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Alaska Science Center

The mission of the Alaska Science Center is to provide objective and timely data, information, and research findings about the earth and its flora and fauna to Federal, State, and local resource managers and the public to support sound decisions regarding natural resources, natural hazards, and ecosystems in Alaska and circumpolar regions. We have offices in Anchorage, Juneau, and Fairbanks. 

News

Shorebirds and Roads: How Human-altered Landscapes Influence Shorebird Movements in Alaska

Shorebirds and Roads: How Human-altered Landscapes Influence Shorebird Movements in Alaska

Sixty-seven years and still digging! A brief history of the USGS Benchmark Glacier Project

Sixty-seven years and still digging! A brief history of the USGS Benchmark Glacier Project

Alaska Science Center Newsletter – 2024 Yearly Review

Alaska Science Center Newsletter – 2024 Yearly Review

Publications

Reconstruction of Holocene and Last Interglacial vegetation dynamics and wildfire activity in Southern Siberia

Wildfires are a rapidly increasing threat to boreal forests. While our understanding of the drivers behind wildfires and their environmental impact is growing, it is mostly limited to the observational period. Here we focus on the boreal forests of southern Siberia and exploit a U–Th-dated stalagmite from Botovskaya Cave, located in the upper Lena region of southern Siberia, to document...
Authors
Jade Margerum, Julia Homann, Stuart Umbo, Gernot Nehrke, Thorsten Hoffmann, Anton Vaks, Aleksandr Kononov, Alexander Osintsev, Alena Maria Giesche, Andrew Mason, Franziska A. Lechleitner, Gideon M. Henderson, Ola Kwiecien, Sebastian F.M. Breitenbach

Exposure of wild mammals inhabiting Alaska to influenza A(H5N1) virus

Serum samples from wild mammals inhabiting Alaska, USA, showed that 4 species, including Ursus arctos bears and Vulpes vulpes foxes, were exposed to influenza A(H5N1) viruses. Results indicated some mammals in Alaska survived H5N1 virus infection. Surveillance efforts may be improved by incorporating information on susceptibility and detectable immune responses among wild mammals.
Authors
Andrew M. Ramey, Kimberlee B. Beckmen, David T. Saafeld, Kerry Nicholson, Buck A. Mangipane, Laura Celeste Scott, David E. Stallknecht, Rebecca L. Poulson

Delineating ecologically-distinct groups for annual cycle management of a declining shorebird

1. Patterns of migratory connectivity are increasingly used to understand and manage threats throughout the annual cycle of migratory species. Strong migratory connectivity refers to when individuals from different populations remain spatially separated across the annual cycle, which may expose populations to unique sets of threats and conditions that cause differential population trends...
Authors
Elly C. Knight, Jay Carlisle, Andy J. Boyce, David Bradley, Paula Cimprich, Stephanie Coates, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Cory J. Gregory, Joel G. Jorgensen, Jeffrey F. Kelly, David Newstead, Alina Olalla, Larkin A. Powell, Amy L. Scarpignato, T. Lee Tibbitts, Nils Warnock, Walter Wehtje, Peter P. Marra, Autumn-Lynn Harrison

Science

Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
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Detecting Long-term Changes in Forage Fish Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

Forage fish are small pelagic schooling fish that play a key role in transferring energy between plankton and top marine predators. Many seabirds, marine mammals, and commercial fish species depend on forage fish to grow and survive.
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Q&A: The Role of USGS Ecosystems Science in Alaska

The USGS is the science arm of the Department of the Interior (DOI) with a mission to provide timely and impartial science information to decision-makers, industry, and others. Topics of USGS research and monitoring in Alaska include Ecosystems, Energy and Minerals, Geology, Water Resources, and Natural Hazards. At the Ecosystems Office of the USGS Alaska Science Center, research and monitoring...
link

Q&A: The Role of USGS Ecosystems Science in Alaska

The USGS is the science arm of the Department of the Interior (DOI) with a mission to provide timely and impartial science information to decision-makers, industry, and others. Topics of USGS research and monitoring in Alaska include Ecosystems, Energy and Minerals, Geology, Water Resources, and Natural Hazards. At the Ecosystems Office of the USGS Alaska Science Center, research and monitoring...
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Flood Frequency Data Collection for Alaska and Conterminous Drainage Basins in Canada

Estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are needed for engineering design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood-insurance studies, flood-plain management, and other water-resource purposes. In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated flood frequency and magnitude for selected streamgages in Alaska and conterminous basins in Canada and developed methods for...
link

Flood Frequency Data Collection for Alaska and Conterminous Drainage Basins in Canada

Estimates of the magnitude and frequency of floods are needed for engineering design of transportation and water-conveyance structures, flood-insurance studies, flood-plain management, and other water-resource purposes. In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated flood frequency and magnitude for selected streamgages in Alaska and conterminous basins in Canada and developed methods for...
Learn More
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