Nature

Western toads are terrestrial except during the spring mating season. (Photo by Deana Barajas)

On The Trails: Spring birds and toads

In late April, a male yellow-rumped warbler began coming regularly to my deck, visiting the feeders. He picks off mouthfuls of peanut butter, one after… Continue reading

 

Freshwater bryozoans in Auke Lake make gelatinous round colonies. (Photo by KM Hocker)

On The Trails: Bryozoa

Sometime in April, a friend alerted me to some odd ball-shaped structures attached to a spruce log in Auke Lake. These are bryozoans, a type… Continue reading

 

Golden-crowned sparrows come through town on their way to alpine nesting areas. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On The Trails: Spring arrives

Spring is happening, very slowly but surely. Purple mountain saxifrage has been blooming, salmonberry flowers appear, yellow violets are starting to flower. However, I have… Continue reading

 

It’s tough to beat a campfire after a day of steelhead fishing. (Photo by Jeff Lund)

I Went to the Woods: No need to go pro

The coolness with which I lunged for the fish, missed, gathered myself, swept the rod back, lunged again and netted the steelhead was inspiring. I… Continue reading

It’s tough to beat a campfire after a day of steelhead fishing. (Photo by Jeff Lund)
A male belted kingfisher perches to inspect the water below. (Photo by Jos Bakker)

On The Trails: Kingfishers

Kingfishers have captured the fancy of people for centuries. In Greek mythology, the gods caused a man to drown, leaving his lover, a woman named… Continue reading

A male belted kingfisher perches to inspect the water below. (Photo by Jos Bakker)
The steamboat Yukon travels the Yukon River. (Public domain photo)

Alaska Science Forum: An early ascent of the Yukon River

Civil War veteran Charles Raymond was 27 when he accepted an assignment to visit the new U.S. territory of Alaska, a place so far away… Continue reading

The steamboat Yukon travels the Yukon River. (Public domain photo)
A queen bumblebee visits a blueberry flower. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On The Trails: Spring flowers and their pollinators

Spring flowers have co-evolved with insect pollinators for a long time. The flowers require pollen delivery to set seed. To entice insects to visit and… Continue reading

A queen bumblebee visits a blueberry flower. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)
A male red-winged blackbird shows off his colors in a good display. (Photo by Gina Vose)

On the Trails: Springtime

The last part of March seemed to pass slowly, at least for those of use impatient for spring. Each of us has their own sequence… Continue reading

A male red-winged blackbird shows off his colors in a good display. (Photo by Gina Vose)
A pseudoscorpion contemplates a red mite for lunch. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On The Trails: Pseudoscorpions

Just before the spring equinox, a friend and I went out on the Fish Creek Trail one morning on a low tide. We saw five… Continue reading

A pseudoscorpion contemplates a red mite for lunch. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)
(Illustration by Stephanie Harold)

Woven Peoples and Place: Seals, science and sustenance

Xunaa (Hoonah) necropsy involves hunters and students

(Illustration by Stephanie Harold)
A red-winged blackbird male shows off his colorful “epaulets.” (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Spring comes slowly

February ground to a halt and March slowly geared up. Days were getting longer, but the tedious pseudo-spring weather prevailed — no longer really winter… Continue reading

A red-winged blackbird male shows off his colorful “epaulets.” (Photo by Bob Armstrong)
A male peacock showing off its colors. (Jatin Sindhu / CC BY-SA 4.0)

On the Trails: Three observations to ponder

While we are waiting (?patiently?) for spring to really get rolling, here are a few things to think about. • Sexual dimorphism in bird plumage:… Continue reading

A male peacock showing off its colors. (Jatin Sindhu / CC BY-SA 4.0)
A museum visitor mimics pterosaurs flight in the age of the dinosaurs. (Tim Evanson / Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license)

On the Trails: Wings aloft!

When vertebrates moved onto land, long ago, some of them eventually became airborne, way after the insects did. There are three groups of vertebrates that… Continue reading

A museum visitor mimics pterosaurs flight in the age of the dinosaurs. (Tim Evanson / Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license)
At the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China, a giant panda held a bamboo snack with the help of a thumblike digit. (Sharon Fisher / The New York Times)

On the Trails: Little bones

We’re all familiar with the major bones of a human body, although many folks don’t know their official names. Far less well-known are some small… Continue reading

At the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China, a giant panda held a bamboo snack with the help of a thumblike digit. (Sharon Fisher / The New York Times)
Aerial photo of the Juneau airport and newly formed dike around the perimeter in about 1956. Note the absence of any trees and the fully inundated area. (Courtesy Juneau International Airport, photographer unknown).

The path to Juneau’s heart: The Airport Dike Trail

Created as emergency access road for airport, it’s now a popular area for dog walking and birdwatching.

Aerial photo of the Juneau airport and newly formed dike around the perimeter in about 1956. Note the absence of any trees and the fully inundated area. (Courtesy Juneau International Airport, photographer unknown).
This boreal owl has captured a vole. (Photo by Linda Shaw)

On the Trails: Three small owls

We have three small owls that share a lot of characteristics. They are the boreal owl (Aegolius funereus) of North America and Eurasia, known as… Continue reading

This boreal owl has captured a vole. (Photo by Linda Shaw)
Little beetles crawl over a skunk cabbage inflorescence. (Photo by Mary F. Willson)
Little beetles crawl over a skunk cabbage inflorescence. (Photo by Mary F. Willson)
Twigs of red huckleberry are green all year, but brighter in summer than winter. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Tree bark

The center of a tree or shrub stem (from roots to trunk, branches, and twigs) is woody, composed of xylem cells that conduct water from… Continue reading

Twigs of red huckleberry are green all year, but brighter in summer than winter. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)
Jessica Larsen of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute describes her research on Alaska’s Mount Churchill at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union on Dec. 9, 2024. (Photo by Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: The threat within an Alaska mountain

Mount Churchill stands in a white corner of the Alaska map, deceptive in its cold, windblown silence. At least twice in the last few thousand… Continue reading

Jessica Larsen of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute describes her research on Alaska’s Mount Churchill at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union on Dec. 9, 2024. (Photo by Ned Rozell)
An adult double-crested cormorant flies low. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Some January observations

One day, late in January, a friend and I watched two Steller sea lions swimming near Pt. Louisa. One of them held a front flipper… Continue reading

An adult double-crested cormorant flies low. (Photo by Bob Armstrong)