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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Observations

Abundant Japanese Wireweed (Sargassum muticum)
A species of invasive seaweed is becoming very abundant and displacing native species.
Bamfield, British Columbia, Canada

Plant Has Red Gall
Unusual plant has red buds
Goodnews Bay, Alaska, United States

Invasive weed makes its way into world's largest floatplane base
Elodea, an aggressive invasive plant, was discovered this month in the lake used by hundreds of floatplanes, raising fears that it will be spread to multiple sites within flying reach.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Lightening and Wildfire
There were lightning strike-caused fires at Paul's Creek and Coffee Creek north of King Salmon, AK.
King Salmon, Alaska, United States

Wildfire
Sockeye wildfire at mile post 77 of the George Parks Highway near Willow.
Willow, Alaska, United States

Jeff Lowenfels: A bumper crop of spruce cones
There seems to be an unbelievable bumper crop of spruce cones both in trees and on lawns this spring. Their abundance has been quite a topic of conversation, at least in my circles. It is coneucopia!
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Bittersweet Nightshade (Solanum Dulcamara)
Delta, British Columbia, Canada

Giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) absent around Isla Todos Santos
Around Isla Todos Santos, a massive Giant Kelp (_Macrocystis pyrifera_) bed die-off was observed, which may be linked to the 2015-2016 El Niño event.
Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

Early Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) Blossoms
Salmonberry blossom seem a little early this year.
Sitka, Alaska, United States

Early Pussy Willows
Early pussy willows - Anchorage, Alaska, USA
Anchorage, Alaska, United States

Early Plants
1/27/15 Early plants - Klawock, Alaska, USA
Klawock, Alaska, United States

Squirrel Parka Tail Plants Early
Squirrel parka tail plants early
Togiak, Alaska, United States
Brian Abraham, Aeshia Upton, Gino Graziano

Summer heat, invasive insects take toll on Interior Alaska birch trees
Interior Alaska’s hot and dry summer of 2013, coupled with an invasion of insect pests, has taken a steep toll on the region’s birch trees, experts say.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Berry Harvest Failure
A terrible year for berry harvest in the Upper Nushagak River.
Ekwok, Alaska, United States

Abundant Mossberries (Empetrum nigrum)
A great year for harvesting mossberries.
Cold Bay, Alaska, United States

Berry Harvest Change
Crooked Island, 25 Miles south of Togiak. Remnants of blackberries.
Togiak, Alaska, United States

Abundant Bees
08-17-14 Abundant bees - Eagle River, Alaska, USA
Eagle River, Alaska, United States

Abundance of Fireweed (Chamerion agustifolium) on Popof Island
Abundance of Fireweed on Popof Island
Sand Point, Alaska, United States

Yellow Flowers Genus Arnica
7-14-14 Yellow flowers genus Arnica - Togiak, Alaska, USA
Togiak, Alaska, United States

Abundant Bees and Berries
7-14-14 Abundant bees & berries - King Cove, Alaska, USA
King Cove, Alaska, United States

Early Blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum)
Early blueberries in Jakolof Bay, Alaska
Seldovia, Alaska, United States

Moth invasions cause widespread damage in the sub-arctic birch forest
In just seven years, as much as one-third of the mountain-birch forest in the North Calotte region was severely defoliated by two moth species. Researchers now have a better understanding of what happened.
North Calotte Region, Northern Fennoscandia
ScienceNordic

Early Salmonberry (Rubus chamaemorus) Blossoms
5-27-14 Early salmon berry blossoms - Toksook Bay, Alaska, USA
Toksook Bay, Alaska, United States

High Spruce Pollen
5-25-14 High spruce pollen McDonald Spit, Alaska, USA
Seldovia, Alaska, United States

Pollen Makes for Poor Air Quality
5-19-14 Poor air quality - Anchorage Alaska, USA

Willows Budding in Winter
1-24-14 Winter plants blooming - Bethel, Alaska, USA
Bethel, Alaska, United States

With warm December winds, shaken faith in Arctic weather
Folks here are famous for being able to handle the cold, but anything wet in December has always made us nervous. Especially wet falling from the sky. Lately, weather, our favorite nemesis, has broken the rules. Our confidence in the most-trustworthy feature of the Arctic -- winter -- has been wounded.
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States

Weather Effects Caribou Migration and Season
11-11-13 Weather effects caribou migration and season - Barrow, Alaska, USA
Utqiaġvik, Alaska, United States

Abundant Berries
The blueberries are so ripe now that the best time to pick those are late morning while they are chilled down and the leaves are not so moist, otherwise they fall easily or squish in your fingers.
Kiana, Alaska, United States

Muddy River Raises Salmon Concerns
Thawing permafrost and river bank collapsed on the Cheenik Creek.
Golovin, Alaska, United States

Abundant Salmon Berries (Vaccinium ovalifolium)
The past couple of years there haven't been a lot to pick.
Unalakleet, Alaska, United States

Invasive Fall Dandelion
7-25-13 Invasive dandelion - Levelock, Alaska, USA
Levelock, Alaska, Unites States

More Salmonberries (Rubus chamaemorus)
7-24-13 More salmon berries - Nondalton, Alaska, USA
Nondalton, Alaska, United States

Unusual Lightning
Residents were amazed to see lightning actually arching down to the ground.
Atqasuk, Alaska, United States

High pollen levels
High spruce pollen levels causing eye, respiratory irrigation and nose bleeds.

