The Alaska Board of Fisheries voted unanimously to prohibit the use of felt soled wading boots in Alaska’s freshwater streams beginning January 1, 2012. Photo Credit:Cheryl Anderson/USFWS |
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Help make 2012 a great year for Alaska’s native aquatics by going felt-free!
January 5, 2012
Winter may stand between anglers and their favorite Alaskan streams and rivers, but it’s not too early to start thinking about getting a new pair of wading boots…without felt soles! Initially popular because they provide good traction on slippery streambeds, felt-soled wading boots are now known to have a major drawback: they provide an ideal vehicle for spreading tiny invasive species that can cause big problems. Read more...
Standing Aleutian Canada goose photo. Photo Credit R. Lowe |
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Happy Birthday Endangered Species Act!
December 28, 2011
Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is celebrating the Endangered Species Act’s (ESA) 38th birthday. The ESA was enacted on December 28, 1973, to prevent the loss or harm of endangered and threatened species and to preserve the ecosystems upon which these species depend. All Alaskans can take pride in the fact that, under the ESA, the Aleutian Canada goose, American peregrine falcon, and Arctic peregrine falcon have been brought back from the brink of extinction. Happy birthday!
Working with Wildlife in Alaska, not your average nine to five job
December 23, 2011
Are you interested in wildlife conservation? Would you like to gain valuable job experience and see Alaska? The U.S. Fish& Wildlife Service in Alaska is currently recruiting for a wide range of seasonal jobs, internships and volunteer positions. Positions include assisting biologists conducting field work on birds, fish and wildlife; working with visitors at national wildlife refuges, building trails, or teaching children about nature. Check out our web page, http://alaska.fws.gov/working.htm for more information.
Scouts counting birds at the Alaska Zoo.
Photo Credit: Tamara Zeller/USFWS |
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Christmas Bird Counts Past and Future
December 14, 2011
Dozens of kids and adults took to the Alaska Zoo trails on December 3rd to participate in Anchorage’s second Christmas Bird Count for Kids – an event sponsored by the Alaska Zoo, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Audubon Alaska, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in coordination with Boy and Girl Scout troops from around the city. In the spirit of the traditional Christmas Bird Count started by National Audubon Society 112 years ago, kids and adults learned how to identify common birds, compile data, and become citizen scientists. A tally and awards ceremony followed where a representative of each team read the results. This year, teams spotted 13 species of wild birds at the zoo, including Common Raven, Bohemian Waxwing, Brown Creeper, and an American Three-toed Woodpecker!
In upcoming weeks many other Christmas Bird Counts will be occurring across Alaska. Your community may be hosting a count. Visit Alaska Audubon for community details.
Campbell Creek Dolly Varden. (2011 contest)
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Alaska Fish Photo Contest: 2011 Results and 2012 Details!
December 12, 2011
Fish can be very elusive. Likewise good photos of fish in their natural habitat can be hard to come by! This year, we asked Alaska residents and visitors to help us celebrate Alaska’s fish by sharing their best shots. We were particularly interested in photos that conveyed information about the natural seasonal behaviors and habitats of Alaska’s fish, or captured the unique nature of Alaska’s fisheries. We were absolutely blown away by the photos you took! In addition to our original four judges, we had over 20 Service employees (mostly fisheries biologists) rank the top five photos that best captured the above criteria. We hope these photos inspire others to get out and appreciate/photograph Alaska’s amazing fish! And the 2011 winner is…
Walrus tusks and other items confiscated. Photo Credit: USFWS
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Alaskan Trio Sentenced for Wildlife, Firearms Crimes
December 2, 2011
Between September 2010 and March 2011, three Alaskan residents illegally sold and transported to a non-Alaska-Native buyer approximately 230 pounds of walrus tusks valued at approximately $22,000 and two polar bear hides for $2,700. The three have been sentenced after pleading guilty to federal felony charges for conspiracy, illegal firearms possession, and Lacey Act violations. Penalties in this cooperative investigation, which was lead by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service special agents with assistance from special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Alaska State troopers, included prison terms for two of the defendants and probation for the third defendant.
Sixteen public use cabins are now available on the Kenai Refuge; the newest addition is the Big Bay Cabin on the south shore of Tustumena Lake. Photo Credit: USFWS
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Kenai Refuge Cabin Reservations Now Online
December 1, 2011
Kenai Refuge offers sixteen public use cabins located throughout the refuge. Beginning on December 1, 2011, cabin reservations can be made online at www.recreation.gov or by calling 1-877-444-6777. Learn more....
