Overflow ice floods Rufus Creek as Aurora Borealis dance.
Rufus Creek flows through our ten acres of black spruce forest on its way North to the Slana River. The northern boreal forest is a patchwork of dynamic land forms and plant communities, niches that a few hardy species of wildlife can exploit. Diversity of life here is low but the species and settings are spectacular. Continue reading
A northern hawk owl perched atop a dead, black spruce overlooking its preferred hunting grounds, an Alaskan muskeg wetland.
The northern hawk owl is named after its hawk-like hunting behavior. Like hawks, the hawk owl hunts by day using its keen eyesight to spot small birds and mammals. The red-backed vole is by far the most important prey species. But the hawk owl is an opportunist and other species of voles and several species of shrews are also caught. During those years when snowshoe hares are plentiful, hawk owls will add these much larger prey species to their list, as will many species of birds from the tiny, common red-poll to birds up to the size of ptarmigan. Continue reading
A group of willow ptarmigan huddle beneath a willow in Alaska.
It seems hiding in plain sight would be risky business in our hostile and unforgiving world. But few strategies for survival are as effective as camouflage. Countless species of wildlife including birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, insects have adapted diverse methods of camouflage for offense as well as defense. Continue reading