Nunivak Island: Home on the Range

By Kyra Neal, Wildlife Biologist, Yukon Delta Refuge

About 30 miles offshore from where the Kuskokwim River meets the Bering Sea, nestled in Shoal Bay, there is a small island village called Mekoryuk, home to around 200 mostly Yup’ik and Cup’ik people. In this place, the mayor is the same person who takes the trash trolley to the transfer station, the city office workers are the same people who teach kindergarten, the reindeer caretaker is the same person who jump started your ATV, and the elders stop by the roadside to share wisdom of their years growing up and to welcome you to their community on Nunivak Island.

Data gap plot on the western side of Nunivak Island in the Bering Sea.

Nunivak Island is also home to 700 muskox and 3,000 reindeer. Grazing has occurred on Nunivak Island for hundreds of years, first by caribou until they were extirpated in the late 1800s and then by introduced reindeer and muskox in the last century. The condition of their range was evaluated intensively in 1989 with 10 trend plots involving 40 quadrats and two transects for each location.
Kyra Neal pulling fall dandelion near the Mekoryuk sewage lagoon road.

Since 1989, Nunivak Island has become increasingly connected to mainland Alaska with more flights, boating, muskox hunting, and tourism. Consequently, Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge partnered with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in 2022 and 2023 to reevaluate the range condition and survey the island and village of Mekoryuk for invasive species at two different spatial scales. One is a fine-tooth comb and the other is more of a broad-stroke brush.

Reindeer at the facility in Mekoryuk
Let’s start with combing the luxurious locks of the tundra. Arriving at each plot via an R-44 helicopter, we applied the same methodology to evaluate range that was used in 1989. Within these 40 20×50 cm quadrats, we estimated ground cover for each species including lichen, shrubs, forbs, grasses, bare ground, rocks, and even scat. In 10 of these quadrats, we measured production by a double sampling clip and weigh method. Changes in ground cover and productivity will tell us how grazing has affected the range. Certain lichens are favorites of reindeer and can be depleted to bare ground exposure when overgrazing occurs. For invasives, we scouted disturbed areas in Mekoryuk by foot and in our monitoring areas, combing the tundra for anything out of place. Roads, barge ports, ATV trails, airstrips were all observed by foot in search of non-native species and plots with a high percentage of bare soil.

Pulling out our broad-stoke brush, range was surveyed between the established transects. Using NRCS reconnaissance methods, we scored range conditions based on evaluating the amounts of lichen, bare soil, presence of grazing and scat on two acres between transects. For our invasive species broad brush, we evaluated bare soil vectors for invasive species to get to the interior of the island. We used aerial imagery of ATV trails and disturbed areas to help us identify potential hot spots for introduction of non-native plants to the ecosystem.

One of our 20×50 cm quadrats used for sampling ground cover to assess the condition of the range.

What did we uncover? Well, good news and bad news. The good news is there are no invasive species on the Yukon Delta Refuge. The bad news is we did find some fall dandelion on the road leading to the airport and up to the sewage lagoon in Mekoryuk. We removed as much of the fall dandelions as could be done by hand and notified the village council president of our finding. Our range evaluation showed that the western side of Nunivak was heavily grazed, but the rest of the island has high quality grazing range for reindeer to enjoy!

Plot transects laid out by Karin Sonnen and Katie Schmidt (L) while Blaine Spellman collects data (R) on an established transect. All three work for the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

It Takes a Village: To Articulate a Moose!

by Lee Post

This year, Friends gave $1000 to help Innoko Refuge bring “boneman” Lee Post to McGrath to articulate a moose skeleton with the local school. Lee is well known for his work and has articulated a grey whale skeleton for the Kodiak Refuge Visitor Center and has done numerous other projects with parks, colleges, museums and schools.

As a boneman, my fantasy was to fly to the interior village of McGrath and jump into working with local students walking them through the construction of a moose skeleton. Not a free-standing skeleton, due to time constraints, and missing bones, but a “Moose on a Half-Shell”. This is half a moose taking one side of the skeleton and fastening the bones to a plywood panel cut in the correct anatomical shape of a moose. In this way, students get to do an art and science installation and learn where and how all the bones fit. The finished skeleton could be outlined, mounted to a wall, and finished in a couple of days.