Spruce Aphid (Elatobium abietinum) Infestation
5-15-13 Spruce aphid infestation Kake, Alaska, USA
Kake, Alaska, United States

Herders caught between cashmere and climate change
Batogoo Dorj is a nomad in southern Mongolia’s Bayankhongor Region who makes his living raising cashmere goats. Each spring, Dorj can shear about 300 grams of the valuable, downy wool from each of his 350 goats. Those voracious and sharp-hoofed animals are contributing to the desertification and climate change that is reducing Mongolia’s available grazing land.
Баянхонгор, Bayanhongor, Mongolia
The UB Post

Bloom Turns Beach Orange
A mystery bloom brightens up local beach.
Annette Islands, Alaska, United States

Spruce Bark Beetle
We are worried about the effects of large infestation and about wildlife.
Fort Yukon, Alaska, United States

Windfall Tree Devastation
The winds came east out of the Chugach Mountains and caused damage to forest, unlike anything we have seen in over 50 years. It is going to be expensive and time consuming to clear the windfall.

Birch trees and bird vetch prompt slew of questions in Interior Alaska
There has been an outbreak in Fairbanks of the amber-marked birch leaf miner (Profenusa thomsoni), an insect that came to North America in the early 1900s and arrived in Fairbanks by about 2002.
Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Steven Seefeldt / Cooperative Extension Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Great Gardening
7-19-12 Great gardening - Anchorage, Alaska, USA

Non-stinging Wasp (Cynipoidea) Larva
Non-sting wasp (cynipoidea) larva
Slana, Alaska, United States

Changing Plant Conditions
More leaf miners this year, less blue berry blossoms, but more cranberry.
Evansville, Alaska, United States

Windfall trees an obstacle
Wind fall trees an obstacle
Gakona, Alaska, United States

The Mystery Rust of Kivalina, Alaska
Last month a mysterious orange film ("goo" in the media vernacular) washed up on the shores of a northwest Alaskan village called Kivalina. An orange powder seems an odd product for the drying of crustacean eggs, but could make perfect sense for fungi -- specifically, the rust fungi.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Scientific American Blog Network

Caterpillars gang up on berry bushes, native trees
The outlook for blueberries in Southcentral Alaska this year is bleak, scientists say. The reason: Two species of moth have damaged berry patches, as well as native deciduous trees, from the southern Kenai Peninsula to Mat-Su.

ALASKA: A havoc-wreaking beetle loose in the forest
STERLING, Alaska — Spent today tramping around the boggy depths of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, which is about a three-hour drive south of Anchorage. Berg The group went there to see h…
Sterling, Alaska, United States
SciGuy

Unusual species of kelp (Aureophycus) identified
Twenty-five students in the Pribilof Island Marine Science Camp have discovered the second-known population of a new species.
Saint George, Alaska, United States

This 'incredibly alien' fungus isn't as scary as you might think
CBC reporter Kaitie Fraser spotted this strange jelly-like substance in her aunt's backyard, growing on a cedar tree. In fact, her aunt said, when she first saw it, it looked like orange flowers at a distance. But when she started to approach it, it looked more like clumps of gummy bears.
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
CBC

Canada's AG warns Nunavut about dangers of not having a climate change action plan
Nunavut is not prepared to deal with the impacts of climate change and doesn't have a plan to deal with them, according to the latest report by Canada's auditor general.
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
CBC News

Growing sense of dread among Swedish farmers as dry weather continues
I am sad to see the crops on my fields being just brown and yellow instead of green. All the hard work we did this spring, it's almost for nothing..." dairy farmer Filip Nilsson told Radio Sweden.
Sweden

Spruce beetles’ expansion into Denali National Park poses questions about forest changes
The aggressive infestation that took hold in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough north of Anchorage in 2016 has now spread north, covering hillsides in the communities outside the park with rustred dead trees and reaching into park boundaries.
Cantwell, Alaska, United States

Invasive slug species slimes into city
The European black slug was first introduced into Alaska in the 1980s in Cordova, Slowik said. It eventually made its way to Juneau and Ketchikan, likely hitching a ride on fishing gear, and is now prevalent across Southeast. A few years ago, people started seeing the slug in Whittier and Girdwood.

North Saskatchewan River Turns Blue
The river, which starts at the Saskatchewan Glacier in the Columbia Icefields and flows through to central Saskatchewan, is usually murky brown by the time it reaches Edmonton in summer. In recent weeks, however, the water has taken on the hues of Alberta's glacial lakes, thanks to dry, hot weather combined with maintenance at a major dam.
North Saskatchewan River, Alberta, Canada
CBC

Red Lily Beetle (Lilioceris lilii) settles in Edmonton, Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Tropical fish follow warmer waters south, devouring kelp forests
They are brightly coloured, beautiful and hungry — tropical fish and sea urchins are thriving in southern waters warmed by climate change. But now they are devastating kelp forests already knocked around by marine heatwaves.
southern Australia
ABC News

Seeing brown birch leaves? It’s not necessarily a sign of fall. Blame leaf-munching larvae
The birch leafminer ate its way through birches across Southcentral and Interior Alaska this summer. Hot and dry weather earlier in summer may have been optimal for them.

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