Distribution of Alaskan Mammals nissi-oner BUREAU OF SPORT FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE John S. Gottschalk, Director The Department of the Interior, created in 1849, is a Department of Consei"vation, concerned with management, conservation, and develop- ment of the Nation's water, wildlife, fish, mineral, forest, and park and recreational resources. It has major responsibilities also for Indian and Territorial affairs. As America's principal conservation agency, the Department works to assure that nonrenewable i-esources are developed and used wisely, that park and recreational resources are conserved for the future, and that renewable resources make their full contribution to the progress, pros- pei-ity, and security of the United States, now and in the future. 11 CONTENTS Introduction Page The environment 1 The mammal fauna 3 List of species 3 The plan 5 Acknowledgments 5 Map of major cover types 6-7 Accounts of species Insectivora (shrews) 8 Chiroptera (bats) 13 Lagomorpha (cony, hares) 14 Rodentia (squirrels, beaver, rats, mice, porcupine). 17 Cetacea (whales, dolphins) 37 Carnivora (dogs, cats, bears, weasels, etc.) 38 Pinnipedia (seals, walrus) 54 Artiodactyla (deer, sheep, etc.) 62 Selected references 71 Index '3 111 ABSTRACT This report describes tiie factors in Alaska's environment tliat affect ttie distribu- tion of mammals in that State; it considers 103 species of mammals (including 20 cetaceans) and IIC additional subspecies. Ranges and habitat requirements are mentioned briefly. For most species, maps show record stations and general range in the State and adjacent waters ; ranges of subsi^eeies are not mapised separately. The grizzly and brown bears are lumited, pending further taxonomic studies. Listetl are 128 type localities of mammals within the State of Alaska. This circular makes available current data on mammal distribution, preliminary to further systematic work. IV Distribution of Alaskan Mammals Growing interest in tlie native fauna of the State of Alaska, on the part of students, tourists, and those ciiarged with management of wildlife, has prompted publication of this circular. Mam- mal specimens were taken in Alaska by Robert Kennicott and others before the purchase of the Territory in 1867 (Herber, 1954), and much mate- rial is now available in the national collections. The maps presented here summarize the data of interest to those concerned with manmial distribu- tion; there remains the long-term problem of sys- tematic revision of many of the groups. This publication is therefore preliminary in nature, to be followed (it is hoped) after some years by a more thorough treatment of tlie Alaskan mam- mals. Those desiring further details on natural history, aids to identification, and such matters, are referred to the Selected References (p. 71). THE ENVIRONMENT The vast State of Alaska encompas.ses an area of some 586,400 square miles (571,065 of land, 15,335 of inland water), about one-sixth of all the United States. It stretches 1,300 miles north and south, 2,400 miles east and west. Along its 33,000 miles of deeply indented coastline are more than 3,000 islands, large and small. Elevations range from sea level to iiO,oO(] feet at the sunnnit of Mount McKinley in the Alaska Range — highest point on the continent. Alpine conditions obtain also in the Brooks Range and in the Kuskokwim, Baird, Richardson, St. Elias, Wrangell, and Coast Mountains, and elsewhei'e. Such rivei-s as the Yukon, Kuskokwim, Tanana, Matanuska, Sus- itna, Kobuk, Porcupine, Copper, Noatak, Colville, Koyukuk, and Chandalar drain the mainland. Physiography Alaska today is a country of glaciers and fog- swept shores, of ice-clad peaks and erupting vol- canoes, of endless tundra, flat coastal plain, and permanently frozen sul)soil beyond the Arctic Circle, of countless rivers and lakes. The present scenery is, of course, the result of millennia of action by geologic forces. The oldest known rocks in Ala.ska, originally laid down as sediments in the sea, are from the Precambrian era — over 520 million years ago. During later times the country was subjected to inundation by, and emergence from, the ocean ; to violent earth movements that buckled and fractured the surface, raising moun- tains and flooding coastlines; to volcanic activity which still continues on a small scale; to climates alternately hot and cold, at times almost subtropi- cal as far north as the Arctic Slope; and finally, during the Ice Age of perhaps a million years ago, to glaciers that covered most of the land, advanc- ing and retreating and carving the earth as they moved. During all this time, land surfaces above the sea were constantly eroded by wind, wave, frost, water, or ice. As the glaciers grew, the sea level dropped, and parts of the present Bering Strait became dry land, providing an avenue for move- ment of animals eastward and westward. Now the clinuite has moderated, the sea has regained a higher level, and only remnants of the glaciers are left — but the work they did put the finishing touches on the present landscapes. The results of these geologic processes are the diverse landforms of today. Four principal re- gions are recognized in Alaska (Williams, 1958), each with its distinctive characteristics because of different geologic evolution. These regions in turn are subdivided into 14 smaller areas, or physi- ographic provinces, as follows : Pacific Mountain System : 1. Southea.stern Alaslta. 2. St. Bjlias Range. 3. Chugach-Kenai Mountain.s, and Kodialv Island. 4. Wrangell Mountains. 5. Copper River Plateau. 6. Talkeetna Mountain.s. 7. Susitna-Cools Inlet Lowland. S. Alaska Range. 9. Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian I.slands. Interior Alaska and Western Alaska : 10. Scattered lowlands and plains, including the islands of the Bering Sea. 11. Highlands, scattered. 12. Seward Peninsula. Brooks Range. Arctic Slope : i;i. Foothills. 14. Coastal Plain. Climate Alaska is often thought of as a country of for- biddinor cold and constant snows. It does contain the greatest glaciers on the continent. Yet j^arts of Alaska have a milder climate than does northern New England. The southern coasts, particularly of the Alexander Archipelago and of the Aleutian Islands, have much fog and cloudiness, and as much as 100 inches of snow a year in Southeastern Alaska. Ketchikan has a growing season of 165 days; average temperatui-es are 33° for January, 58° for July; recorded extremes are 96° and -8° F. ; and total annual precipitation is 150.9 inches. Along the arctic coasts precipitation is slighter; Barrow gets less than 40 inches of snow a year with a total precipitation of 4.3 inches, has a grow- ing season of only 17 days, and has recorded ex- treme temperatures of 78° and -56° F. The great- est extremes of temperature have been recorded at Fort Yukon, on the Arctic Cii'cle: 100° and -78° F. People and industries In this land lives a human population of 226,167 (1960 census), including Aleuts, Eskimos, and Indians as well as outlanders of many nationali- ties. Commercial fisheries, principally salmon, comprise the chief resource-based industry; trap- ping, mining, oil wells, lumbering, and agriculture are of lesser importance. Tourism provides em- ployment for many, as do construction and otlier work connected with national defense. In a sur- vey of the value of the wild vertebrates in the economy of Alaska (Buckley, 1957) it was cal- culated that wildlife "was worth more tlian three times as much as the mining industry, more than twenty times as much as agriculture, and more than ten times as much as forestry. Even leaving out the value of commercial fish, wildlife exceeded mining in financial value." Cover types In a country of such pliysiograpliic and cli- matic diversity, many distinct regions are readily recognized. Various workers, enipliasizing