Alaska's 2011 Youth in the Great Outdoors
November 15, 2011
This year, the Alaska Region of the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service employed 284 youth on refuges, rivers and conservation projects throughout the state of Alaska. The 2011 Youth in the Great Outdoors Report celebrates these amazing youth. The report follows some of their adventures from remote field camps throughout the state, to teaching science to children, and to habitat restoration in Anchorage city parks. To read more...
USFWS Wildlife Inspectors with some of the seized wildlife which included bear skins, walrus ivory, whale baleen & bone, various migratory bird feathers, and wolf skulls. Photo Credit: USFWS/LE
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At the Alaska/Canadian Border
November 14, 2011
During the last week of September, three U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Wildlife Inspectors collaborated with the Canadian Wildlife Service to detain and inspect vehicles coming in and out of Alaska at the Alcan Port of Entry near Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory. Their purpose was to enforce federal, state, foreign, and international wildlife laws and regulations; including the Endangered Species Act, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Lacey Act, Alaska State Hunting Regulations, and Canada’s Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act. Read more...
Short-tailed albatross chicks arrive at the new colony site on Mukojima Island, Japan.
Photo Credit: Yamashina Institute for Ornithology
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Southwest Sea Otter and Short-tailed Albatross Recovery Articles Published
November 3, 2011
Articles about the recovery of two Alaskan species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) are available in the Summer 2011 "Endangered Species Bulletin."
The southwest Alaska sea otter was listed as threatened in 2005 and the article titled "Evaluating Threats for the Southwest Alaskan Sea Otter" was written by Douglas Burn.
"Is it a Colony Yet?" was written by Judy Jacobs about the short-tailed albatross translocation project. This bird was listed as endangered under the ESA in 1973 outside the United States and in 2000 the listing was expanded to include inside the U.S. In addition, Judy published another article in the bulletin "What Does It Take to be a Successful Recovery Biologist?"
Kittlitz's murrelet eating a capelin.
Photo Credit: Nick Hatch/USFWS
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Annual List of Candidate Species for Endangered Species Act Released
October 26, 2011
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today released its Candidate Notice of Review (CNOR), a yearly appraisal of the current status of plants and animals considered candidates for protection under the Endangered Species Act. Candidate species are plants and animals for which the Service has enough information on their status and the threats they face to propose them as threatened or endangered, but developing a proposed listing rule is precluded by higher priority listing actions. “The candidate list offers the Service and our partners a unique opportunity to address the threats to these species through voluntary conservation efforts on public and private lands,” said Service Director Dan Ashe. The document is available at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/what-we-do/cnor.html.
In Alaska, the Fish and Wildlife Service manages three candidate species. The Pacific walrus was designated a candidate species in February 2011, and is on the CNOR for the first time. Two bird species, the Kittlitz's murrelet (a seabird) and the yellow-billed loon are also on the CNOR. This year, we changed the listing priority number for the Kittlitz's murrelet from a 2 to an 8 because we now consider the threats to this species to be low to moderate, rather than high. The section "Listing Priority Changes in Candidates" in the CNOR explains the rationale for our decision.
For more information on candidate species in Alaska, please contact Sonja Jahrsdoerfer at 907/786-3323 or Bruce Woods at 907/786-3695.
Let's Go Outside website thumbnail
Photo Credit: USFWS
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Connecting People with Nature: Let's Go Outside Website Has a New Look
October 24, 2011
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has launched a new web site, "Connecting People with Nature: Let’s Go Outside" aimed at engaging young kids in outdoor activities, and educating them about nature, helping to implement the Department of the Interior’s Youth in the Great Outdoors (hyperlinked to Youthgo.gov website) initiative. In addition, the Neighborhood Explorers online activity has been revamped to include a section on conservation careers.
Learn More
Neighborhood Explorers Activity
Illegal Stocking of Northern Pike - ADFG Photo Credit: ADFG
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Report Illegal Northern Pike
October 7, 2011
A killer is stalking the waters of Southcentral Alaska! It is lurking in the shadows, ambushing wild salmon and trout. Many Southcentral lakes
and streams are already empty of everything but the killer - northern pike. Soon many of our sportfishing opportunities may be gone. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is partnering with the
Alaska Department of Fish & Game to address this issue. You can help report illegal introductions of
invasive northern pike in
Southcentral Alaska by calling the Alaska Department of Fish & Game invsive species hotline at 877-468-2748.
The Kenai River Sportfishing Association and Kenai River Professional Guide Association have partnered to offer a $5,000 reward leading to the conviction of someone introducing northern pike
into Kenai Peninsula. Learn More...
See footage of these invaders in Southcentral Alaska, the damage they've caused, and how you can help by watching a short video on our youtube channel.
Duck hunting at Izembek Refuge is
popular in the fall.
