Background Articles

“This is unprecedented in the United States for a mature, rationalized fishery to suffer a stock collapse, in part due to climate change,” the executive director of the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers said.

There were no bugs buzzing around the lights in the parking lot.

Alaska fishermen face challenges as the Bering Sea crab harvest resumes, with environmental and economic upheaval threatening the future of the industry. Scientists are questioning whether full recovery is possible in a warming world for these ailing crab populations that have supported some of the world’s most lucrative fisheries.

An aerial survey of the moose population in Zone 17 and the southern part of Zone 22 carried out in 2021, shows a 35 per cent decline in moose populations, a moderate and concerning decline, says Cree Grand Chief Mandy Gull-Masty.

“While many factors, such as weather, climate change and changes to the historical extent and timing of caribou migration may be contributing to lower harvests by federally qualified subsistence users, the board should act to help ensure that rural residents are able to meet their subsistence need, and to provide for a subsistence priority,” said Thomas Heinlein, acting Alaska director for the Bureau of Land Management, during the board meeting.

Rising temperatures and dwindling oxygen levels are decimating marine species. But humanity can avert mass die-offs by curbing fossil fuel use and other planet-warming activities.

Trees purify the air and generate economic benefits, but unbridled development in cities is increasingly changing growing environments

Forty-two reindeer were found foraging among the skeletal remains of a herd on St. Matthew’s Island, a remote patch of Alaskan land in the Bering Sea. What makes it most puzzling is that only three years earlier, the same herd numbered 6,000 animals.

White-nose syndrome has wiped out millions of bats in North America, pushing researchers to look at alternative roosts like bat boxes. But the U.S. bat box designs may not suit Canadian bats.

When it comes to avian influenza, more commonly known as bird flu, all birds are not created equal.

Researchers say warmer waters themselves aren’t killing crabs, but they may be allowing predators to move in and disease to spread more easily.

Researchers at Oregon State University are studying the relationship between sunflower sea stars and sea urchins to determine if the reintroduction of the sea stars can help protect declining kelp forests from overgrazing by sea urchins.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced it was closing the 2023-24 Bering Sea snow crab season for the second season in a row.

Widespread mortality of Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. returning to spawn in Alaska coincided with record-breaking air temperatures and prolonged drought in summer 2019.

Ecologist

Sheila Colla

has developed an impressive skill. Picture a

Where’s Waldo

puzzle book, but instead of combing the crowd for someone ...

Deprived of once plentiful seagrass, more than 900 have died this year. Some experts contend they were taken off the endangered species list prematurely.

Salmon runs in Alaska's Kuskokwim River show some improvement compared to last year, but overall numbers remain low, with chum and coho salmon still below long-term averages, while Chinook salmon meet escapement goals through precautionary management and sacrifices by subsistence users.

Canada’s Western Hudson Bay polar bear population has fallen 27 percent in just five years, according to a government report released last week, suggesting climate change is impacting the animals.

The clam population crashed on the east side of Cook Inlet about a decade ago and has been slow to bounce back.

Berry pickers have long reported that the number of wild berries has been diminishing, and a 26-year study is now confirming the unexplained decline.