dif- ferent features of the environment, have nuipped the State as to geogi-aphic regions, life zones, bi- otic provinces, plant communities, biomes, and bi- otic areas. Perhaps the most generally useful are the fore.st regions mapped by Taylor and Little (1950) and indicated on pages 6 and 7. These regions are as follows: 1. Coastal forests of western hemlock (Tsuga heterophyU la) and Sitka spruce i^Picea sitchmsis), with small numbers of red cedar (Thuja plicata), Alaska cedar (Cliamacriiparis nootkatensis) . cottonwood (Poputus trichooarpa) , and occasionally white spruce (Picca glauoa) and paper birch (BetuJa papyrifcra). These occur from the southeastern panhandle west to Cook Inlet and Kodiak Island, and up to elevations of 2..500 feet. 2. Interior forests of white .spruce and paper birch, quak- ing aspen (Populus treitniloidrs) , and sometimes bal- sam poplar t Populus tacamahara), as well as willows {Salix spp. ) and alders (Alnus spp.), found chiefly north of the Alaska Range. Timberline is at about 1,500 feet but varies considerably with slope exposure. Two distinct sorts are recognized, often interrupted by areas of bottomland muskeg : a. Dense, heavy forest (taiga), mostly on the lower slopes; black spruce {Picea mariana) and some- times (in the southern interior) tamarack (Larix laricina) may occur in swamps and bogs. b. Sparse forests of open woodlands, generally on the upper .sloi)es ; similar areas at lower levels frequently have been burned. 3. Treeless tundra and grassland, above timberline on the mountains, beyond the limit of trees along the coasts. Grasslands occur on the Alaska Peninsula, Aleutian Islands, and some southern slopes ; tundra on the southern slopes of the Alaska Range, along the western coast, and on the arctic shelf north of the Brooks Range consists of lichens, sedges, grasses, forbs, and mosses; willows and alders (rarely) may grow along the course of streams. The dwarf resin birch (Betula gUundulosa) is common and widepsread. Probably a special category sliould be recog- nized to include the remote volcanic islands, largely treeless, often batlied in mist, and some- times closed in by pack ice: Tlie Aleutian cliain, stretching westward to Attn Island, over 1,000 miles from the Alaskan mainland but within 250 miles of the Komandorskie Islands of Siberia; St. Lawrence, Nunivak, the Pribilof group, and St. Matthew and Hall Islands, in the Bering Sea; and the small King and Diomede Islands in Bering- Strait. THE MAMMAL FAUNA Extant forms The mammals of Alaska, like those of other northern lands, represent a specialized fauna de- rived from populations of further south. Some of these forms are circumpolar in distribution ; many of them have affinities with Siberian forms, for in the geological past there was traffic in both direc- tions over the intermittent land bridging the Bering Strait. Extinct forms During the Ice Age, the fauna included such forms as the dire wolf, saber-tooth tiger, giant beaver, ground sloth, mastodon, woolly mam- moth, and others, all extinct sinc« the Pleistocene, as well as caribou, moose, and othere that are still present. The horse, bison, and manmioth were plentiful. As recently as the Pleistocene there were lions, camels, wild horses, and yaks, but they have disappeared from the Alaska scene. The native musk ox apparently disappeared about 1850, and the sea otter nearly met the same fate. Introduced forms There have been many attempts to introduce and transplant mammals in the State; some trans- planted species have flourished, others persisted only briefly. Many of these cases have been sum- marized by Elkins and Nelson (195-1:). As early as 1891, reindeer were imported from Siberia. Mountain goats were introduced on Bai'anof Is- land in 1923; beavers, muskrats, and snowshoe hares on Kodiak Island in 1925 ; bison were fir.st introduced in 1928, Roosevelt elk in 1929, and musk oxen in 1930. In 1934, an allotment of $25,000 was provided for restocking by the Alaska Game Commission. This resulted in additional plantings of black-tailed deer, martens, snowshoe hares, beavers, muskrats, squirrels, and mannots. Eaccoons were introduced by fur fanners in 1935, and still persist on Prince of Wales Island. Foxes were widely transplanted, particularly on the Aleutians, some by the Russians early in the 19th centui-y. Although not distinguished by the variety of its mammals, Alaska does possess some of the world's most impressive creatures, both terrestrial and marine, and at times they may be surprisingly abundant. The pigmy shrew is one of the smallest of all mammals; the big brown bear of Kodiak Island is the world's largest land carnivore; the gray wolf of Alaska has been known to attain a weight of 175 pounds; the moose of the Kenai Peninsula hold the record as trophy heads. A summary of the 103 species of mammals now occurring in Alaska is tabulated below. Details concerning each will be found beyond. List of Species Order INSECTIVORA Family Soricidae, shrews page 8. Sorex cinereus Masked or common shrew. Sorex tundrensis Tundra shrew. Sorex jacksoni St. LawTence Island shrew. Sorex hydrodromus Unalaska shrew. Sorex pribilofensis Pribilof shrew. Sorex obscurjis Dusky shrew. Sorex palustris Northern water shrew. Sorex alaskanus Alaska water shrew. Microsorex hoyi Pigmy shrew. Order CHIROPTERA Family Vespertilionidae, plain-nosed bats page 13. Myotis lucifugus Little brown bat. Myotis keeni Keen's bat. Myotis volans Long-legged bat. Myotis californicus California bat. Lasionyderis nocti- Silver-haired bat. vagans. Eptesicus fiiscus Big brown bat. Order LAGOMORPHA -page 14. Family Ochotonidae, pikas Ochotona collaris Cony or pika. Family Leporidae, hares and rabbits page 15 Lepus othiis Tundra or Arctic hare. Lepus americanus Snowshoe or varying hare. Order RODENTIA Order CETACEA— Con. Family Sciuridae, squirrels page 17. Marmola monax Woodchuck. Marmota caligata Hoary marmot. Citelhis Tparryi Arctic ground squirrel. Tamiasciurus hudsoni- Red squirrel. cus. Eutamias minimus Least chipmunk. Glancomys sabrinus Northern flying squirrel Family Castoridae, beavers page 22. Castor canadensis Beaver. Family Cricetidae, native rats and mice page 23. Peromyscus mani- Deer mouse. culatus. Peromyscus sitkensis Sitka mouse. Neoloma cinerea Bushy-tailed wood rat. Dicrostonyx groenlandi- Greenland collared cus. lemming. Dicrostonyx exsul St. Lawrence Island lemming. Synaptomys borealis Northern bog lemming. Lemmus trimucronatus-- Brown lemming. Lemmus nigripes Black-footed lemming. Clethrionomys rutilus Tundra red-backed vole. Clethrionomys gappcri.. Boreal red-backed vole. Microtus pennsylvani- Meadow vole. CMS. Microtus longicaudus Long-tailed vole. Microtus coronarius Coronation Island vole. Microtus xanthognathus - Yellow-cheeked vole. Microtus oeconomus Tundra vole. Microtus miurus Alaska vole. Microtus abbreviatus Insular vole. Ondatra zibethicus Muskrat. Family Muridae, Old World rats and mice page 34. Katlus norvegicus Norway rat. M}is tmisculus House mouse. Family Zapodidae, jumping mice page 35. Zapus hudsonius Meadow jumping mouse. Zapus princeps Western jumping mouse. Family Erethizontidae, porcupines page 36. Erethizon dorsaturn Porcupine. Order CETACEA Family Ziphiidae, beaked whales page 37. Berardius bairdi Baird beaked whale. Mesoplodon stejnegeri Stejneger beaked whale. Ziphius cavirostris Cuvier beaked whale. Family Physeteridae, sperm whales page 37. Physeter catodon Sperm whale or cachalot. Family Monodontidae, white whales page 37. Delphinapterus leucas.. White whale or beluga. Monodon monoceros Narwhal. Family Delphinidae, dolphins and porpoises page 37. Lissodelphis borealis Right-whale dolphin. Lagenorhynchus Pacific .striped por- obliquidens. poise. Grampus rectipinna Pacific killer whale. Globicephala scammoni. Pacific blackfish. Phocoena vomerina Harbor porpoise. Family