that variation. During the breeding season, about 75% of males on the study area displayed...
Collection and analysis of traditional ecological knowledge about a population of arctic tundra caribou
Michael A.D. Ferguson, Francois Messier
1997, Arctic (50) 17-28
Aboriginal peoples want their ecological knowledge used in the management of wildlife populations. To accomplish this, management agencies will need regional summaries of aboriginal knowledge about long-term changes in the distribution and abundance of wildlife populations and ecological factors that influence those changes. Between 1983 and 1994, we developed a...