Photo Credit: Ryan Hagerty/USFWS
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Celebrating America's Wildlife Legacy
October 6, 2011
October 9-15, 2011 marks National Wildlife Refuge Week. Since 1903, when Theodore Roosevelt established the first national wlidlife refuge at Pelican Island in Florida, the National Willife Refuge System
has become the world's premier habitat conservation system, encompassing 150 million acres in 553 refuges and 38 wetland management districts. And more than 80% of the acreage in the entire Refuge System
is in Alaska's 16 spectacular refuges.
Every year Refuge Week gives us an opportunity to reflect on how fortunate we are to have America's wildlife legacy conserved within refuge lands, and how
important it is to get out and enjoy these treasures. As winter begins here in the north, we begin to put a wrap on summer activities enjoyed withinn our refuges -
camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, boating and more. As soon as temperatures are consistently below freezing these activities will be replaced by their
winter counterparts - sking, snowshoeing,, winter camping, ice fishing, snow machining, and more. The best way to celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week in Alaska is to
get out onto refuge lands and enjoy them. In addition, during this week a number of special indoor events are happening around the state.
Learn More...
Beluga Slough land acquisition in
Homer, Alaska.
Photo Credit: USFWS
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Lots Purchased to Complete Alaska Islands & Ocean Visitor Center Site in Homer
September 30, 2011
The purchase of five lots in Beluga Slough by a partnership of conservation groups headed by Sharon Baur of Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges was feted at a National Public Lands Day Celebration Friday night September 23rd at Islands and Ocean Visitor Center in Homer, Alaska. The purchase was funded by the Conservation Fund, Kachemak Bay Conservation Society and Moose Habitat, Inc. Eighty five visitors and invited guests enjoyed a photo show of entrants in the “Picture the Heart of Homer” contest, a reception with refreshments provided by Alaska Geographic, music by local musician Sunrise Kilcher. In addition, a “Walk in Beauty: Art along the Beluga Slough Trail” featured luminaries and art made by Fireweed Academy (a charter school) students. After walking the lighted trail visitors were heard describing it as 'magical'. Read More...
Dolly Varden char.
Photo courtesy of Vernon Orange
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2011 Alaska Fish Photo Contest
September 13, 2011
Alaska abounds with some pretty amazing fisheries resources. Help us celebrate Alaska’s fish and their importance to people and ecosystems by sending in your photos – we want to see all species in their different life stages from around the state! Photos you submit before November 1 will be entered in the 2011 Alaska Fish Photo Contest. Stewart’s Photo Shop in Anchorage is donating a Kodak Easyshare Sport waterproof camera to the winner. Photos submitted after that date will be entered in our 2012 contest. Help us spread the word! Read More...
FWS Water Resource Branch employee filtering and preserving water samples at the field site for chemistry analysis. Photo Credit: Cathy Flanagan/USFWS
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Alaska Refuges’ Aquatic Ecosystem Studies Benefit from Partnerships
September 12, 2011
One of the mandated purposes for each of Alaska's National Wildlife Refuges is to ensure water quality and quantity. Surface water contained in the Alaska Refuge System’s 77 million acres consists of an abundance of rivers, lakes, wetlands, snowfields, and glaciers. These aquatic ecosystems remain a barometer for the health of the larger landscape. Changes in the water quality and quantity can impact fisheries, wildlife habitat and human health.
Read More...
Kim Klein (far left) and Judy Jacobs (far right) teach the public about endangered species at the Anchorage Fish and Wildlife Field Office's Chester Creek Celebration.
Photo Credit: C.Rezabeck/USFWS |
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Anchorage’s Chester Creek Celebration
August 26, 2011
It rained hard the morning of Saturday, August 20th, but the weather didn’t deter the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Anchorage Field Office from hosting its first “Chester Creek Celebration” event. Starting at the restored channel at the outlet of Westchester Lagoon and heading a mile or so east on the Chester Creek trail, visitors had an opportunity to stroll and learn about a variety of topics from local Fish & Wildlife Service biologists and non-government partners. Each of the six tented stations focused on a different topic – habitat restoration, migratory birds, invasive species, water quality and contaminants, endangered species, and resident fish – with live organisms at all but one: guess which? Partners that assisted with the event included Audubon Alaska, Anchorage Waterways Council, and Citizens against Noxious Weeds Invading the North. The kids enjoyed fun activities and the adults had opportunities to tap the experts for information. For those hardy adults and energetic kids in rain gear, the weather was irrelevant!
Blackfish Lake on Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Photo Credit: USFWS |
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Service Seeks Public Comment on Future Management of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
August 15, 2011
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today opened public comment on a draft plan developed to ensure long-term conservation of fish, wildlife and plants, and to sustain outdoor recreational opportunities and environmental education and interpretation in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
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