Eschrichtidac, gray whale page 37. Eschrichtius glaucus Gray whale. Family Balaenopteridae, finback whales page 37. Balaenoptera physalus-- Finback whale. Balaenoptera borealis Rorqual or sei whale. Balaenoptera acutoro- Little piked whale. strata. Sibbaldus musctdus Blue or sulfur-bottom whale. Megaptero novaeangliae. Humpback whale. Family Balaenidae, whalebone whales page 37. Eubalaena sieboldi Pacific right whale. Balaena mysticetus Bowhead whale. Order CARNIVORA Family Canidae, dogs page 38. Canis latrans Coyote. Canis lupus Gray wolf. Alopex lagopus Arctic fox. Vulpes fulva Red fox. Family Ursidae, bears page 42. Ursus americanus Black bear. Ursus arclos Grizzly and brown bears. Thalarctos maritimus Polar bear. Family Procyonidae, raccoons page 45. Procyon lotor Raccoon. Family Mustelidae, weasels and allies page 46. Martes americana Pine marten. Maries pennanii Fisher. Mustela erminea Short-tailed weasel. Muslela rixosa. Least weasel . Mustela vison Mink. Gulo gulo Wolverine. Lutra canadensis River otter. Lutra mira Prince of Wales otter. Enhydra lutris Sea otter. Family Felidae, cats page 53. Lynx canadensis Lynx. Order PINNIPEDIA Family Otariidae, eared seals page 54. Callorhinus ursinus Alaska fur seal. Eumctopias jubata Northern sea lion. Family Odobenidae, walrus page 56. Odobenus rosmarus Pacific walrus. Order PINNIPEDIA— Con. Family Phocidae, true seals page 57. Phoca viltilina. Harbor seal. Histriophoca fasciata Ribbon seal. Pusa hispida Ringed seal. Erignathus barbatus Bearded seal. Mirounga angustiro- Elephant seal. stris. Order ARTIODACTYLA Family Cervidae, deer page 62. Cervus canadensis American elk. Odocoileus hemionus Black-tailed deer. Alces alces Moose. Rangifer arcticus Barren ground caribou. Rangifer tarandus Reindeer. Family Bovidae, cattle, sheep, etc page 67. Bison bison Bison. Oreamnos americanus Mountain goat. Ovibos moschatus Musk ox. Ovis dalli Dal] sheep. THE PLAN The distribution maps, whicli compri.se. tlie bulli of this circular, are based on the latest data avail- able to us. Indicated on them ai'e locations repre- sented by specimens or literature records in the collections and tiles of the Fish and Wildlife Serv- ice, as well as additional records reported by re- liable observers, to whom sets of tlie preliminary maps were circulated for comments. Over-all ranges are indicated in a general way by surface patterns on the majDS, but it should Ije rememljered that these ranges are often mistable at best and in many cases too few records are available to map them with finality. This is particularly true of the small, inconspicuous species wliich may, none- theless, be more abundant and widespread than is generally supposed. In our treatment we follow, with few exceptions, that of Miller and Kellogg (1955 ) . No attempt is made here to define the ranges of subspecies, but those occurring in Alaska are listed in the text, to- gether with Alaska type localities, which are also indicated on the maps. Xative names of some ani- mals are indicated, but specifying whether the names are Indian or Eskimo, or what dialect they represent, is beyond the scope of the present work. Symbols employed are as follows : • preseiwed specnnen . T-imro O literature record J C additional report. O type locality. A introduced. Many shortcomings still exist. We sliould ap- preciate any additions, corrections, or further data being called to our attention. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS To the following we are deeply indebted for advice and information based on their personal experiences in Alaska : Frank G. Ashhrook, formerl.v of the U.S. Fish and Wild- life Service ; Rollin H. Baker, Michigan State University ; Frederick S. Barkalow, Jr., North Carolina State College; James W. Brooks, Alaska Department of Fish and Game ; John L. Buckley, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ; Victor H. Cahalane. New York State Mu.seum ; Frederick C. Dean, ITniversity of Alaska ; Frank Diifresne, formerly of the Ala.ska Game Commission ; Francis H. Fay, Arctic Health Research Center ; Jo.seph T. Flackne. Arctic Institute of North America : Ira N. Gabrielson. Wildlife Management Institute; Raymond M. Gilmore, San Diego Society of Natural History ; Frank Glaser. formerly of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Remington Kellogg, U.S. National Museum ; Maurice W. Kelly, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serv- ice: Karl W. Kenyon, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: David R. Klein. Alaska Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit : A. Starker Leopold, University of California ; Adolph Murie, National Park Service: Olaus J. Murie, The Wilderness Society ; William 0. Pruitt, Jr.. College, Alaska ; Dan H. Ralston, formerly of the Alaska Game Commission ; Robert L. Rauseh, Arctic Health Re.search Center; Clarence J. Rhode, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serv- ice ; Ludwig J. Rowinski. T'niversit.v of Alaska ; Victor B. Scheffer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service : Henry W. Setzer. U.S. National Museum ; John H. Steenis, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Lloyd W. Swift. I'.S. Forest Service; H. W. Terhune. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Ernest P. Walker, formerly of the .Xalioual Zoological Park; and Ford Wilke. T'.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Records to Septemljer V.)TM. were compiled by Miss Emma M. Charters for the preliminary maps. The maps and drawings were made by Mrs. Bess O'M. MacMaugh and Mrs. Mary W. Mann. 767-152 0—65- Forest regions of Alaska (see p. 2). Coastal forests-hemlock and spruce f~] Interior forests - spruce and birch{sparse) I I Tundra and Grassland Forest, regions of Alaska (see i>. 2). MASKED or COMMON SHREW, Sorex cinereus (Uglugnuk) ^J^ ^-= J^^; Range. — Most of northern North America, south in mountains to New Mexico and Tennessee. Habitat.- — Forests, marshes, and rocky areas; especially common in moist situations in interior spruce-birch forests, but uncommon in Arctic tundra. Races In Ala-^ka. — The typical cinereus occupies tiie interior and the Kenai Peninsula; ugyunak occurs alono; the Arctic Shelf west to Point Bar- row; streatorl (type locality: Yakutat) inhabits the coastal strip from Dixon Entrance to Seward ; holllsferi (type locality: St. Michael, Norton Sound) is found along the western coast from near Point Barrow to Unimak Island. 8 TUNDRA SHREW, Sorex tundrensis, and allies Range. — Most of Alaska ; regarded by some as the same species as the Arctic slirew, Sorex arcti- ciis, which extends eastward in a broad belt to Labrador and Nova Scotia. Habitat. — Wet or diy tundra. Related species. — Type locality of tiindrens^is is St. Michael, Norton Sound. Closely related is- land forms include Sorex jacksoni of St. Lawrence Island (type locality: Savoonga, 2 miles east of North Cape) ; Sorex hydrodromu-s, confined to LTnalaska Island, the tj-pe locality (no specimen is now known to exist) ; and Sorex prihilofensis. known only from St. Paul Island, tlie type local- ity. Sorex tinulrensis, in some instances, appears to integrade with S. arcticus of the east. DUSKY SHREW, Sorex obscurus Range. — Alaska generally from Brooks Range south, in mountains, nearly to Mexican border. Habitat.— Moist, shaded areas. Races in Alaska. — The typical obscurus occurs in the interior, north at least to Anaktuvuk Pass; sh.u7)mg!Twn.si.s (type locality; Popof Island, Shu- magin Islands), ranges on the west from the Sew- ard Peninsula to Unimak Island and the Kenai Peninsula; ah-tcensk (type locality; Yakutat \^ Bay) occupie-s the coastal strip from Seward to Juneau; malitwsus (type locality: east side of Warren Island) is known only from Warren and Coronaticm Islands; elassodon occupiers Admiral- ty, Baranof, Prince of Wales, Duke, Mitkof, and Forrester Islands; longicautJa (type lociility: Wrangell) occurs along tiie coastal region from Port, Snettisham southward, as well as on Etolin, Gravina, Revillagigedo, Sergief, and Wrangell Islands. 