Background Articles

A new conservation initiative allows the Nuiqsut community and its Native corporation to oversee 1 million acres around Teshekpuk Lake to protect caribou habitat from oil drilling impacts.

Wolves in Katmai, Alaska, have been observed hunting sea otters and seals, suggesting a significant ecological link between land and marine life.

Some residents in Fort Smith, N.W.T., say they're seeing more bears in and around town this year, and it's not clear why.

No one knows how many birds are infected with avian influenza along the coast of Finnmark. In Vadsø, seagulls sit next to dozens of dead birds.

With recent events between Musk ox, humans, and dogs, Nome looks for solutions to mitigate the problem. As they graze on patches of grass, often within city limits, the potential for dog conflict and even human interactions are becoming common.

Scientists think a traumatized orca initiated the assault on boats after a "critical moment of agony" and that the behavior is spreading among the population through social learning.

When you see a wild bird such as a duck or seagull, think bird flu. Because it’s actually more likely than not they’re infected with the virus. And many species of wild birds are asymptomatic, meaning that they don’t show any symptoms.

A video of the reindeer on the steps of the wind turbine has caused wonder. Aren't the animals intimidated by wind power anyway? Here are some reasons why it is so difficult to find clear facts and secure figures.

The pack killed all the black-tailed deer on the island and another established pack back on the mainland was preventing their return. Scientists assumed they would die off from starvation.

A polar bear that killed a young mother and her baby last month in western Alaska was likely an older animal in poor physical condition.

For isolated communities at the top of the world, keeping the planet’s largest land predators -- polar bears -- out of town is key to coexistence.

A study – now in its eighth year – has found a remarkably diverse diet among the region’s wolf population. Sea otter has become a primary source of food.  

Birds that USFWS sent in from the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) for testing for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) have tested positive. Sabines gulls, glaucous gulls, and black brant all tested positive for HPAI.

By Megan Gannon

News of avian flu outbreaks in dozens of states in the lower 48 have wildlife managers and bird hunters on edge as the spring migration gets underway in Alaska.

Bohemian waxwings are a wintertime fixture in Anchorage, darting in large flocks from one berry-filled tree to another.

Coyotes in Stanley Park are displaying novel aggressive behaviour towards humans. Rates of aggressive encounters prompted park management to call for the cull of up to 35 coyotes and a temporary nighttime closure of the park.

William Twardek, a Carleton University PhD student who's been studying Yukon River chinook salmon, says his four-year research project has found that some fish simply can't make it past the fish ladder to reach their spawning grounds.

The man pretended to play dead during the attack and the bear ran away, a wildlife biologist said. He sustained injuries to his head and arms but troopers said he was in stable condition Monday.

There is a unexplained trend with sea otter carcasses on the beaches in Katmai National Park and Preserve. Many of the dead animals appeared to be in their prime.