List of public pages created with Protopage

Introduction

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Brooks Range

1st hour Researchers

Dalton Lake

Nikki Stanislawski

Kelly Champion

www.google.com

environmenal information

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arctic national wild life refuge

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) consists of 19 million acres in northeast Alaska. It is administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in the Department of the Interior (DOI). Its 1.5 million acre coastal plain is currently viewed as one of the most likely U. S. onshore oil and gas prospects. According to the U. S. Geological Survey, there is even a small chance that taken together, the fields on this federal land could hold as much economically recoverable oil as the giant field at Prudhoe Bay, found in 1967 on the state-owned portion of the coastal plain west of ANWR, now estimated to have held 11-13 billion The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) consists of 19 million acres in northeast Alaska. It is administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in the Department of the Interior (DOI). Its 1.5 million acre coastal plain is currently viewed as one of the most likely U. S. onshore oil and gas prospects. According to the U. S. Geological Survey, there is even a small chance that taken together, the fields on this federal land could hold as much economically recoverable oil as the giant field at Prudhoe Bay, found in 1967 on the state-owned portion of the coastal plain west of ANWR, now estimated to have held 11-13 billion barrels.barrels.

the arctic wildlife refuge map www,FossWeb.com

http.www.google.com

www.youtube.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drINEQFXbPY&feature=player_detailpaghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drINEQFXbPY&feature=player_detailpage

organisms

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www.fossweb.com

http://www.google.com

Polar bear on ice

The Arctic is a region of extremes--extreme cold, extreme seasonal changes in daylight, and high winds. It sits at the top of world, covered in sea ice--a seemingly unwelcome place for life. Yet the Arctic is actually teeming with wildlife--from large mammals like walruses and polar bears to birds, fish, small plants and even tiny ocean organisms called plankton. Living alongside the diverse Arctic wildlife are indigenous peoples who have adapted to the Arctic's extreme conditions and call the region home.

What is the Arctic?

The Arctic is landscape is a combination of:

The outer edge of the Arctic, which includes areas of Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Russia, is tundra and glaciers with large areas sea ice around the pole.

Because of its polar location and the tilt of the earth, the Arctic does not have the normal seasons that we are used to in the continental United States. An Arctic winter has days without sunlight and the summer has days where the sun never sets (which is why it is called the land of the "Midnight Sun").

Throughout the year, the temperature can widely range. A short growing season, permafrost and long, dark winters of extreme cold and strong winds mean that the Arctic is nearly treeless and only small plants can grow.

www.fossweb.com/http://arctic.fws.gov/wildlife_habitat.htm

All organisms living in Arctic National Wildlife

 

caribou, as well as polar bears and musk xo

  • Refuge mammal list
  • Gray Wolf
  • Wolf Story: A family of wolves
  • Wolf Story (Polish language version)
  • Polar Bears
  • Polar bear denning locations and habitats
  • Brown Bears
  • Black Bears
  • Moose migration study
  • Wildlife Trends: North Slope Moose
  • Caribou (Porcupine Caribou Herd, Central Arctic Herd, Caribou and the Coastal Plain)
  • Maps of Caribou locations
  • Caribou movements in a late spring year (1987)
  • A Caribou Year (and a scientist's year)
  • Frequently Asked Questions about Caribou
  • Three caribou herds
  • Muskoxen
  • Dall Sheep

  • Birds:

  • Fish:

  • foss cards

    Consumer

    Snowy Owl

    Snowshoe Hare

    Arctic Fox

    Lynx

    Willow Ptarmigan

    Musk Ox

    Cotton Grass

    Mosquito

    Caribou

    Least Weasel

    Wolverine

    Brown Lemming

    Black Fly

    Brown Bear

    abiotic factors

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    www.fossweb.com

    Frost, snowfall, and freezing conditions shape the tundra landscape in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The extreme cold creates a layer of permanently frozen soil called permafrost. In May when the snow melts, the surface soil becomes waterlogged because water can't drain through the permafrost. The region becomes saturated with standing water and flowing streams.