10 NORTHERN WATER SHREW, Sorex palustris Range. — Southem Alaska, south to Colorado and east to Atlantic. Hahitat. — Humid situations in and near streams, at sea level and in mountains. Forms in Al-aska. — The race in Alaska is tiavi- ga.tor\ The Alaska water shrew, Sorex alafikamis (type locality: Point Gustavus, entrance to Gla- cier Bay), is regarderassy cleariuiis and tiiickets or ferns, than do otiier slirews. Race in Ahi.'ika. — The pigmy shrew is i lie small- est of all mannnals (adults weigh about as nuich as a dime). The subspecies in Alaska is exhnhi.s (type locality : Tyonek, Cook Inlet ) . 12 LITTLE BROWN BAT, Myotis lucifugus, and allies CQliforniciLS Range. — Most of North America, from Texas to limit of trees. Habitat. — Along watercourses and in open for- ests at dusk; in caves, hollow trees or buildings by day. Races in Aluska. — ^The typical liwifugus occurs in the southern interior; the race aJascerisis (type locality: Sitka) is found in the humid southeast- ern arcliipelago. There are records of Myotis fi-om Kodiak and Afognak Islands. Other species. — Indicated on the same figure are the Keen's bat, Myotis keeni keeni. which lias been recorded at Wrangell ; the long-legged bat, Myotis volans longicnis. north to Admiralty Island ; and the California bat, Myotis ca/iforn.ici/,s cauriniis^ at the extreme southern end of the Alaska archi- pelago. The silver-haired bat, La-^ionycferis noctiragans, has been reported as far west as the vicinity of Prince William Sound; and tlie big brown bat, Eptesicus fiiscus palh'dti-s. in the vicin- ity of Juneau and at Shaw Creek near the Richard- son Highway. 7a7-152 O— 65^^3 13 CONY or PIKA, Ochotona collaris Range. — Central and soutliern Alaska and Yukon. Habitat. — Rock i^iles and talus slopes, usually at higher elevations above timberline. Related s]>ec/es. — Type locality of coNar/s is near the head of the Tanana Eiver, about 200 miles south of Fort Yukon. Some regard this as a race of Oclwtona princeps, which ranges widely through the Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada ranges further south. However, the ranges of the two have been separated since the Pleistocene, and there seems to be sound basis for regarding them as distinct species. 14 TUNDRA or ARCTIC HARE, Lepus othus (Ukalisukruk) Range. — Western margin of Alaska, Arctic coast, and nortli slope of Brooks Range ; probably the same species as the Arctic hare, Lepus arctieus, that occupies the barren grounds east of the Mac- kenzie River to Greenland. Habitat. — Brushy tundra and rocky slopes : very spotty distribution. Races m Alaska. — The typical o^/ims (type local- ity: St. Michael, Norton Sound) occupies the tundras south to the Kuskokwim River region; ■poadrovms (type locality: Stepovak Bay) occurs in the Alaska Peninsula and Bri.stol Bay district. V .Jk'- I..- '• 15 SNOWSHOE or VARYING HARE, Lepus americanus (Ukalichak) Range. — Northern half of the continent to limit of trees. Habitat. — Mixed forests, wooded swamps, and brushy areas, from near sea level up to about 2,000 feet. At times of high population, hares occur on the north slope of the Brooks Range along water- courses grown to willow. Races in Alaska. — The subspecies m-acfarlan'i occurs in most of Alaska, from below Fort Yukon to the Alaska Peninsula and southward; daU'i (type locality : Nulato River) occupies the western portion from Bristol Bay north. Infrodiict'wns. — Introduced on Raspberry, Afognak, and Kodiak Islands, 1935-36. 16 WOODCHUCK, Marmota monax (Sigrikpuk) Range. — Eastern interior Alaska and most of United States and Canada south of limit of trees. Habitat. — Open woodlands and thickets and near fields and clearings, in dry soil ; very spotty distribution at margins of range. Race in Alaska. — The woodchuck of Alaska is the subspecies oclvracea (type locality: Forty-mile Creek). 17 HOARY MARMOT, Marmota caligata (Sigrikpuk) Range. — Most of Alaska and mountains of west- ern North America south to Washington and Idaho. Habitat. — Rocky outcrojis and tahis slopes near vegetation, above timberline in mountains. Races in AJa.ska. — Tlie t\'pical caligata (type lo- cality : near Bristol Bay) occupies most of Alaska south of the Brooks Range; browen (type local- ity: Point Lay) occurs in the Brooks Range; sheldoni (type locality: Montague Island) is known only from the type locality; vigiJis (type locality : west shore of Glacier Bay) is known only from the type locality. 18 ARCTIC GROUND SQUIRREL, Citellus parryi (Sikrik) Range. — Arctic North America from Alaska to Hudson Bay. Habitat. — Well-drained soils in tundra, from sea level to the uplands. Races in Ala^ska. — Along the Arctic coast from Point Hope eastward is barroive^isis (type local- ity : Point Barrow) ; the race plesius occurs in east- central Alaska and widely in the Alaska Range; ahli(.siis (type locality: Nushagak) occupies west- central Alaska to the tip of the Alaska Peninsula, mainly south of tlie Yukon; nebulicola (type lo- cality : Nagai Island) occurs only on the Sliumagin Islands of Nagai, Simeonoff, and Koniuji ; lyratu-s (type locality: Iviktook [now Ivectok] Lagoon, St. Lawrence Island) is known only from that island. Related forms. — Described as full species, but probably only races of parryi, are Citelht.s kodi- acensis (type locality: Kodiak Island), known only from the type locality, and Citellus osgoodi (type locality: Fort Yukon) from the Yukon Valley. Introductions. — The Arctic ground squirrel (6'. p. ablusus) has been introduced on Umnak, Una- laska, and Kavalga Islands of the Aleutians. 4^ -— « \ ..>-"=^""V, 19 RED SQUIRREL, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus (Shakalatieyik) Range. — Most of forested North America, south in mountains to South Carolina and nearlj- to Mex- ican border. Habitat. — Principally in coniferous forests. Races in Alaska. — The common form through- out most of Alaska is the subspecies prebUi; on the Kenai Peninsula occurs kenaiensk (type local- ity: Hope, Cook Inlet) ; fetulmis (type locality: Glacier, White Pass) occupies the Chilkat Valley and Glacier Bay region of southern Alaska; pica- tus (type locality: Kupreanof Island) occurs near the Lynn Canal and on Kulu Island, and generally throughout southeastern Alaska on tlie mainland and nearby islands. Related specks. — The least chipmunk, Eiitnmla.'t mlrumiis caniceps, has not yet been recorded from Alaska, but there are records from the neighbor- hood of Skagway at Bennett, British Columbia, and in tlie vicinity of Dalton Post and Kluane, Yukon. 20 NORTHERN FLYING SQUIRREL, Glaucomys sabrinus Range. — Alaska to Labrador, south in the moun- tains to California and Tennessee. Habitat. — Mixed hardwood and evergreen for- ests. Races hi Alaska. — The form in the interior is yukonensis (type locality : Camp Davidson, Yukon River, near the Alaska-Canada boundary) ; in southeastern Alaska grheifrons (type locality: Lake Bay, Prince of Wales Island) is known only from that island; zaphaeus (type locality: Helm Bay, Cleveland Peninsula) occurs also on Etolin Island; there are records of alpimus from 6 and 9 miles north of Juneau. 767- 152 0—65- 21 BEAVER, Castor canadensis (Kigiak, Paluktok) Range. — Most of the continent nortli of Mexico. Habit.»«w y*lfli'.