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  • A Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) with a trolling flasher caught in its mouth sits with other Steller sea lions at the Gran Point haulout located on the Lynn Canal near Haines in southeast Alaska. Entanglement in fishing equipment and other marine debris can harm and even cause death in Steller sea lions.<br />
<br />
In a research project by Sea Gypsy Research and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game published in the Marine Pollution Bulletin 58 (2009), researchers noted “when a flasher is near the mouth the hook is probably embedded in the animal’s stomach. Stomach penetration likely leads to peritonitis and death.” Additionally, infection of the jaw can lead to tooth loss or the inability to feed.<br />
<br />
The project found that of ingested fishing gear (longline gear, hook and line, spinners/spoons and bait hooks) salmon fishery flashers accounted for 80% of ingested fishing gear. Researchers estimated that flashers are used by commercial trollers on only 20% of their hooks.<br />
<br />
Trolling flashers like the one shown are used by both commercial and sports fisherman with commercial fisherman. In Alaska, trolling flashers use is legal only in Southeast Alaska. <br />
<br />
There are two distinct populations of Steller sea lions in Alaska. The majority of Stellar sea lions that frequent the Lynn Canal are part of the eastern population of Steller sea lions which are not listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act; unlike the western population of Steller sea lions which are listed as endangered. That said however, there have been confirmed sightings of the western population Steller sea lions at Gran Point.
    Steller sea lion with trolling flash...jpg
  • The town of Haines, in southeast Alaska, celebrates the Fourth of July with a parade, picnic, and other activities. For the parade, the local animal rescue kennel invited pet owners to dress up their pets in patriotic garb to march with them in the parade.<br />
<br />
Haines, a picturesque costal fishing community, is located on the Lynn Canal between the towns of Skagway and Juneau.
    Haines Fourth of July Parade-5.jpg
  • Remains of an animal skull near Wonder Lake in Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Very little remains of dead animals. The body and bones of the carcass will provide food and other nutrients for other wildlife.
    Wonder Lake skull.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) attacks another bald eagle with white wing tips and white talons as they fly above the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. The white wing tips and talons are caused by a leucistic condition -- a condition of reduced pigmentation resulting in white patches. These patches of white can occur while the rest of the animal is colored normal. Unlike albinism, the eye color is normal. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Bald eagle chases leucistic bald eag...jpg
  • Hundreds of unidentified flies hover above a bison (Bison bison) during sunset in the Regal Prairie Natural Area located in Prairie State Park. <br />
<br />
Among the flies that are a pest to bison are horn flies (Haematobia irritans). As many as 500 to 1,500 horn flies will feed on the blood of a bison 20 to 40 times a day.<br />
<br />
Prairie State Park, located near Liberal, Mo. is Missouri’s largest remaining tallgrass prairie. The park’s nearly 4,000 acres is home to bison and elk. Panoramic hillsides of wildflowers such as prairie blazing star, sunflowers, and Indian paintbrush provide a canvas of color. In the fall, prairie grass such as big bluestem and Indian grass may tower as high as 8 feet tall. <br />
<br />
Tallgrass prairie once covered more than 13 million acres of Missouri’s landscape. Today, less than one percent remains. The prairie at Prairie State Park remains because the rocky land was too difficult to plow, which protected it from being farmed. Hiking, animal viewing, camping, birdwatching, and photography are some of the activities that the park affords. <br />
<br />
The Regal Prairie Natural Area is a 240-acre state natural area within the park that is especially noted for its wildflower display. The Nature Conservancy and the Missouri Prairie Foundation provided funding for the purchase of much of the park’s acreage. The area was dedicated as a state park in 1982.
    Flies hover above bison.jpg
  • Bumblebees collect nectar and pollen from prairie blazing star (Liatris pycnostachya) also known as gayfeather along the 1.5-mile Gayfeather Trail in the Regal Prairie Natural Area located in Prairie State Park. The park, located near Liberal, Mo. is Missouri’s largest remaining tallgrass prairie. The park’s nearly 4,000 acres is home to bison and elk. Panoramic hillsides of wildflowers such as prairie blazing star, sunflowers, and Indian paintbrush provide a canvas of color. In the fall, prairie grass such as big bluestem and Indian grass may tower as high as 8 feet tall. <br />
<br />
Tallgrass prairie once covered more than 13 million acres of Missouri’s landscape. Today, less than one percent remains. The prairie at Prairie State Park remains because the rocky land was too difficult to plow, which protected it from being farmed. Hiking, animal viewing, camping, birdwatching, and photography are some of the activities that the park affords. <br />
<br />
The Regal Prairie Natural Area is a 240-acre state natural area within the park that is especially noted for its wildflower display. The Nature Conservancy and the Missouri Prairie Foundation provided funding for the purchase of much of the park’s acreage. The area was dedicated as a state park in 1982.