    Because the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is so far north, entirely above the Arctic Circle, the growing season is short, only 50–60 days. During summer the Sun never dips below the horizon, but its long, slanting rays do little to heat up the air. Temperatures range from 2 to12°C (36 to 54°F). During winter the Sun never rises above the horizon. The noon sky looks like predawn. In winter, the temperature averages –34°C (–30°F).

    There is little precipitation in winter or summer. Yearly precipitation, including snow, is only 15–25 centimeters (6–10 inches). Wind is a major factor in this area and can blow up to 160 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour).

    Courtesy of ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc.
    Snow still covers the windswept tundra in spring.

    Snow can benefit plants and animals because of its insulating qualities. Snow shelters plants and animals from the strong winds and protects the ground from disturbance. Small mammals, such as lemmings, make tunnels beneath the snow and avoid detection by predators.

    Courtesy of Environment Canada, Yukon
    Snow that falls in the winter often melts during May.

    The ground has two layers, an active layer and a permafrost layer. The top active layer is made of dead and partially decayed plant material. It is very wet because the water cannot drain through the permafrost below. The active layer is not considered true soil, because the plant material decomposes too slowly. The depth of the active layer changes through the season from 0 to 45.5 centimeters (0 to 18 inches). Below the active layer is permafrost, made up of gravel, frozen groundwater, and finer material. Permafrost never thaws.

    human factors

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    www.fossweb.com

    A long-standing issue in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is whether the coastal plain should be developed for oil drilling. Other areas in Alaska, such as Prudhoe Bay, have already experienced oil drilling. Petroleum scientists have examined part of the refuge, called Area 1002, and predict that oil is there. When the U.S. Congress established the Arctic National Wildlife Range in 1960, they made provisions to authorize future oil development in the northern part. People have been debating the issue of oil and gas drilling in Area 1002 for almost 40 years.

    Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
    A developed oil field might look like this one in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.

    The process of drilling for oil

    Oil, like other fossil fuels, comes from decayed and pressurized plant material that has been buried and partially fossilized. Deep beneath the surface and permafrost, oil moves through rocks with microscopic holes (porous rock) until it comes in contact with nonporous rock. It collects at the contact of these two types of rock. The first step in drilling for oil is determining if a location has the kinds of rocks that are associated with oil deposits. Scientists can tell about buried rock by drilling cores of the rock or by tracing sound waves as they travel through different rock types (seismic surveying). Next, oil wells are built, tapping into the deposit. The high pressures underground force the oil up the well, where it can be collected. A pipeline transports this crude oil to a refinery. Here the crude oil is refined to oil that can be used to generate electricity or lubricate machines. In the arctic, oil development in isolated areas involves building roads, drilling platforms, pipelines, refineries, and housing facilities for workers.

    Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
    Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
    During seismic exploration activities in March 1985, vehicles compacted the snow and damaged underlying plants. Fifteen years later, scars from the seismic exploration activities can still be seen.

    food web

    Photos

    Arctic foodweb

    producers

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    www.fossweb.com

    COTTON GRASS

    Courtesy of Denali National Park
    A field of cotton grass may look like snow in the summer.

    Cotton-grass flower
    Cotton-grass flowers

    KINGDOM: Plantae
    DIVISION: Magnoliophyta
    GENUS: Eriophorum
    Did You Know...
    The cottony heads are modified sepals and petals of many flowers.
    PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION Patchy clumps of erect stems topped with a cottony head. Leaves are shaped like grass blades.
    SIZE 20–100 cm (8–40 in.) tall
    RANGE Tundra, taiga, and wetlands throughout Northern Hemisphere near temperate to polar swamps and bogs
    NATURAL HISTORY Cotton grass is much shorter in the tundra. It grows in clumps like grass, but it is a sedge. Member of the sedge family.
    FOOD Produced through photosynthesis
    PREDATOR Reindeer, caribou, elk, deer, rabbits, hares, birds, and small rodents
    SHELTER Open swamps and bogs in cold climates
    REPRODUCTION Flowers are small cottony tufts that occur in clusters.
    ABIOTIC IMPACT Productivity depends on light, water, and temperature levels.
    HUMAN IMPACT Because of a short growing season, cotton grass takes many years to recover from disturbance by humans.
    Lawrence Hall of Science   © 2006 UC Regents. All rights reserved.     
    Updated August 28, 2006