-'- Distribution. — Practically all of North America permanently inhabited by white man. These spe- cies, native to the Old World, reached Alaska by human transport, as stowaways on ships and among food products. They have become estab- lished and persist in the vicinity of human habita- tions, where they are notorious pests. Races in Alaska. — The Norway rat, Rattus nor- vegicus, occurs chiefly in or near the larger settle- ments of southern and interior Alaska and at Nome. After World War II, these rats were ex- tremely numerous on Amchitka and other Aleutian Islands. The house mouse, Mus my-seuhi-s domesti- cus, exists in similar situations in southern Alaska. It has also been introduced on St. Paul and St. George Islands, in the Pribilofs; it has persisted on St. Paul since 1872, but is apparently unable to survive the winters on St. George. 34 MEADOW JUMPING MOUSE, Zapus hudsonius Range. — Most of the continent, south in the east to South Carolina. Habitat. — In grassy or marshy areas or in open woods, chiefly at low elevations. Rax;e in Alaska. — The meadow jumping mouse is represented in Alaska by the race aiascensk (type locality: Yakutat Bay), occurring south of the Yukon River from the Alaska Peninsula to Portage Cove, on Revillagigedo Island. RelMed species. — The western jumping mouse, Zaqms princeps saltator, has been recorded in the mountains at Taku River, 10 miles south of Juneau. -t^ttX-LjjL / 111 .Ji, ^_^^^^ji^^ 35 PORCUPINE, Erethizon dorsatum (Ilyucotuk, Kingagaluk) Range. — Most of forested North America north of Mexican boundary and central Appalachian Mountains. Habitat. — Chiefly forested areas, particularly of conifers and aspen, but often on tundra well be- yond treeline, as at Point Hope. Race in Alaska: — The race my ops (type locality : Portage Bay, Alaska Peninsula) is the form that occurs in Alaska. It is most common south of tlie Yukon River, but recorded from Driftwood, Chandler Lake, Icy Reef, and Hulahula and John Rivers in the north, and from '\A"rangell Island and Le Conte Bay in southeastern Alaska. 36 CETACEANS: WHALES and PORPOISES Twenty kinds of cetaceans liave been recorded from Alaskan waters. Many are important in the economy of the Eskimos. They ranpe in size from the bhie wliale, larjjest known animal, living or extinct, to tJie smaller porpoises. Some, like the beluga, frequent sliallow coastal waters and have been seen 500 miles up the Yukon Eiver (at Nu- lato), while others, such as the right whale, occur only in deep waters. The gray whale makes long annual migrations, while tlie bowhead is resident in the Arctic Ocean. The sperm and finback whales are cosmopolitan, while the narwhal occurs only in polar regions. Other species have been reported, but without authentication. Probably other cetaceans, normally limited to more southern waters, will in time be recorded as straying into Alaskan waters. Mapj^ing locality records of the cetaceans is impractical here, l)ut the following list indicates their general occurrence : PrincipaUy north of Bering Strait : White whale or beluga, Delphinapterus Jeueas (Sisuak). Narwhal, Monodon monoceros (Sisuak tuvalik) . Bowhead whale, Balaena mystlcetus (Agvik, Ingot uk). North and south of Bering Strait: Pacific killer whale, Grampii.^ rectipinvna (Aglu). Harbor poi^poise, Phocoerta, vom^rina (Ag^'isu- ak). Gray whale, Esrhrirhtiufi gJauc^is (Ag^nkluak). Little piked whale, Baktenoptera acutorostrata. Finback whale, Balaenoptera physalus. Humpback whale, Megaptera, novaeangliae. Principally .south of Bering Strait : Baird Ijeaked whale, Berardius hairdi. Stejneger beaked whale, Mesoplodon steJTiegeri. Cuvier beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris. Sperm whale or cachalot, Physeter catodo-n (Ahovikgluk). Right -whale dolphin, Lissodelpihis horealis. Pacific striped porpoise, LagenM'hynchus obli- quiden-s (Agamakchik). Pacific blackfish, Glohlcephala scammoni. Dall porpoise, Phocoenoides dalli. Rorqual or sei whale, Balasnoptera horealis. Blue or sulfur-bottom whale, SibhaMus muscu- lus. Pacific right whale, Eubalaena sieboldi (Aho- vik). 37 COYOTE, Canis latrans (Amagurak) Range. — Most of western North America above Panama. In recent years it has been extending its range, eastward to the Athintic and furtiier north into Alaska. Coyotes first entered Ahiska early in the 20th century. Hahifat. — Occupies many habitats from forests to plains, with a preference for open areas, from sea level to well up in the mountains. Race in Alaska. — The only race in Alaska is /ncolafii,rlink Inland), nmrhph (Hinchinbrook Island), and sheldoni (Montague Island). i&R 43 POLAR BEAR, Thalarctos maritimus (Nanook) Range. — Circumpolar in Arctic Ocean. Habitat. — This is essentially a marine mammal, typically found far at sea on the pack ice; it occa- sionally comes to the coast and ev'en appears on mainland tundra areas, but seldom far inland. Race in Alaska. — The polar bear of Alaska waters is the typical race, maritiTtvus. Its pres- ence south of St. Lawrence Island is sporadic, and the records from Kodiak Island and Yakutat Bay aie definitely of freak occurrences. ""White bear skins" seen at Prince "William Sound in 1778, as reported in the Voi/ages of Captain James Cook (vol. 2, p. 305, 1842), were probably the hides of mountain goats. HT-A 44 RACCOON, Procyon lotor Range. — Most of North America from Panama north to southern Canada. Habitat. — Wooded areas, particularly near swamps, streams, or lakes. Introducti&ns. — The raccoon was introduced on Long Island, near Kodiak, about 1935, and was still present in 1948. In the 1930"s fur farmers introduced raccoons on Baranof and Prince of "Wales Islands; they are still present on the latter. In 1941 eight black raccoons (from Indiana) were released on Singa Island in southeastern Alaska; they later spi'ead to El Capitan and three other nearby islands. In 1950, tame I'accoons were re- leased on Japonski Island at Sitka. 45 PINE MARTEN, Martes americana (Kavaycheak) Range. — ^Most northern timbered areas from Bering Strait to Labrador and south in mountains to California and Colorado. Habitat. — Preferably mature conifers, from sea level to above timberline in the mountains. .v,1J^i Races in Alaska. — The race actuosa (type local- ity: Fort Yukon) occupies most of mainland Alaska below the southern Brooks Range (speci- men from Hunt Fork), except the southern coast; kenaiensis (type locality: Kenai Peninsula) oc- cupies this peninsula and the adjoining southern coastal area; nesophil-a has been reported in south- eastern Alaska from Three-mile Arm, Kuiu Is- land; caurina occurs in the Alaskan Panhandle and southward in the coastal ranges. IntrodvAitions. — In 1934, 22 martens from the mainland of southeastei-n Alaska were released on Prince of Wales and Baranof Islands. Related species. — The considerably larger fisher, Martes pennanti., is also arboreal in habits. The form paci-fica (whose validity as a race is ques- tioned by some) has been reported from the ex- treme southern Alaska Panhandle (vie. Boca de Quadra). 46 SHORT-TAILED WEASEL or ERMINE, Mustela erminea (Tigak) Range. — ^Most of North America, south to New Mexico. Habitat. — Woodlands, open areas, and most ter- restrial habitats within its range. Races in AI Range. — Most of mainliind Canada and Alaska, south into the mountains of western United States. Hahifat. — Forests and open country, wherever the snowshoe hare may be found. Race in Alaska. — The typical race canadensis occurs in most of mainland Alaska. The race molTtp'dos^is (type locality : Wainwritrht Inlet) is generally regarded as indistinguishable from canadensis. 53 ALASKA FUR SEAL, Callorhinus ursinus (Hlakudak) 4 mi Range. — North Pacific Ocean and adjacent seas; breeds on Pribilof and Kurile Islands; occui's casually north to a point east of Point Barrow. Habitat. — Marine; breeds on shores of islands: pelagic and migrates south in winter. Race in Alaska. — Tlie race in Alaskan waters is cynocephaJufs (type locality: south of Alaska Peninsula ajiproximately at lat. 53° N., long. 155° W.) 54 NORTHERN or STELLER SEA LION, Eumetopias juhata (Urgak) Range. — Bering Sea, Hall Island and Prilnlof Islands, and Bristol Bay nortli to Bering Strait and south to islands off southern California. Habitat. — Marine, usually along open seacoasts; breeds on shore throughout most of its range. Form in Alaska. — This is a monotypic species (type locality : "North Pacific Ocean"). 