    Bumblebees and prairie blazing star-...jpg
  • Bumblebees collect nectar and pollen from prairie blazing star (Liatris pycnostachya) also known as gayfeather along the 1.5-mile Gayfeather Trail in the Regal Prairie Natural Area located in Prairie State Park. The park, located near Liberal, Mo. is Missouri’s largest remaining tallgrass prairie. The park’s nearly 4,000 acres is home to bison and elk. Panoramic hillsides of wildflowers such as prairie blazing star, sunflowers, and Indian paintbrush provide a canvas of color. In the fall, prairie grass such as big bluestem and Indian grass may tower as high as 8 feet tall. <br />
<br />
Tallgrass prairie once covered more than 13 million acres of Missouri’s landscape. Today, less than one percent remains. The prairie at Prairie State Park remains because the rocky land was too difficult to plow, which protected it from being farmed. Hiking, animal viewing, camping, birdwatching, and photography are some of the activities that the park affords. <br />
<br />
The Regal Prairie Natural Area is a 240-acre state natural area within the park that is especially noted for its wildflower display. The Nature Conservancy and the Missouri Prairie Foundation provided funding for the purchase of much of the park’s acreage. The area was dedicated as a state park in 1982.
    Bumblebees and prairie blazing star.jpg
  • An American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) rears up and emits a loud but low frequency booming sound. On several early mornings the alligators in the swamp would start booming in unison — somewhat eery and unnerving. This courtship behavior bellowing can be heard up to a mile away. The alligator is in the Gatorland alligator breeding marsh near Orlando, Florida. (captive animal)
    Booming American alligator.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with white wing tips and white talons flies along the Chilkoot River in the  Chilkoot Lake State Recreational Site near Haines, Alaska. The white wing tips and talons are caused by a leucistic condition -- a condition of reduced pigmentation resulting in white patches. These patches of white can occur while the rest of the animal is colored normal. Unlike albinism, the eye color is normal.
    Leucistic bald eagle.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with white wing tips and white talons flies along the Chilkoot River in the  Chilkoot Lake State Recreational Site near Haines, Alaska. The white wing tips and talons are caused by a leucistic condition -- a condition of reduced pigmentation resulting in white patches. These patches of white can occur while the rest of the animal is colored normal. Unlike albinism, the eye color is normal.
    Leucistic bald eagle-2.jpg
  • A dragonfly perches on a sunflower as it oversees its territory along the 1.5-mile Gayfeather Trail in the Regal Prairie Natural Area located in Prairie State Park. Dragonflies hunt mosquitoes and other small flying insects. Prairie State Park, located near Liberal, Mo. is Missouri’s largest remaining tallgrass prairie. The park’s nearly 4,000 acres is home to bison and elk. Panoramic hillsides of wildflowers such as prairie blazing star, sunflowers, and Indian paintbrush provide a canvas of color. In the fall, prairie grass such as big bluestem and Indian grass may tower as high as 8 feet tall. <br />
<br />
Tallgrass prairie once covered more than 13 million acres of Missouri’s landscape. Today, less than one percent remains. The prairie at Prairie State Park remains because the rocky land was too difficult to plow, which protected it from being farmed. Hiking, animal viewing, camping, birdwatching, and photography are some of the activities that the park affords. <br />
<br />
The Regal Prairie Natural Area is a 240-acre state natural area within the park that is especially noted for its wildflower display. The Nature Conservancy and the Missouri Prairie Foundation provided funding for the purchase of much of the park’s acreage. The area was dedicated as a state park in 1982.