The reality of this morphed into, let’s have the bones fastened to three panels on a wheeled stand such that each panel can come off and be transported. This way the finished moose could be moved to various places around town. When I got there late on a Wednesday afternoon, the students had yet to see the bones, the stand was still being constructed, and there was only a day and a half before the weekend. The next day students came in waves. Group after group. I tried to give them a quick introduction to bones and got them sorting the bone puzzle and drilling holes in the vertebrae. But no sooner did I get them really started when they had to leave and another group came in. I had hoped the oldest students would get enthused and come in for the weekend. They didn’t, and suddenly it was the weekend and we had two days to get the moose walking as I was scheduled to fly out on Monday.

Two super students, Eva Welch and Kierra Egrass, did the touch up painting of the repaired and the replacement bones of the “Moose on the Half-Shell”. pc: Lee Post

Over two long days, the village came together to get the project done. John Gray, the local fix it guy, brought tools and parts and fancy fasteners and stayed to make jigs and slice the bones to fit flat on the panels. Tim Yoder, carpenter and Fish and Game employee, finished construction of a wonderful three panel stand. The upper half of the moose was cut out of the plywood in silhouette. The skeleton got articulated in sections that fit onto the panels without overlapping such that the panels could be removed with the bones. We learned a few things such as: a moose is a big animal, and old buried moose bones can be surprisingly delicate. We repaired many of the broken and chipped bones and broke a few more ourselves. The skull came broken in half and was coming apart. Clarence, a teacher, brought in a skull with antlers, but it was too big and heavy to use for this. John brought in another, younger skull that was a better fit. Kellie Peirce from the Innoko refuge, had saved replacement bones from a moose she harvested. We all met and heard from Ephrem and Angela Andrews how they found and collected the bones five years ago over a couple of rainy days from under the silt and sand of the river. It is still not clear to me what motivated them to work so hard in the river in the rain probing for bones under the water.

The whole school and some community members turned out to celebrate the completion of the moose articulation. Bone finders Ephrem and Angela Andrews are in the back row under the moose ribs. Boneman Lee Post is under the American flag and Innoko Visitor Services Manager, Kellie Peirce, is on the far left.

The project got finished, thanks to all. It did take a village, starting with the collection of the bones by the Andrews and one person, Francis, from the Sally Jo Collins Museum in McGrath with a dream to do something with them. Kellie Peirce, Innoko Refuge Visitor Services Manager, applied for the funding, created partnerships and became the mother of the project from there to completion. WELL DONE!

December Advocacy Report

by Caroline Brower, Vice President for Advocacy

Happy Holidays! With Congress scheduled to go into recess at the end of this week (December 15th), we are looking at a slow pace on Capitol Hill for the next month.

On November 30th, a hearing was held in the House of Representatives on a bill introduced by Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK) and supported by both Senators Murkowski and Sullivan that would reinstate the oil development leases in the Arctic Refuge which the Biden Administration recently canceled. Members from the environmental community testified against such a bill, and while it is likely to pass the House, it will probably not be brought up in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

The more critical issue happening right now for wildlife refuges is the defunding of the entire National Wildlife Refuge System. The System has lost nearly $200 million in capacity over the last twelve years, and this loss of funding is eating away at the ability of refuge managers in Alaska to keep and hire staff. Most Alaska refuges have half the number of staff they had a decade ago, and when folks retire or change jobs, their positions are not filled. And without adequate staffing levels, it is extremely difficult to maintain the programs that benefit the communities in and around refuges.

For example, Yukon Flats and Kanuti Refuges are likely going to be complexed under one management team. As staff retire or move to different jobs, their positions remain vacant or are being taken off the books. These remote refuges, 12.7 million acres total (larger than the state of Maryland), will only have a few staff members. Other refuges are losing biologists, there are not enough pilots, and visitor services staff are in short supply. These Refuge staff members bring environmental education programs to schools and the community and biological expertise and research ability. The loss of pilots and budget for flights means that remaining staff are unable to access the vast majority of their off-road refuges and wildlife surveys become impossible.

