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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

Absence of Tomcods
Erratic temperatures led to the absence of tomcods, severely affecting local fishing.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Jacqualine Schaeffer, Janet Mitchell, Chris Dankmeyer, Sarah Yoder

DOT to evaluate cracks on Kivalina evacuation road
Kivalina residents report cracks on the sides of the recently built evacuation road which connects the village to the storm refuge site and the school. The team with the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities plans to visit the village and assess the damages at the end of August.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Kivalina neighbors banded together to save a house from falling into the sea amid last week’s storm
Kivalina has long dealt with climate change-driven erosion. While the village didn’t feel the effects of heavy flooding, residents are wary of a future with heavy autumn storms.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media
Kavitha George, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage

Wind gusts in Northwest Alaska pushed away sea ice, caused power outages
Extremely high winds blew over Northwest Alaska this weekend, pushing away ice cover and cutting power in some communities. The storm is expected to be 100 miles west of Utqiagvik by 3 a.m. on Tuesday morning and continue to weaken and drift north after that.
Arctic Sounder

Pacific Sand Lance (Ammodytes hexapterus) Make First Appearance
Pacific sand lance can be found along the Western and Southern coasts of Alaska, although their distribution is based on habitat availability. Computer models suggest that there is a low probability this habitat exists near Kivalina.

Coonstripe Shrimp (Pandalus hypsinotis) Found on Beach After Storm
Coonstripe shrimp (*Pandalus hypsinotis*) can be found at a depth of 30-300 feet in Norton Sound. During a strong storm, some washed up on a beach north of their known range.

Kivalina Floods from Snowmelt
Unusually warm spring temperatures are rapidly melting above average snowpack, leading to flooding.
Millie Hawley, Janet Mitchell, Jacqualine Schaeffer, Ingemar Mathiasson, Richard L Thoman Jr, Chris Dankmeyer

Bizarre ice balls found in Arctic Alaska river puzzle locals and scientists
Danny Foster and Mike Hawley of Kivalina were ice fishing outside of town when they came upon something they’d never seen before. Incidentally, similar ice balls or ice eggs were reported on an ocean beach in Finland on the same day.
Anchorage Daily News

Dozens of dead seabirds found on Kivalina coast
About 20 to 30 medium-sized birds with black backs and white bellies were found spaced out along the entire beach of the island.
Arctic Sounder

Short-tailed Shearwaters (Ardenna tenuirostris) Found on Chukchi Sea Beach
More than 50 birds and a seal were found along the shoreline.
Kathy Kuletz, Janet Mitchell, Gay Sheffield, Hillary Burgess

Cape Thompson: Gathering Murre (Uria aalge) Eggs
Murres along Cape Thompson are migrating earlier, allowing coastal community residents to collect eggs a few weeks earlier than normal.

Little Ice for Bearded Seal (Erignathus barbatus) Hunting
Because of the increased travel distance, only families with larger boats were able to participate in the hunt and bring back enough to make the trip cost effective. With a heavier load in the boat, one family ran out of gas trying to get home and had to be rescued.
Janet Mitchell, Anna Godduhn, Richard L Thoman Jr

Aftermath of Nov. Storm at Kivalina

Beached Gray Whale (Eschrichtius robustus)
Gray whale (*Eschrichtius robustus*) found dead on the beach near Kivalina.

Second storm batters western coastline
The recent storm brought water levels up to the lagoon bank by town. Along the Chukchi Coast, storm surge and tides were expected to raise sea levels four to six feet above the normal high tide line, the weather service noted.
Arctic Sounder

Report out on Kivalina evacuation route and school site
The school site is about six miles northeast of town. If constructed, it would serve as the terminus of the evacuation route and as a modern shelter capable of housing the entire community.
The Arctic Sounder

Unidentified Marine Mammal
We could not figure out the what type of sea mammal it is.
Gay Sheffield, Kathy Burek Huntington, Janet Mitchell

Too Much Rain
Summer rain affecting subsistence food preservation.

Ushak Lake Wildfire
Residents puzzled about origins of underground fire.

High Number of Lynx (Lynx Canadensis)
The lynx population is up this year in Kivalina

Unusually Warm In Northwest Arctic
Above normal temperatures in the Northwest Arctic region

Migratory Birds In December
Ducks were fly north along shoreline of Kivalina

Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) with Saprolegnia Mold
Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) with Saprolegnia
Replogle Swan, Jayde Ferguson, Ali Hamade, Janet Mitchell

Unseasonably Warm and No Sea Ice
The ocean is still open, and have not even begun to freeze yet.

Extreme Rain and Flooding
It has been raining nonstop the entire month of August

Unusual eel-like fish
7-12-12 Eel-like fish - Kivalina, Alaska, USA

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.
Scientific American Blog Network

Orange gunk found near remote Alaska village identified
Scientists have identified an orange-colored gunk that appeared along the shore of a remote Alaska village as millions of microscopic eggs filled with fatty droplets.
msnbc.com

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