     

    foss cards

    Because of the permafrost, plants in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge do not have deep roots. Only hardy plants that grow close to the ground can endure the effects of wind and cold temperatures. Grasses and sedges form in protective clumps called tussocks, and shrubs like willow and Labrador tea tend to be small species, under 1 meter (3 feet) tall. Because of the short growing season, many plants rely on asexual reproduction, such as cloning or budding, instead of flowering and forming seeds.

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    Sedges form tussocks on

    the tundra.

    primary consumers

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    www.fossweb.com

    MOSQUITO

    Courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture
    Only female mosquitoes feed on the blood of mammals. They must have blood to reproduce. Males eat only plant nectar.

    Female mosquito
    Mosquito swarm
    Mosquito larva
    Mosquito mouth

    KINGDOM: Animalia
    PHYLUM: Arthropoda
    GENUS: Aedes
    SPECIES: sp.
    Did You Know...
    Nearly 4000 species of insects live in the Arctic tundra. They are especially bothersome to mammals that cannot escape to a den, such as the caribou. Mammals with very dense fur, such as the mink, are not bothered.
    PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION Insect with six long legs and long proboscis for drinking blood from its prey
    SIZE Up to 1 cm (0.4 in.)
    RANGE Found worldwide in moist areas
    NATURAL HISTORY Mosquitoes flourish in poorly drained tundra bogs. An irritant to both humans and wildlife, reactions to their bites range from stinging to severe allergic reactions. They can carry malaria-like diseases.
    FOOD Females drink blood and plant nectar. Males drink only plant nectar. Females are attracted to the blood of mammals.
    PREDATOR Fish, anoles, frogs, and birds
    SHELTER Larvae are found in quiet water.
    REPRODUCTION Eggs survive over winter, and larvae are found in running water. Adults emerge in spring, with a peak in June and July.
    Lawrence Hall of Science   © 2006 UC Regents. All rights reserved.     
    Updated August 28, 2006

     

    Secondary Consumers

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    GRAY WOLF

    Courtesy of National Park Service
    The gray wolf was once found throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Today, in North America they are found mainly in Canada and Alaska, with a few in Minnesota and Mexico.

    Gray wolf howling
    Wolves hunting
    Gray wolf with kill

    KINGDOM: Animalia
    PHYLUM: Chordata
    GENUS: Canis
    Did You Know...
    Gray wolves mate for life and form very tight family packs. All members of the pack care for the young pups. Members of a pack communicate with yelps, whines, growls, and barks.
    PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION Largest wild member of the dog family. Usually grizzled gray, but with many color variations, the gray wolf has a broad head, muscular legs, large feet, and a large, bushy, black-tipped tail. Females are often slightly smaller.
    SIZE 2 m (6.5 ft.) long, including tail; 20–80 kg (45–175 lb.)
    RANGE Taiga and tundra in Alaska and Canada; few in extreme northern United States. Reintroduced packs now in Yellowstone National Park and nearby.
    NATURAL HISTORY Wolves are intelligent and social animals that live in packs of up to two dozen. A pack has a strict social and dominance hierarchy and a clearly defined home territory. Leading the pack are an alpha male and female pair and their offspring of various ages.
    FOOD Elk, caribou, moose, musk ox, rabbits, hares, foxes, minks, rodents, and birds
    PREDATOR Flies and mosquitoes feed on blood.
    SHELTER Forests and open tundra. Breeding dens have a small opening, with burrows 2–15 m (6.5–50 ft.) deep.
    REPRODUCTION Mating occurs in February and March, with young born in April and June. Litters average seven pups, born in a hollowed out den without nesting material. Pups emerge after a month to play when guarded by an adult.
    HUMAN IMPACT Eradicated from many regions by humans to protect livestock
    Lawrence Hall of Science   © 2006 UC Regents. All rights reserved.     
    Updated August 28, 2006