Congress is in a budget-slashing mood, but we can’t let them eliminate all management on refuges. Staffing levels are so low right now that Alaska’s refuges are functioning at a bare minimum, with visitor centers only open for a few hours per day and programs are getting canceled all the time. Any more cuts are going to close visitor centers and eliminate wildlife surveys that are, in some cases, decades old. The situation is dire.

Senator Murkowski is the Ranking Republican on the Senate subcommittee that determines funding for the Refuge System. She can change this, if she wanted to. She responds to her constituents. Can you take a few minutes to write to her to ask her to increase funding for the National Wildlife Refuge System to add at least $100 million to current budget levels? Her office address in Anchorage is 510 L Street, Suite 600, Anchorage, AK 99501.

Thank you!

Birding the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge with Bird Guide Aaron Lang

Monday, December 4, 5:30pm, AKT.

Live in Homer at Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge’s Visitor Center or on Zoom.
You can view the recording of the live event below:

Aaron Lang will share stories and stunning photography at the Kachemak Bay Birders monthly meeting about the unique wilderness birding experiences to be found in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. All are welcome to attend or zoom in. Aaron, widely considered one of Alaska’s top birding guides and a downright nice guy, will draw from his 21 years of exploring, birding and guiding in the Arctic Refuge. Aaron is the co-owner of Wilderness Birding Adventures based in Homer and was the guide for the Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges’ trip to the Marsh Fork of the Canning River in the Arctic Refuge last summer.

Aaron collecting feathers from an abandoned nest cavity for Gray-headed Chickadees. No birds were found on the 2023 trip. The feathers were collected for possible DNA analysis. pc: Nancy Deschu

Approximately the size of South Carolina, the 19-million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge has no roads or facilities. The lands and waters are a critical nursery for birds who migrate and winter throughout North America and beyond and is an important home for iconic resident wildlife such as caribou, musk oxen and polar bear. The refuge presents a unique, wilderness birding experience and contains the largest designated Wilderness within the National Wildlife Refuge System. Birds commonly found along the Arctic’s rivers include nesting shorebirds such as Wandering Tattler, Upland Sandpiper, and American Golden-Plover and Golden Eagles, Arctic Warbler and Smith’s Longspurs.

This program will be recorded and posted HERE within a few days.

Aaron began birding in southern Minnesota at age 11 when the curious behavior of a Northern Flicker caught his eye, and he’s been hopelessly addicted to birding ever since. Combining bird-related work with a passion for travel has led him to adventures in Brazil, Tibet, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Bhutan. After settling in Alaska, Aaron spent several years running environmental education programs for the Prince William Sound Science Center in Cordova, all while scheming on how to turn his birding obsession into a career. In 2002, he began guiding for Wilderness Birding Adventures and, after 11 years, Aaron and his wife Robin bought the business.

Smith’s longspurs were frequently spotted on the Marsh Fork last summer. PC Jerry Britten

Aaron has served on the Alaska Bird Checklist Committee since 2009, the American Birding Association Checklist Committee (2015-2022), and the board of Audubon Alaska since 2019. He currently holds the Alaska Daydream Big Day Record for the most species of birds thought about in one 24-hour period.

This Kachemak Bay Birder Meeting is cosponsored by the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge with the zoom and recording capabilities provided by Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges.

“I’ll just make some Native engineers.” ANSEP – Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program

By Poppy Benson, Vice President for Outreach

Engineer and professor Herb Schroeder,while working on sanitation projects in bush villages, was shocked to find there were no Native engineers. Outsiders were coming in and making all the decisions in these villages. Herb thought, I’m an engineering professor at UAA so why don’t I just make some Native engineers. That was the beginnings of ANSEP – Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program – which was designed to funnel Native kids into STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Schroeder soon learned that it was a complicated task to recruit village students from graduating classes of 5 or 10 taught by a revolving door of young, inexperienced, non-Alaskan teachers and from families where no one had gone to college and turn them into successful college students. Attracting them to the STEM field was only the first step as they also had to successfully apply to college, be ready for college level work and be culturally and socially supported in the University environment that was so different from their home villages. ANSEP grew to address those issues expanding to a pathway and support system that starts in elementary school and goes all the way through a PhD. Watch this heartwarming short video about ANSEP.

