Publications

We describe several encounters between Brown Bears (Ursus arctos) and Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) that were observed at Katmai National Park and Preserve in southwest Alaska. Katmai Brown Bears and Gray Wolves were observed interacting in a variety of behavioral modes that ranged from agonistic to tolerant. These observations provide additional insight regarding the behavioral plasticity...

The major drivers of Kenai Fjords ecosystems are tectonics and climate. In this overview, we describe how these forces have contributed to the shaping of the lands and ecosystems of Kenai Fjords. Physically, the park is comprised of several distinct components, set within a broader ecophysical framework that includes the Kenai Peninsula and coastal marine waters and islands. Squeezed...

Finely crystalline amphibole or pyroxene rims that form during reaction between silicic host melt and cognate olivine xenocrysts, newly introduced during magma mixing events, can provide information about the timing between mixing and volcanic eruptions. We investigated rim growth experimentally by placing forsteritic olivine in rhyolitic and rhyodacitic melts for times between 25 and...

Sea otters possess physical characteristics and life history attributes that provide both opportunity and constraint to their study. Because of their relatively limited diving ability they occur in nearshore marine habitats that are usually viewable from shore, allowing direct observation of most behaviors. Because sea otters live nearshore and forage on benthic invertebrates, foraging...

In geese, growth regulates survival in the first year. We examined whether early growth, which is primarily governed by environmental conditions, also affects the probability that individuals that survive their first year enter the breeding population. We used logistic regression on a sample of Black Brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) that were weighed at a known age in their first summer...

Polar bears give birth in snow dens in midwinter and remain in dens until early spring. The survival and development of cubs is dependent on a stable environment within the maternal den. To mitigate potential disruption of polar bear denning by existing and proposed petroleum activities, we used forward-looking infrared (FLIR) viewing to try to detect heat rising from dens.We flew...

Arctic multiyear sea ice concentration maps for January 1988-2001 were generated from SSM/I brightness temperatures (19H, 19V, and 37V) using modified multiple layer perceptron neural networks. Learning data for the neural networks were extracted from ice maps derived from Okean and ERS satellite imagery to capitalize on the stability of active radar multiyear ice signatures. Evaluations...

Estimates of nest success are widely applied in order to evaluate a multitude of theoretical and practical issues. Frequently, however, researchers fail to limit their inferences to the appropriate spatial scale. We evaluated small-scale variation in nest success of Western Sandpipers Calidris mauri during a four-year study on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in western Alaska. We use these...

We provide recommendations on the best practices for mist netting for the purposes of monitoring population parameters such as abundance and demography. Studies should be carefully thought out before nets are set up, to ensure that sampling design and estimated sample size will allow study objectives to be met. Station location, number of nets, type of nets, net placement, and schedule...

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

Dungeness crabs (Cancer magister) were sampled with commercial pots and counted by scuba divers on benthic transects at eight sites near Glacier Bay, Alaska. Catch per unit of effort (CPUE) from pots was compared to the density estimates from dives to evaluate the bias and power of the two techniques. Yearly sampling was conducted in two seasons: April and September, from 1992 to 2000...