55 PACIFIC WALRUS, Odobenus rosmarus (Aivuk, Amiak) Range. — Walrus Island in Bristol Bay, Pribilof Islands north to Point Barrow in summer, and oc- casionally further east; most walruses mi*iS''»«^'**'^^*'-^ 56 HARBOR, HAIR, or SPOTTED SEAL, Phoca vitulina (Kashigiak) Range. — Bering Sea to coast of Mexico, occa- sionally north to Point Barrow and east to Her- schel Island, Yukon; widespread in northern American waters of Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Habitat. — Along coasts, usually in protected bays or on offshore islands; occasionally in large inland lakes. Hauls out on sandbars or rocks, but seldom in vicinity of pack ice. Race in Alaska.- — The race in Alaskan coastal water is richa7'dii (type locality: Vancouver Island, British Columbia) . 57 RIBBON SEAL, Histriophoca fasciata (Kaolik, Kukupuk) Range. — Okhotsk, Bering, and Chukchi Seas, from northern Hokkaido and Bristol Bay to Point Barrow. Habitat. — In Alaska, occurs chiefly among ice floes of Bering Sea, at soutliern edge of ice pack. For7n in Alaska. — This is a monotypic species (type locality : Kurile Islands, Japan) . 58 RINGED or HAIR SEAL, Pusa hispida (Netchek, Malak) Range. — Arctic seas, circumpolar ; in Alaska chiefly in Chukchi and Bering Seas, south to the Pribilof Ishinds. Habitat. — Among ice floes and pack ice. Race in Ahi.^ka. — The Ahiskan race is heauforti- ana (type locality: Cockbum Point, Dolphin and Union Strait, Mackenzie District) . 59 BEARDED SEAL, Erlgnathus barhatus (Ugruk) Range. — Polar seas north to lat. 85° N., Arctic coast and Bering Sea south to Bristol Bay and Pribilof Islands. Ihihitat. — Marine, moving southward with the ice pack in winter; abundant in spring near south edge of ice pack. Race in Alaska. — The race nmificus (type local- ity : Okhotsk Sea) occurs in the waters oil" Alaska. 60 ELEPHANT SEAL, Mirounga angustirostris Range. — American coasts of Pacific Ocean from Baja California and Giuxdahipe Islands north sporadically to Kuiu Island in southeastern Alaska. HahiUit. — Coasts and coastal islands, breeding on islands off California and Mexico. Foi'in in Alaskn. — This is a monotypic species (type locality: San Bartolome Bay, Baja Cali- fornia) . t^'-i^' xf ii-... ■«.Si»*s!»fc 61 AMERICAN ELK or WAPITI, Cervus canadensis Range. — Formerly most of United States and Canada; now persists in the wild chiefly in moun- tainous areas of the West. Habitat. — Open woodlands, humid forests, arid l>lains, typically in mountainous country. Race in Alaska. — The introduced American elk of Alaska belong to the race rooseveltl. Introductions. — In 1927 a group of eight Roose- velt elk, captured in the Olympic Mountains of Washington, were liberated on Afognak Island. Here they thrived, despite a somewhat restricted winter range, increased to over 300 by 1953, and spread to tlie adjacent Raspberrj' and Kodiak Islands. Introductions on Baranof and Revillagi- gedo Islands failed to survive. In 1961 the popu- lation on Afognak and Raspberry Islands was approximately 1,200. The elk had failed to be- come established on Kodiak Island by 1962, when further introductions were made to Gravina Island. 62 MULE or BLACK-TAILED DEER, Odocoileus hemionus Range. — Western North America from southern Yukon to Baja California and Mexico. Hahitat. — Forests and open country, in momi- tains and at sea level. Races in Alaska. — The native deer of Alaska, known as the Sitka black-tailed deer, of the race sitken-sis (type locality : Sitka) , occupy the coastal islands and mainland of southeastern Alaska, north to Juneau. The more wide-ranging, typical race hemiomis occupies adjacent country to the east, and was reported from along the lower Sti- kine River in the fall of 1961. IntroductioTLS. — Black-tailed deer were intro- duced on Long Island in 1924 and 1930 and on Kodiak Island in 1934, and other transplants have become established on the islands of Prince Wil- liam Sound and at Yakutat. 63 MOOSE, Alces alces (Tutuvak) Range. — Transcontinental, Bering Sea to Nova Scotia, mostly in Canada and Alaska, further south in the Rocky Mountains. Habitat. — Forests, particularly along water- courses, with a preference for areas supporting willows; also extends into tundra areas, as at mouth of Colville River, Point Lay, Kotzebue, and Cape Wales. Race in Alaska. — The Alaska moose all belong to the race gigai- (type locality: north side of Tustumena Lake, Kenai Peninsula) . Transplants. — In 1958, 15 calves from the Anchorage area were released at Berner's Bay, north of Juneau; 6 more were successfully trans- planted to the same area in 1960. 64 BARREN GROUND CARIBOU, Rangifer arcticus (Tutu, Tutupiak) Range. — Arctic North America beyond the limit of trees, Ahiska to Greenland and Newfoundland. Habitat. — Open, well-grown tundra areas, mainly on the higher plateaus; frequently into open coniferous forests in winter. Races in Alaska. — The race sfonei (type local- ity: Kenai Peninsula) occui:)ies most of central and northern Alaska, but has disappeared on the Kenai Peninsula. The race grantl (type locality : west end of Alaska Peninsula, opposite Popof Island) occupies the Alaska Peninsula and Uni- mak Island; it formerly occurred also on Unga and other islands near the type locality, and west- ward along the Bering seacoast. Introduction. — In the summers of 1!)58 and 1959, a band of 23 calves from the Nelchina area east of Anchorage were taken to Adak Island. Rottle- fed at first by a group of U.S. Marines, they sur- vived and had increased to 36 in number in 1962. ■^^-^^- ' W.l'i.k\fe/ _^XiiJuL^- 65 REINDEER, Rangifer tarandus (Conyik) Range. — The reindeer, a relative of tlie native caribou, is an Old World form introduced into Alaska, where it occurs chiefly from Bristol Bay northward to Barrow. Habitat. — Tundra areas, more so than caribou. Form, in Alaska. — There is not general ajrree- ment on the relationship between caribou and rein- deer. A recent revision (Banfield, 1961) places them both in tlie species Rangifer tarandus. Tlie introduced reindeer has been variously referred to Rangifer arcticv^ asiaticus and to Rangifer tarari- dus sibiricus. Introduction. — To provide a dependable source If' i^ _4c. of meat, 1,280 semidomesticated reindeer from the Chukotsk Peninsula and the Gulf of Anadyr coast, Siberia, were transplanted to northwestern Alaska, mainly on the Seward Peninsula, from 1891 to 1902. They thrived at first, and increased to 600,- 000 by 19.36, but then declined to about 25,000 in 1950. In 1929 the Canadian Government pur- chased about 2,400, the nucleus of the present herds near the Mackenzie and Anderson Rivers, and on Richards Island. Reindeer compete for food and space with the native caribou, with whom they also interbreed; they now appear to be established on the tundra from the south shore of Norton Sound (St. Michael) to Point Barrow, as well as on Atka, Kodiak, Nunivak, the Pribilofs, St. Lawrence, St. Matthew, and Umnak Islands. A total of 768 animals (130 of them calves) were tallied on Kodiak Island in 1963, most of them near the Olga Bay Narrows. In 1944, 29 animals were released on St. Matthew Island; they had increased to 1,350 by 1957; by 1963 they were esti- mated at approximately 6,000. This increased pressure on the range was evidenced by reduced lichen growth, dying back of willows, and adult reindeer weighing less and possessing practically no subcutaneous fat. 66 BISON, Bison bison Range. — Forniei'Iy over much of North Amer- ica north of Gulf of Mexico; now persists only in a few isolated herds, some in a semidomesticated condition. Habitat. — Woodlands and grasslands, some- times to elevations of 10,000 feet. Raee.s hi Alaska. — The woodland bison, B. b. athabascae, perhaps once ranged as far west as the Seward Peninsula and Arctic Coast of Alaska (specimen from St. INIichael, type of occidentalls) , but is now absent in the State. The plains bison, B. b. bison, is the race now jiresent in Alaska. Introdu-ctiam. — In 1928, 6 bulls and 17 cows from the National Bison Range m Montana were transplanted to the Big Delta section on the Tanana River about 90 miles southeast of Fair- banks. From the start they fared well, withstand- ing the most severe winter weather and increasing to a herd of 350 by 1953. There are now two prin- pical herds established in interior Alaska. The Big Delta lierd was estimated as 350, of which 12 percent were calves, in 1961; most of these fre- quent the Clearwater homestead area in the fall. Tlie Copper River herd in 1961 consisted of at least 50 animals; they had moved from their original placement site near Nabesna to the area from Cop- per Center to Chitina. A furtlier transplant to the McCarthy area was made in the summer of 1962. 