    Dragonfly.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with white wing tips and white talons flies above the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. The white wing tips and talons are caused by a leucistic condition -- a condition of reduced pigmentation resulting in white patches. These patches of white can occur while the rest of the animal is colored normal. Unlike albinism, the eye color is normal. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Leucistic bald eagle in flight.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) attacks another bald eagle with white wing tips and white talons as they fly above the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. The white wing tips and talons are caused by a leucistic condition -- a condition of reduced pigmentation resulting in white patches. These patches of white can occur while the rest of the animal is colored normal. Unlike albinism, the eye color is normal. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Leucistic bald eagle attacks.jpg
  • Three male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse perform a mating dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dancin...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceoff each other on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceof...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse is chased by other males on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse chase.jpg
  • A  male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse performs a mating dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dancin...jpg
  • A female Columbian sharp-tailed grouse surveys a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse - fema...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse struts across a lek in southern Wyoming. This photo shows a male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse with its distinctive orange comb and the purple air sacks that they inflate to amplify the courtship call and display their health. Also, note on the down-like feet the fleshy projections on their toes called pectinae. These help distribute the bird’s weight when walking on snow as snowshoes do.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse on lek.jpg
  • A  male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse performs a mating dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dancin...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fighti...jpg
  • A female Columbian sharp-tailed grouse is chased by other males on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse chase ...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceoff each other on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceof...jpg
  • Male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse perform their mating dance on a lek during the pre-dawn in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dancin...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse rests on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse restin...jpg
  • A  male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse takes flight from a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dancin...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fighti...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse surveys a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse restin...jpg
  • A female Columbian sharp-tailed grouse surveys a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse - fema...jpg
  • A  male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse struts across a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse struts.jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faces off with another male on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceof...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse surveys a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse survey...jpg
  • A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse takes flight from a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse in fli...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fighti...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceoff each other on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse stando...jpg
  • Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.<br />
<br />
The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.<br />
<br />
Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
    Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fighti...jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance. EDITORS NOTE: Image is a slightly cropped version of Image ID: I0000xjOvlNPfAYk
    Black bear eating dandelions - 5.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance. EDITORS NOTE: Image is a slightly cropped version of Image ID: I0000hi_N20NHKOQ.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 2.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 1.jpg
  • A Golden crayfish travels in Rocky Creek at Klepzig Mill in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Eminence Mo. Crayfish are in important species in the Ozarks region. As omnivores and scavengers they eat dead animals or plants helping keep rivers and creek clean. Twenty-six species of crayfish can be found in southern Missouri.<br />
<br />
The Ozark National Scenic Riverways was established in 1964, making it America's first national park area to protect a wild river system. The Ozark National Scenic Riverways is known for its caves, springs, sinkholes and losing streams. Visitors can enjoy water activities, such as floating, canoeing, tubing, swimming and fishing. Additionally there are opportunities for hiking, horseback riding and wildlife viewing. Over 130 miles of waterways and 300 identified caves exist within the park.
    Golden crayfish.jpg
  • A Golden crayfish travels in Rocky Creek at Klepzig Mill in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Eminence Mo. Crayfish are in important species in the Ozarks region. As omnivores and scavengers they eat dead animals or plants helping keep rivers and creek clean. Twenty-six species of crayfish can be found in southern Missouri.<br />
<br />
The Ozark National Scenic Riverways was established in 1964, making it America's first national park area to protect a wild river system. The Ozark National Scenic Riverways is known for its caves, springs, sinkholes and losing streams. Visitors can enjoy water activities, such as floating, canoeing, tubing, swimming and fishing. Additionally there are opportunities for hiking, horseback riding and wildlife viewing. Over 130 miles of waterways and 300 identified caves exist within the park.
    Golden crayfish, Ozark National Scen...jpg
  • A dead male salmon lies in the special spawning channel of Herman Creek near Haines after being harvested for its milt by fish technicians with the nonprofit Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association, Inc. (NSRAA). NSRAA built the channel to collect wild broodstock by harvesting spawning female and male salmon for their eggs and milt. In the background, another wild chum salmon powers his way up the creek to spawn. Because the salmon would have died in the creek had it spawned, the NSRAA fish technicians return harvested fish to the creek for bears and other animals to eat just as they would have done had the fish died naturally.<br />
<br />
These salmon are returning to freshwater Herman Creek after three to five years in the saltwater ocean. Spawning only once, chum salmon die approximately two weeks after they spawn. Both sexes of adult chum salmon change colors and appearance upon returning to freshwater. Unlike male sockeye salmon which turn bright red for spawning, male chum salmon change color to an olive green with purple and green vertical stripes. These vertical stripes are not as noticeable in females, who also have a dark horizontal band. Both male and female chum salmon develop hooked snout (type) and large canine teeth. These features in female salmon are less pronounced. <br />
<br />
Herman Creek is a tributary of the Klehini River and is only 10 miles downstream of the area currently being explored as a potential site of a copper and zinc mine. The exploration is being conducted by Constantine Metal Resources Ltd. of Vancouver, British Columbia along with investment partner Dowa Metals & Mining Co., Ltd. of Japan. Some local residents and environmental groups are concerned that a mine might threaten the area’s salmon. Of particular concern is copper and other heavy metals, found in mine waste, leaching into the Klehini River and the Chilkat River further downstream. Copper and heavy metals are toxic to salmon and bald eagles.
