The Nature of Southeast Alaska


Book Description

“Unlike the standard nature guides that explain how to recognize common animals, Nature stresses the web of interrelationships that link the regional flora and fauna. This affectionate examination of some of North America’s most spectacular surviving old-growth forests will delight backpackers and armchair naturalists.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review Everything you ever wanted to know about the flora and fauna of Southeast Alaska is contained in the third edition of this lively field guide to the natural world, from bears to banana slugs, mountains to murrelets. The authors, who are both Alaskan residents and biologists, combine scientific research with personal experiences to make a definitive field guide for residents of or visitors to Southeast Alaska. The unique features of the book include: In-depth information about how wildlife coexists with the environment Detailed discussions of mammals, birds, fish, invertebrates, fungi, and plants Detailed map of wilderness areas in Southeast Alaska More than 200 black-and-white illustrations A bibliography, list of common and scientific names, and an index New to this edition: More than 100 new illustrations, many never before published, as well as new maps and photos Major expansion of sections on geology, old-growth forests, marine mammals, and amphibians Fifty-two new sidebars—written in the first person to give the text a more personal touch­—that describe recent findings or experiences. Sweeping updates and elaborations to chapter narratives—often thanks to technology unknown in 1992. In-depth guide to Southeast Alaska’s flora and fauna; more than an identification manual, Nature explores how the species and habitats encountered in the woods and waters of Southeast Alaska fit into the bigger picture.




Geology of Southeast Alaska


Book Description

The most powerful forces on earth have shaped the landscape of Southeast Alaska. Scientists and visitors from around the world trek north to experience wild rivers, powerful glaciers, and breathtaking mountain peaks. Now, for the first time, a handy guide to the region is available. Complete with color illustrations revealing millions of years of geological history and in-depth descriptions of Sitka, Juneau, and Glacier Bay, Geology of Southeast Alaska is essential reading for anyone fascinated by rock and ice in motion. Written by a geologist with over twenty-five years of experience in the north, Geology of Southeast Alaska will entertain and inform with abundant photographs and detailed drawings. Whether you want to understand the forces that shaped the state of Alaska, or you want to learn the basics of glacial movement, this compact, authoritative book is for you.




Alaska's Southeast


Book Description

Discover the rich landscape and scenic beauty of Alaska's Inside Passage, including Skagway, Haines, Juneau, Sitka, Petersburg, Wrangell, and Ketchikan. Alaska's Southeast details the region's history, culture, geography, and flora and fauna. It also provides extensive information on when to go, what to bring, how to get there and how to get around, where to eat, and where to stay. With more than 10 million acres of forest, 1,000 islands, 10,000 miles of shoreline, 50 to 70 major glaciers, and thousands of brown bears and eagles, Alaska's Southeast offers much to be explored.




The Fishermen's Frontier


Book Description

In The Fishermen's Frontier, David Arnold examines the economic, social, cultural, and political context in which salmon have been harvested in southeast Alaska over the past 250 years. He starts with the aboriginal fishery, in which Native fishers lived in close connection with salmon ecosystems and developed rituals and lifeways that reflected their intimacy. The transformation of the salmon fishery in southeastern Alaska from an aboriginal resource to an industrial commodity has been fraught with historical ironies. Tribal peoples -- usually considered egalitarian and communal in nature -- managed their fisheries with a strict notion of property rights, while Euro-Americans -- so vested in the notion of property and ownership -- established a common-property fishery when they arrived in the late nineteenth century. In the twentieth century, federal conservation officials tried to rationalize the fishery by "improving" upon nature and promoting economic efficiency, but their uncritical embrace of scientific planning and their disregard for local knowledge degraded salmon habitat and encouraged a backlash from small-boat fishermen, who clung to their "irrational" ways. Meanwhile, Indian and white commercial fishermen engaged in identical labors, but established vastly different work cultures and identities based on competing notions of work and nature. Arnold concludes with a sobering analysis of the threats to present-day fishing cultures by forces beyond their control. However, the salmon fishery in southeastern Alaska is still very much alive, entangling salmon, fishermen, industrialists, scientists, and consumers in a living web of biological and human activity that has continued for thousands of years.




The Nature of Southeast Alaska


Book Description

Plants, animals and habitats of the coast and mountains of southeastern Alaska.




Wildest Alaska


Book Description

This compelling and eerie memoir tells of his odyssey through recorded history and eventually to the bay iteslf, as he explores the dark and unyielding side of nature."--BOOK JACKET.




A Guide to the Birds of Alaska


Book Description

Covers the species known to have occured in Alaska as of June 25, 1979, organized by families. Gives information on identification, status, distribution and habitat.




Native Plants of Southeast Alaska


Book Description

A comprehensive field guide to native ferns, trees, shrubs, grasses, sedges, rushes and herbs found in Southeast and South-central Alaska. Includes: Detailed line drawings for all species Plant descriptions for more than 830 species Keys to family, genus and species Range and abundance information Flowering times Former and alternate taxonomy Food and medicinal uses as well as other information essential for plant enthusiasts, botanists, hikers and naturalists




Sea Stars of British Columbia, Southeast Alaska, and Puget Sound


Book Description

In this expanded and revised edition of Sea Stars of British Columbia, originally published in 1981, Philip Lambert describes 43 species and subspecies of sea stars in the coastal waters of northwestern North America. Lambert has expanded the geographic area to include the region from Glacier Bay in southeastern Alaska to the waters of Juan de Fuca Strait and Puget Sound of northern Washington. The sea star fauna of this region is the most diverse of all the temperate waters of the world. The great age of the Pacific Basin, and the varied habitats along this complex coastline, created by scouring glaciers and other natural forces, have stimulated the evolution of many new forms. Although he covers the coastal waters down to 200 metres below the surface, Lambert lists 26 more species that live below 200 metres and 14 others that occur just outside the region covered by this book.




Haunted Inside Passage


Book Description

A collection of twenty stories showcasing the supernatural legends and unsolved mysteries of Southeast Alaska, with a focus on the region between Yakutat and Petersburg, where the author has lived his entire life, writing, teaching, guiding, commercial fishing, and investigating ghost stories. Each chapter is rooted in Bjorn’s own adventures and will intertwine fascinating history, interviews, and his reflections. Bjorn’s writing, sometimes poignant and often wickedly funny, brings to mind Hunter S. Thompson and Patrick McManus. Chapters touch on legends such as Alexander Baranov, Soapy Smith, James Wickersham, and the Kóoshdaa Káa (Kushtaka) to lesser known but fascinating characters like “Naked” Joe Knowles and purported serial killer Ed Krause. From duplicitous if not downright diabolical humans to demons of the fjords and deep seas and cryptids of the forest, Bjorn presents a lively cross-section of the haunter and the haunted found in Alaska’s Inside Passage.