67 MOUNTAIN GOAT, Oreamnos americanus Range. — Mountains of western North Amei"ica, south to Oregon and central Idaho. Habitat. — 'Cliffs and rocky slopes, usually above timberline in summer, but in winter occasionally down to sea level in timber. Races in AJaksa. — The race hennedyi (type lo- cality: mountains at mouth of Copper Eiver. op- posite Kayak Island) ranges in the coastal moun- tains from the Kenai Peninsula to the Chugach and Talkeetna Mountains; the race cohtwbiae has been reconled on the mainland of southeastern Alaska from Boca de Quadra and near the Taku Kiver. Introduction-s. — Goats from the vicinity of Juneau were introduced on Baranof Island in 1923, and became established there. Others were introduced on Chichagof Island, but it was not known by 1954 if they had become established. Still others were introduced on Kodiak Island abo\it 1952; they have survived to the present but are not numerous. MUSK OX, Ovibos moschatus (Umikmak) Range. — Arctic Coast and islands, formerly ^vest to Point Barrow, Cape Dyer, and Kotzebue Sound; now largely restricted to arctic Canada and Greenland. Hah/fat. — Tundra and well-vegetated open lands beyond the limit of trees, at or near sea level ; in winter to barren uplands. Races in Alaska. — The last musk ox native to Alaska, of the typical race moschafuA, was believed killed west of Point Barrow in 1865. The herd now established on Nunivak Island is of the east- em race, wardi. Introduction.'^. — In 1930, a herd of ?A nnisk oxen captured in Greenland were brought to the vicin- ity of Fairbanks. The remaining 31 of this group were moved to Nunivak Island in 1935-36, where tliey increased, despite competition witli the intro- duced reindeer. In 1960 the Nunivak herd uum- I)ered i256, including 57 calves; in March 1963 this herd numbered 360. 69 DALL SHEEP, Ovis dalli (Imnaik) Rcmge. — Alaska, Yukon, and northern British Columbia. Habitat. — Rugged, inaccessible mountainous areas, above timberline; at lower elevations in vrinter, but avoids any dense forest. Races in Alaska. — Two races of the Alaska big- horn or white slieep occur in the State : the typical dalU (type locality: south of Fort Yukon on west bank of Yukon River; probably Tanana Hills) is widely distributed in proper habitat; herm-iensis (type locality : head of Sheep Creek, Kenai Penin- sula) is apparently restricted to this peninsula. iss^V^ SELECTED REFERENCES The following list is restricted largely to titles of recent years and of general or liistorical interest. In the publications cited will be found many further references to the literature on Alaskan wildlife. Bailey, Alfred M., and Russell W. Hendee. 1926. Notes on the mammals of northwestern Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 7, No. 1, p. 9-28. Baker, Rollin H. 1951. Mammals taken along the Alaska Highway. University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natu- ral History, vol. 5, No. 9, p. 87-117. Banfield, a. W. F. 1961. A revision of the reindeer and caribou, genus Rangifcr. National Museum of Canada, Bulletin 177, Biological Series No. 66. 137 p. Bee, James W., and E. Raymond Hall. 1956. Mammals of northern Alaska — on the arctic slope. University of Kansas. Museum of Natural History. Miscellaneous Publication 8. 309 p. Buckley, John L. 1957. Wildlife in the economy of Alaska. Biological Papers of the University of Alaska, No. 1 (Revised), 33 p. 1958. The Pacifie walrus. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Special Scientific Report — Wildlife No. 41. 29 p. Clark, Austin H. 1945. Animal life of the Aleutian Islands. P. 31-61, 75-76, in Smithsonian Institution, War Background Studies No. 21. (Publication 3775) . Clark, W. Kim. 1958. The land mammals of the Kodiak Islands. Jour- nal of Mammalogy, vol. 39. No. 4, p. 574-577. Dice, Lee Raymond. 1921. Notes on the mammals of interior Alaska. .Jour- nal of Mammalogy, vol. 2, No. 1, p. 20-28. Dixon, Joseph S. 1938. Birds and mammals of Mount McKinley Na- tional Park. National Park Service, Fauna Series No. 3. 236 p. Dufresne, Frank. 1946. Alaska's animals and fishes. A. S. Banies and Co., New York. 297 p. Elkins, W. a., and Urban C. Nelson. 1954. Wildlife introductions and transplants in Alaska. Presented at the Fifth Alaska Science Conference, Anchorage, Sept. 7-10. Mimeo.. 21 p. Geist, Otto William, John L. Buckley, and Richard H. Manville. 1960. Alaskan records of the narwhal. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 41, No. 2, p. 250-253. Hagmeier, Edwin M. 1956. Distribution of marten and fi.sher in North Amer- ica. Canadian Field-Naturalist, vol. 70, No. 4, p. 149-168. Hanna, G. Dallas. 1923. Rare mammals of the Pribilof Islands, Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 4, No. 4, p. 209-215. Heller. Edmund. 1910. Mammals of the 1908 Alexander Alaska Expedi- tion. University of California Publications in Zoolo- gy, vol. 5, No. 11, p. 321-360. Herber, Elmer C. 1954. Spencer Fullerton Baird and the purchase of Alaska. American Philosophical Society, Proceed- ings, vol. 98, p. 139-143. Jackson, Hartley H. T. 1958. The return of the vanishing musk oxen. Smith- sonian Institution, Annual Report for 1957, p. 381- 389 (Publication 4327). Kenyon. Karl W. 1960. A ringed seal from the Pribilof Islands, Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 41, No. 4, p. 520-521. 1960. The Pacific walrus. Oryx, vol. 5, p. 332-340. 1961. The sea otter in Alaska. Alaska Sportsman, vol. 27, No. 2 ( February) , p. 16-18. 1961. Guvier beaked whales stranded in the Aleutian Islands. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 42, No. 1, p. 71- 76. Kenyon, Karl W., and Dale W. Rice. 1961. Abundance and distribution of the Steller sea lion. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 42, No. 2, p. 223- 234. Kenyon, Karl W., and Victor B. Scheffer. 1955. The seals, sea-lions, and sea otter of the Pacific Coast. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Circular 32. 34 p. Kenyon, K.\rl W., and David L. Spenoer. 1960. Sea otter population and transplant studies in Alaska, 1959. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Special Scientific Report— Wildlife No. 48. 29 p. Klein, David R. 1959. Saint Matthew Island reindeer range study. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Special Scientific Re- port—Wildlife No. 43. 48 p. KuRTEN, B., and R. Rausch. 1959. Biometric comparisons between North American and European mammals. Acta Arctica, vol. 11, p. 1-44. Lantis. Margaret. 1950. The reindeer industry in Alaska. Arctic, vol. 3, No. 1, p. 27-14. Lensink, Calvin J. 1960. Status and distribution of .sea otters in Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 41, No. 2, p. 172-182. 71 Leopold, A. Starker, and F. F. Darling. 