    Chum salmon -2.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance. EDITORS NOTE: Image is a slightly cropped version of Image ID: I0000o_hJgKSbYFg
    Black bear eating dandelions - 7.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 6.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 4.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance. EDITORS NOTE: Image is a slightly cropped version of Image ID: I0000BKcCs4KBkEw.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 3.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 8.jpg
  • An American black bear (Ursus americanus), eats dandelions just outside the boundary of Kluane National Park and Preserve along Yukon Highway 3, near Gribbles Gulch in the Yukon Territory, Canada. While most of a black bear’s diet is vegetation, black bears are omnivores meaning that they eat both plants and animals (grasses, berries, roots, insects, fish and mammals). Black bears typically weight 200 to 600 pounds. Not all black bears are black in color -- some are brown or even blond. They are most easily distinguished apart from grizzly bears by the lack of the pronounced shoulder hump found in a grizzly bear. The black bear is not considered to be a threatened species, though care to keep them from getting human food and garbage is needed to protect them from conflicts with humans. Kluane National Park and Reserve is known for it's  massive mountains, spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes including Canada's tallest peak, Mount Logan (19,545 ft.). The 5.4 million acre park is also known for it's wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, caribou and Dall sheep. The park is one of a collection of U.S. and Canadian national and provincial parks that form the largest international protected area in the world. Kluane National Park and Reserve was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being an outstanding wilderness of global significance.
    Black bear eating dandelions - 1.jpg
  • A juvenile bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) sits in a tree and calls in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve along the Chilkat River near Haines, Alaska. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Juvenile bald eagle in tree.jpg
  • In 2001, a 44-year-old pregnant whale was struck by and killed by a cruise ship in the waters of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. As part of a legal settlement with the cruise line, her skeleton was used to make one of the world’s largest humpback interpretive displays. The whale, given the name “Snow”, was 45.5 feet long and weighed 35 tons at the time of her death. Snow’s death contributed to research that helped settle the scientific question of how long humpbacks can live, now believed to be up to 96 years.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales, which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, Steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Whale skeleton exhibit,.jpg
  • The acorn barnacle (Balanus glandula) is one of the most common species of the barnacle found on the Pacific Coast, including these that were photographed in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Acorn barnacles are typically found in the upper intertidal zone attached to rocks, mussels, and pier pilings. Adult acorn barnacles are hermaphroditic (both male and female) but must mate with other individuals to reproduce.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park a popular destination for cruise ships is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Acorn barnacle.jpg
  • A humpback whale dives in the Sitakaday Narrows of the main bay of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in this view seen from Young Island located in the Beardslee Islands of the park in southeast Alaska. In the near background is Marble Mountain and in the far background is Mt. Abdallah.
    Sitakaday Narrows humpback whale 1.jpg
  • Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) relax at their haul-out on South Marble Island in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Large male sea lions will compete to mate with females at outer coast locations in the park, with the unsuccessful or immature bulls gathering at haul-out areas like South Marble Island.<br />
<br />
South Marble Island is also known for its colonies of nesting birds, including tufted puffin, pelagic cormorant, black-legged kittiwake, pigeon guillemot, and common murre.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, Steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Steller sea lions.jpg
  • The skull of a sea otter (Enhydra lutris) lies in the moss of an unnamed island in the Beardslee Islands of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Sea otters, a keystone species of the North Pacific, were almost entirely eliminated by commercial fur hunters in the early 1900s. While they received wildlife protection in 1911, it wasn’t until the early 1990s that sea otters were observed to inhabit Glacier Bay for the first time. As the most abundant marine mammal in Glacier Bay, current estimates put the number of sea otters at 8,000. While orcas are the primary predator of adult sea otters, newborns are preyed upon by bald eagles. Sea otters are positively impacting the kelp forests as the otters protect the kelp forests from excessive grazing by the sea otters’ prey.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Sea otter skull.jpg
  • Among the concerns related to the proposed Juneau Access Improvements Project is the Steller sea lion haulout at Gran Point (pictured). The haulout at Gran Point is a designated Steller sea lion Critical Habitat Area. According to the Alaska Department of Transportation’s 2014 Juneau Access Improvements Project: Draft Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement, more than one hundred Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) have been counted at the haulout during the spring and fall. As currently proposed the proposed highway would be built just uphill from the haulout area, approximately 100 to 600 feet horizontally and 50 to 100 feet vertically.<br />
<br />
Highway plans near the haulout includes blasting steep rock-cut embankments and several tunnels with one tunnel entrance only 550 feet away from the haulout. There is concern for haulout abandonment by the sea lions during highway construction as studies have shown Steller sea lions are very sensitive to noise, both in and out of water. Because Steller sea lions frequent Gran Point nearly year round, the use of explosives and helicopters will be challenging during construction.<br />
<br />
There are two distinct populations of Steller sea lions in Alaska. The majority of Stellar sea lions that frequent the Lynn Canal are part of the eastern population of Steller sea lions which are not listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act; unlike the western population of Steller sea lions which are listed as endangered. That said however, there have been confirmed sightings of the western population Steller sea lions at Gran Point.<br />
<br />
The Juneau Access Improvements Project is a proposed $570-million highway project to extend Glacier Highway out of Juneau for closer road access to the southeast Alaska towns of Haines and Skagway. Juneau’s roads do not connect with the continental road network.<br />
<br />
Editors note: This is a cropped version of image# I00007z0NNeMhXeA
    Steller sea lions -6c.jpg
  • Moss covers the forest floor along the Trail of Time Trail near the Mendenhall Lake and Mendhenall Visitor Center just outside Juneau, Alaska.
    Moss along Trail of Time Trail.jpg
  • The rising tide envelopes a rock encrusted in blue mussels and acorn barnacles on a beach near the Klotz Hills and not far from Maquinna Cove in Muir Inlet in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in southeast Alaska. Prominent in the background is Mt. Wright which is located at the mouth of Adams Inlet. EDITORS NOTE: The use of a slow shutter speed smoothed the action of the waves.
    Klotz Hills beach rock.jpg
  • A humpback whale dives in the Sitakaday Narrows of the main bay of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in this view at sunset seen from Young Island located in the Beardslee Islands of the park in southeast Alaska. In the near background is Marble Mountain and in the far background is Mt. Abdallah.
    Sitakaday Narrows humpback whale sun...jpg
  • A humpback whale engages in "tail slapping" in the Sitakaday Narrows of the main bay of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in this view seen from Young Island located in the Beardslee Islands of the park in southeast Alaska. In the near background is Marble Mountain and in the far background is Mt. Abdallah. It is unknown why whales engage in this behavior but speculation is that it is a way to ward off other whales or the opposite, an invitation to join a group of whales.
    Sitakaday Narrows humback whale tail...jpg
  • Humpback whales blow out air as they breathe in Favorite Channel near Juneau in southeast Alaska. The "blow" or spray is partially caused by water resting on top of the whale's blowholes (nostrils). A humpback whale has two blow holes, whereas some other species of whales only have one.
    Humpback whales blow.jpg
  • Black bear pawprint in the mud  along the Porcupine Road near Herman Creek.
    Black bear paw print.jpg
  • A sea otter (Enhydra lutris) floats on its back in the Sitakaday Narrows of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Sea otters, a keystone species of the North Pacific, were almost entirely eliminated by commercial fur hunters in the early 1900s. While they received wildlife protection in 1911, it wasn’t until the early 1990s that sea otters were observed to inhabit Glacier Bay for the first time. As the most abundant marine mammal in Glacier Bay, current estimates put the number of sea otters at 8,000. While orcas are the primary predator of adult sea otters, newborns are preyed upon by bald eagles. Sea otters are positively impacting the kelp forests as the otters protect the kelp forests from excessive grazing by the sea otters’ prey.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Sea otter.jpg
  • The skull of a sea otter (Enhydra lutris) lies in the moss of an unnamed island in the Beardslee Islands of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Sea otters, a keystone species of the North Pacific, were almost entirely eliminated by commercial fur hunters in the early 1900s. While they received wildlife protection in 1911, it wasn’t until the early 1990s that sea otters were observed to inhabit Glacier Bay for the first time. As the most abundant marine mammal in Glacier Bay, current estimates put the number of sea otters at 8,000. While orcas are the primary predator of adult sea otters, newborns are preyed upon by bald eagles. Sea otters are positively impacting the kelp forests as the otters protect the kelp forests from excessive grazing by the sea otters’ prey.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Sea otter skull-2.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) flaps its wings to dry after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing-5.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) flaps its wings to dry after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing.jpg
  • Male chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) make their way up the special spawning channel of Herman Creek to spawn with female chum salmon during the fall chum salmon run. The nonprofit Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association, Inc. (NSRAA) built the channel to collect wild broodstock by harvesting spawning female and male salmon for their eggs and milt. <br />
<br />
These chum salmon are returning to freshwater Herman Creek near Haines, Alaska after three to five years in the saltwater ocean. Spawning only once, chum salmon die approximately two weeks after they spawn. Both sexes of adult chum salmon change colors and appearance upon returning to freshwater. Unlike male sockeye salmon which turn bright red for spawning, male chum salmon change color to an olive green with purple and green vertical stripes. These vertical stripes are not as noticeable in females, who also have a dark horizontal band. Both male and female chum salmon develop hooked snout (type) and large canine teeth. These features in female salmon are less pronounced. <br />
<br />
Herman Creek is a tributary of the Klehini River and is only 10 miles downstream of the area currently being explored as a potential site of a copper and zinc mine. The exploration is being conducted by Constantine Metal Resources Ltd. of Vancouver, British Columbia along with investment partner Dowa Metals & Mining Co., Ltd. of Japan. Some local residents and environmental groups are concerned that a mine might threaten the area’s salmon. Of particular concern is copper and other heavy metals, found in mine waste, leaching into the Klehini River and the Chilkat River further downstream. Copper and heavy metals are toxic to salmon and bald eagles.<br />
<br />
Chilkat River and Klehini River chum salmon are the primary food source for one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world. Each fall, bald eagles congregate in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, located only three miles downriver from the area of current exploration.