1953. Wildlife in Alaska — an ecological reconnaissance. Ronald Press, New York. 129 p. LiBBY. Wilbur L. 1958. Records of the plka in the Tanana Hills, Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 39, No. 3, p. 448-449. 1959. The distribution of some small mammals in east- ern interior Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 40, No. 4, p. 607-609. MacFarlane, R. 1905. Notes on mammals collected and observed in the northern Mackenzie River district . . . U.S. National Museum, Proceedings, vol. 28. p. 673-764 (No. 1405). Miller, Gerrit S., Jr., and Remingto.n Kellogg. 19.55. List of North American Recent mammals. U.S. National Museum, Bulletin 205. 9.54 p. Mossman, Archie S., and W. Kim Clark. 1958. Winter records of bats in Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 39, No. 4, p. 585. MURIE, Adolph. 1944. The wolves of Mount MeKinley. National Park Service, Fauna Series No. .5. 238 p. 1961. A naturalist in Alaska. Devin-Adair Co., New York. 302 p. 1962. Mammals of Mount MeKinley National Park. Mount MeKinley Natural History Association. 56 p. MuRiE. Olaus J. 1935. Alaska-Yukon caribou. U.S. Bureau of Biological Suney, North American Fauna 54. 93 p. 1940. Wildlife introductions in Alaska. Transactions of the Fifth North American Wildlife Conference, p. 432-436. 19.59. Fauna of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska Penin- sula. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Senice, North Ameri- can Fauna 61. 406 p., illus. Nelson, Edward W. 1887. Natural history collections made in Alaska in the years 1877-1881. In the Arctic Series of publications, U.S. Anny Signal Service, No. 3. 337 p. Washington, D.C. Orr, Robert T. 1945. A study of the Clethrionomys tJawsoni group of red-backed mice. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 26, No. 1, p. 67-74. Osgood, Wilfred H. 1909. Biological investigations in Alaska and Yukon Territory. U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey. North American Fauna .30. (M! p. Paradiso. John L., and Richard H. Manville. 1961. Taxonomie notes on the tundra vole (Microtus oeconomus) in Alaska. Biological Society of Wash- ington, Proceedings, vol. 74, p. 77-92. Preble, Edward A., and W. L. McAtee. 1923. A biological survey of the Pribilof Islands, Alaska ; I, Birds and mammals. U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey, North American Fauna 46. 128 p. Quay, W. B. 1951. Observations on mammals of the Seward Penin- sula, Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 32, No. 1, p. 88-99. Rattsch. Robert L. 1951. 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The bushy-tailed wood rat in southeastern Alaska. Journal of Mammalogy, vol. 43, No. 3, p. 431- 432. Strecker, Robert L., Fred A. Ryser, William J. Tietz, and Peter R. Morrison. 19.52. Notes on mammals from Alaska. Joiirnal of Mammalogy, vol. 33, No. 4, p. 476-480. Taylor, Raymond F., and Elbert L. Little, Jr. 19,50. Pocket guide to Alaska trees. U.S. Forest Serv- ice, Agriculture Handbook 5. 63 p. Williams, Howel, editor. 1958. Landscapes of Ala.ska : their geologic evolution. University of California Press, Berkeley. 148 p. Young, Stanley P. 1943. The return of the musk ox. Smithsonian Insti- tution, Annual Report for 1942, p. 317-322 (Publica- tion 3720). 72 INDEX Alces alces, 64. Alopex lagopiis, 40. Balaena mysticetus, 37. Balaenoptera acutoroslrala, 37. borealis, 37. physalus, 37. bat, big brown, 13. California, 13. Keen's, 13. little brown, 13. long-legged, 13. silver-haired, 13. beaked whale. See whale. bear, black, 42. brown, 43. grizzly, 43. polar, 44. beaver, 22. beluga, 37. Berardius bairdi, 37. bison, 67. Bison bison, 67. blackfish, Pacific, 37. buffalo (= bison), 67. cachalot, 37. Callorhinus ursinus, 54. Canis latrans, 38. lupus, 39. caribou, barren ground, 65. Castor canadensis, 22. Cervus canadensis, 62. Citellus parryi, 19. Clethrionomys gapperi, 27. rutilus, 27. cony, 14. coyote, 38. deer, black-tailed, 63. mule, 63. deer mouse. See mouse. Delphinapterus leiccas, 37. Dicrosionyx exsul, 24. groenlandicus, 24. dolphin, right-whale, 37. elk, American, 62. Enhydra lutris, 52. Eptesicus fuscus, 13. Erethizon dorsatum, 36. ermine, 47. Erignathus barbatus, 60. Eschrichtixis glaucus, 37. Eubalaena sieboldi, 37. Eumetopias jubata, 55. Eutamias minimus, 20. fisher, 46. flying squirrel. See squirrel. fox, arctic, 40. blue ( = arctic), 40. red, 41. fur seal. See seal. Glavcomys sabrinus, 21. Globicephala scammoni, 37. goat, mountain, 68. Grampus rectipinna, 37. ground squirrel. See squirrel. Gulo gulo, 50. hare, arctic, 15. snowshoe, 16. tundra, 15. varying, 16. Histriophoca fasciata, 58. jumping mouse. See mouse. Lagenorhynchiis obliqiiidens, 37. Lasionycteris noctivagans, 13. lemming, black-footed, 26. brown, 26. Greenland collared, 24. northern bog, 25. St. Lawrence Island, 24. Lemnuis nigripes, 26. trimucronatus, 26. Lepus americanus, 16. othus, 15. lion, northern sea, 55. Steller sea, 55. Lissodelphis borealis, 37. Lutra canadensis, 51. mira, 51. lynx, 53. marmot, hoary, 18. Marmota caligata, 18. monax, 17. marten, pine, 46. Maries americana, 46. pennanti, 46. Megaplera novaeangliae, 37. Mesoplodon stejnegeri, 37. Microsorex hoyi, 12. Microtus abbreviatus, 32. coronarius, 29. longicaudus, 29. niiurus, 32. oeconomus, 31. pennsylvanicus , 28. xanthognathus, 30. mink, 49. Mirounga angustirostris, 61. Monodon monoceros, 37. moose, 64. mouse, deer, 23. house, 34. meadow jumping, 35. Sitka, 23. western jumping, 35. Mus musculus, 34. musk ox. See ox. muskrat, 33. Mustela enninea, 47. rixosa, 48. vison, 49. Myoiis californicus, 13. keeni, 13. lucifugus, 13. volans, 13. narwhal, 37. Neotoma cinerea, 23. Ockotona collaris, 14. Odobenus rosmarus, 56. Odocoileus hemionus, 63. Ondatra zibethicus, 33. Oreatnnos americanus, 68. otter, river, 51. sea, 52. Ovibos moschatus, 69. Ovis dalli, 70. ox, musk, 60. 73 Peromyscus maniculatus, 23. sitkensis, 23. Phoca vitulina, 57. Phocoena vomerina, 37. Phococnoides dalli, 37. Physeter catodon, 37. pika, 14. porcupine, 36. porpoise, harbor, 37. Pacific striped, 37. Procyon lotor, 45. Pusa hispida, 5;i. raccoon, 45. Rangifer arcticus, 65. tarandus, 66. rat, bushy-tailed wood, 23. Norway, 34. Rattus norvegicus, 34. red-backed vole. See vole, reindeer, 66. rorqual, 37. seal, Alaska fur, 54. bearded, 60. elephant, 61. hair, 57, 59. harbor, 57. ribbon, 58. ringed, 59. spotted, 57. sea lion. See lion, sea otter. See otter, sheep, Dall, 70. shrew, Alaska water, 11. common, 8. shrew, dusky, 10. masked, 8. northern water, 11. pigmy, 12. Pribilof, 9. St. Lawrence Island, 9. tundra, 9. Unalaska, 9. Sibbaldus musculus, 37. Sorex alaskanus, 11. cinereus, 8. hydrodromus, 9. jacksoni, 9. obscurus, 10. palustris, 11. pribilofensis, 9. lundrensis, 9. sperm whale. See whale, squirrel, Arctic ground, 19. northern flying, 21. red, 20. Synaptomys borealts, 25. Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, 20. Thalarctos maritimus, 44. Ursus americanus, 42. arctos, 43. vole, Alaska, 32. boreal red-backed, 27. Coronation Island, 29. insular, 32. long-tailed, 29. meadow, 28. singing, 32. vole, tundra, 31. tundra red-backed, 27. yellow-cheeked, 30. Vulpes fulva, 41. walrus, Pacific, 56. wapiti, 62. water shrew. See shrew, weasel, least, 48. short-tailed, 47. whale, Baird beaked, 37. blue, 37. bowhead, 37. Cuvier beaked, 37. finback, 37. gray, 37. humpback, 37. little piked, 37. Pacific killer, 37. Pacific right, 37. sei, 37. sperm, 37. Stejneger beaked, 37. sulfur-bottom, 37. white, 37. white whale, See whale, wolf, gray, 38. wolverine, 50. woodehuck, 17. wood rat. See rat. Zapus hudsonius, 35. princeps, 35. Ziphius cavirostris, 37. 74 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING 0FFICE:1965 O — 767-152 MBI WHOI Library - Scrral 5 WHSE 00241 MARINE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY S □ 5 Si 5 \'^J''''^ WOODS HOLE MASS , U^l^ 3 .' f ! § r o 0 (A O 3 C H H P5 S S 5 > in ^ o = s m 5 o 3 PI X in o ?5 2 > 3 n o o •>1 II -• S ^5 m O a o a