    Chum salmon -3.jpg
  • Steve Lewis, Raptor Management Coordinator, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (left), and Rachel Wheat, a graduate student at the University of California Santa Cruz, remove one of the leg snare traps they used catch bald eagles. Each morning under darkness they would set their traps. Then in the late afternoon they would remove them. Wheat is conducting a bald eagle migration study of eagles that visit the Chilkat River for her doctoral dissertation. She hopes to learn how closely eagles track salmon availability across time and space. The bald eagles are being tracked using solar-powered GPS satellite transmitters (also known as a PTT - platform transmitter terminal) that attach to the backs of the eagles using a lightweight harness. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Bald eagle migration research - 83.jpg
  • Steve Lewis, Raptor Management Coordinator, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (left), and Rachel Wheat, a graduate student at the University of California Santa Cruz, cross the snow-covered gravel bar of the Chilkat River to remove the traps they had set to catch bald eagles. Each morning under darkness they would set their traps. Then in the late afternoon they would remove them. Wheat is conducting a bald eagle migration study of eagles that visit the Chilkat River for her doctoral dissertation. She hopes to learn how closely eagles track salmon availability across time and space. The bald eagles are being tracked using solar-powered GPS satellite transmitters (also known as a PTT - platform transmitter terminal) that attach to the backs of the eagles using a lightweight harness. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Bald eagle migration research - 84.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flies with a salmon carcass past ice covered trees sparkling in the golden light of sunrise at the confluence of the Tsirku and Chilkat Rivers in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. During November and December several thousand bald eagles come to the alluvial delta area at the confluence of the Tsirku and Chilkat Rivers near Haines, Alaska because of the availability of spawned-out salmon and open waters. The open water is due to a deep accumulation of gravel and sand that acts as a large water reservoir whose water temperature remains 10 to 20 degrees warmer than the surrounding water temperature. This warmer water seeps into the Chilkat River, keeping a five mile stretch of the river from freezing as quickly as other rivers in the area. The 48,000 acre area was designated as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve in 1982.
    Bald eagle flying with fish in golde...jpg
  • Bald eagles feed on salmon in the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve in late afternoon light. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River to feed on salmon. This gathering of bald eagles in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve is believed to be one of the largest gatherings of bald eagles in the world.
    Bald eagles in late afternoon light.jpg
  • A rock on the beach in the Muir Inlet near Van Horn Ridge is layered with (top to bottom) rockweed, acorn barnacles, and blue mussels. Muir Inlet is located in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in southeast Alaska.
    Rockweed, acorn barnacles and blue m...jpg
  • A colony of Black-legged kittiwakes occupy the steep vertical cliffs of South Marble Island in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in southeast Alaska.
    South Marble Island black-legged kit...jpg
  • A Steller sea lion barks at other sea lions on South Marble Island in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in southeast Alaska. Male sea lions, called bulls, will bark loudly to defend or establish their territories. To tell the difference between sea lions and seals, sea lions have an ear flap where seals have only a small opening for their ear. Adult male Steller sea lions are noticeably larger than females (sexual dimorphism) and further distinguished by a thick mane of coarse hair. Like other pinnipeds, the fur of Steller sea lions molts ever year.
    South Marble Island sea lions 1.jpg
  • A humpback whale dives in the Sitakaday Narrows of the main bay of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in this view seen from Young Island located in the Beardslee Islands of the park in southeast Alaska.
    Sitakaday Narrows humpback whale 2.jpg
  • A black oystercatcher near its nest on Kidney Island in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve located in the Beardslee Islands of the park in southeast Alaska.
    Black oystercatcher 2.jpg
  • Only humpback whales engage in this social foraging behavior. Not all humpback whales practice this type of group feeding. One whale in the group of whales blows a curtain of bubbles to contain schools of small fish (typically Pacific herring). The whales then rush up to the surface below the encircled fish and capture the fish in their huge mouths which can be unhinged. These whales were photographed from the Alaska Marine Highway System ferry m/v LeConte near Couverden Point while traveling from Juneau to Gustavus, Alaska in the Lynn Canal.
    Whales bubble net feeding.jpg
  • A snowy egret (Egretta thula)  examines the shell of a hatched egg in its nest. The nest is located in the Gatorland alligator breeding marsh and bird sanctuary near Orlando, Florida. The bird sanctuary is the largest and most easily accessible wild wading bird rookery in east central Florida.
    Snowy egret with egg.jpg
  • Bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) survey the Chilkat River from a tree as another  bald eagle flies by above the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve to feed on salmon in what is believed to be the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world.
    bald eagles in trees.jpg
  • A bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) surveys the Chilkat River at sunrise from a tree above the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. During late fall, bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve to feed on salmon in what is believed to be the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world.
    Sunrise with bald eagle.jpg
  • A humpback whales blows out air as it breathes in Favorite Channel near Juneau in southeast Alaska. The "blow" or spray is partially caused by water resting on top of the whale's blowholes (nostrils). A humpback whale has two blow holes, whereas some other species of whales only have one.
    Humpback whale blows.jpg
  • A grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) walks past a camper’s tent on a beach near Tlingit Point in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Grizzly bears can be found in every part of Glacier Bay. It is common to see bear activity of bears along the park’s 1,100 miles of coastline. Bear-resistant food canisters (BFRC) are required to store food for backcountry campers. The use of BRFCs has greatly reduced human-bear incidents in the park. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales, which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, Steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Grizzly bear walks past tent.jpg
  • A grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) disturbs glaucous-winged gulls (Lars glaucescens) on a beach near an unnamed stream next to Tlingit Point in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Grizzly bears can be found in every part of Glacier Bay. It is common to see bear activity of bears along the park’s 1,100 miles of coastline. Bear-resistant food canisters (BFRC) are required to store food for backcountry campers. The use of BRFCs has greatly reduced human-bear incidents in the park. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales, which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, Steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Grizzly bear with gulls.jpg
  • A flock of surf scoters in the East Arm of Glacier Bay in Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska float on the ocean.<br />
<br />
According to the Cornell Ornithology Lab, “surf scoters are “molt migrants,” meaning that after nesting, adults fly to an area where they can molt their flight feathers. They briefly become flightless before continuing to their wintering range, and molting areas provide some protection from weather and predators." These spots include the sheltered waters of Southeast Alaska.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Surf scoters-2.jpg
  • A flock of surf scoters in the East Arm of Glacier Bay in Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska float on the ocean. In the background are  Point George, Mount Case, and Mount Wright.<br />
<br />
According to the Cornell Ornithology Lab, “surf scoters are “molt migrants,” meaning that after nesting, adults fly to an area where they can molt their flight feathers. They briefly become flightless before continuing to their wintering range, and molting areas provide some protection from weather and predators." These spots include the sheltered waters of Southeast Alaska.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Surf scoters.jpg
  • A acorn barnacle and rockweed-covered boulder on the shore of the Muir Inlet of the East Arm of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Red Mountain is the mountain in the left-center of the photo.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park, a popular destination for cruise ships, is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller's sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Muri Inlet.jpg
  • This spent Nuttall’s cockle (Clinocardium nuttallii) shell was photographed in the intertidal zone of a beach in Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Nuttall’s cockle is native to the coastlines of the Pacific Northwest and California. Indigenous peoples consider the clam as a food source.<br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is located in southeast Alaska. The park is also an important marine wilderness area known for its spectacular tidewater glaciers, icefields, and tall coastal mountains. The park a popular destination for cruise ships is also known for its sea kayaking and wildlife viewing opportunities. <br />
<br />
Glacier Bay National Park is home to humpback whales which feed in the park's protected waters during the summer, both black and grizzly bears, moose, wolves, sea otters, harbor seals, steller sea lions, and numerous species of sea birds. <br />
<br />
The dynamically changing park, known for its large, contiguous, intact ecosystems, is a United Nations biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Nuttall’s cockle.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) ruffles its feathers to help dry them after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing-7.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) flaps its wings to dry after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing-6.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) flaps its wings to dry after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing-4.jpg
  • A Canada goose (Branta canadensis) shakes its head after rolling in the waters of Lake Springfield in Springfield, Missouri. Canada geese will roll in water, then flatly bang their wings on the water, then finish by waving the wings back and forth to dry, with a good ruffling of feathers for good measure.<br />
<br />
Canada geese are particularly fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and dry, pulling dirt and water off each feather using the ridges on their mandibles. A good shake and ruffling of their feathers will get them dry. That is followed by oiling their feathers with their bill with oil from the base of their tail. The oil keeps the feathers insulated, dry, and free of parasites.
    Canada goose bathing-3.jpg
  • A Columbian ground squirrel pops its head out of its borrow on a lawn near Lake McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park in Montana.<br />
<br />
Glacier National Park in the Rocky Mountains of Montana encompasses more than 1 million acres. The park’s nickname is the “Crown of the Continent Ecosystem.” The park was established in May 1910. Soon after, hotels and chalets were established in the park, including the Lake McDonald Lodge. In 1932 construction began on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, allowing automobiles to traverse the park. Climate change is affecting the park. As of 2010, only 25 active glaciers remain in the park, down from the 150 that existed in the mid-19th century.
    Columbian ground squirrel.jpg
  • A killer whale or orca (Orcinus orca), travels down the Lynn Canal under the shadow of Nun Mountain at sunset. Nun Mountain is near Juneau in southeast Alaska. <br />
<br />
Orcas are an apex species. Their prey depends on if they are local or transient. Local orcas feed primarily on salmon. While transient orcas feed on small marine mammals such as sea lions, seals, porpoises, and the calves of whales.
    Orca near Nun Mountain.jpg
  • Louis Shoptaugh, a tourist from Springfield, Mo. poses with a taxidermied moose on display at the American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska. <br />
<br />
The American Bald Eagle Foundation, founded in 1982, is a popular tourism attraction. Here tourists can see live raptor demonstrations and interpretive wildlife displays. The foundation also sponsors the Alaska Bald Eagle Festival during the fall for a gathering of bald eagles that is among the largest in the world. The foundation’s website says that it is a non-profit foundation "dedicated to the protection and preservation of bald eagle habitat through sponsoring and facilitating educational and research activities."
    Tourist poses with stuffed moose.jpg
  • An unidentified woman photographs a bald eagle during a feeding demonstration at the American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska. <br />
<br />
The American Bald Eagle Foundation, founded in 1982, is a popular tourism attraction. Here tourists can see live raptor demonstrations and interpretive wildlife displays. The foundation also sponsors the Alaska Bald Eagle Festival during the fall for a gathering of bald eagles that is among the largest in the world. The foundation’s website says that it is a non-profit foundation "dedicated to the protection and preservation of bald eagle habitat through sponsoring and facilitating educational and research activities."
    Eagle feeding demonstration.jpg
  • The back of a pickup truck shows signs of a successful moose hunt during moose hunting season. The truck was photographed near Haines, Alaska.
    Successful moose hunt.jpg
  • The golden light of sunrise causes ice covered trees to sparkle at the confluence of the Tsirku and Chilkat Rivers in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. During November and December several thousand bald eagles come to the alluvial delta area at the confluence of the Tsirku and Chilkat Rivers near Haines, Alaska because of the availability of spawned-out salmon and open waters. The open water is due to a deep accumulation of gravel and sand that acts as a large water reservoir whose water temperature remains 10 to 20 degrees warmer than the surrounding water temperature. This warmer water seeps into the Chilkat River, keeping a five mile stretch of the river from freezing as quickly as other rivers in the area. The 48,000 acre area was designated as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve in 1982.
    Golden light on ice covered trees.jpg
  • A lone bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flies above the ice-laden Chilkat River during sunrise in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. Photographers from around the world come to the Chilkat River to photograph bald eagles. During November and December several thousand bald eagles are seen along the river allowing for ample opportunities to photograph the birds along with beautiful scenery that the area offers. In 1982, the 48,000 acre area was designated as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve.
    Chilkat River sunrise with bald eagl...jpg
  • A lone bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flies above the ice-laden Chilkat River during sunrise in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. Photographers from around the world come to the Chilkat River to photograph bald eagles. During November and December several thousand bald eagles are seen along the river allowing for ample opportunities to photograph the birds along with beautiful scenery that the area offers. In 1982, the 48,000 acre area was designated as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve.
    Chilkat River sunrise with bald eagl...jpg
  • A lone bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flies above the ice-laden Chilkat River during sunrise in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines, Alaska. Photographers from around the world come to the Chilkat River to photograph bald eagles. During November and December several thousand bald eagles are seen along the river allowing for ample opportunities to photograph the birds along with beautiful scenery that the area offers. In 1982, the 48,000 acre area was designated as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve.
    Chilkat River sunrise with bald eagl...jpg
  • Alaskan Dream Cruises "Alaskan Dream" sails past South Marble Island in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in the main bay of the park in southeast Alaska. Alaska Dream Cruises is an Alaska native-owned company.
    Alaskan Dream at South Marble Island.jpg
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