As an ANSEP partner, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) contributes paid internships plus $50,000 annually to the scholarship fund. Karen Hyer, FWS subsistence office, who works with students at the Anchorage campus, said “Our target audience is rural kids. They have the skill sets we want.” She went on to say kids from the Delta speak Yupik, have field experience and frequently want to live and know how to live in rural areas. She was quick to say that as a federally supported program, ANSEP is open to all kids but the majority of students are Native. About a half dozen former ANSEP students are now permanent FWS employees. Meet two of them.

Randall Friendly said in an interview when he was in college “My family has lived in the Yukon Delta for 10,000 years. I love Alaska’s natural beauty and want to preserve its wildlife and resources for future generations. ANSEP is helping me achieve my career goals, which will help protect the land I love.

Randall Friendly, our October meeting speaker, came out of Tuntutliak on the Yukon Delta from a graduating class of 5. He is the first in his family to go to college. He is the first in his family to go to college. He got involved in ANSEP’s Acceleration Academy as a junior in high school and now is about to receive his Masters of Science from University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) having successfully defended his thesis on how wintering conditions for threatened spectacled eiders affect breeding success. He just started his first permanent job as waterfowl biologist for the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. His recorded talk, Working with Waterfowl on the Yukon Delta Refuge, is online hereand listen to a podcastwhere he talks about his career.

Keith Herron says he wanted to be a fisheries biologist because “I want to be a part in making sure they are always around so others can have the opportunities I have had. I have always had fish in my life”.

Keith Herron is a fisheries biologist and tribal liaison with the Fairbanks FWS Field Office. Keith grew up from Bethel to Wrangell to Kenai but always around water and fishing. Keith heard about ANSEP his senior year from a refuge employee. He signed up for ANSEP’s Summer Bridge (to college) program. Keith is finishing his masters in fisheries biology from UAF. His work with Ichthyophonus, a fish parasite contracted by Chinook salmon, puts him in a hot spot in a region where fisheries have been closed or greatly limited for four years causing significant hardships to the communities of the Yukon River. His research hopes to shed light on whether this parasite is responsible for less fish reaching Canada than expected. He is hoping what he learns about this disease will help better inform crucial fishery management decisions. Read more about his work here.

Karen Hyer noted that change is slow but ANSEP is a bright light with excellent student outcomes. It is bringing to the FWS competent young Native professionals who will “normalize” fish and wildlife careers for the kids coming up behind them.

The boat shaped ANSEP building on the UAA campus is a home base providing a supportive environment for studying and cultural events. Keith Herron said the best part of ANSEP is “You are not doing school alone. You are part of a community”

Secretary Haaland visits the Kenai Refuge

Sara Boario, USFWS Alaska Regional Director (left), and Andy Loranger, Kenai Refuge Manager, hosted the Secretary during her visit to the Kenai. “It means so much that the Secretary takes time to meet with us when she visits Alaska,” Boario said. “On each of her three trips she has prioritized time to listen and learn from our employees and share her support and encouragement for our work.” pc Lisa Hupp/USFWS

Church friends who are drummers and spouses bringing in their famous salmon dip created a warm and homey welcome for Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland’s October visit to the Kenai Refuge. She didn’t want a formal presentation so the refuge enlisted their friends the Heartbeat of Mother Earth drummers and called on their partners in the Kenaitze tribe including Tribal President Bernadine Atchison to help welcome the Secretary to the Refuge Visitor Center. She was particularly moved by the drummers. Staff reported she took the time to meet everyone and hugged elders and engaged children.

Earlier in the day she visited an upcoming fish passage project on Ninilchik Native Association lands that will allow salmon to return to a tributary of Deep Creek that flows from the refuge. Financed by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the project is a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Kenai Peninsula Borough, the Ninilchik Native Association Inc., and the Ninilchik Traditional Council. Ninilchik Tribal leaders, President Greg Encelewski and Executive Director Ivan Encelewski, spoke with the Secretary about vital cultural traditions and the importance of salmon to Indigenous people. USFWS biologist Kyle Graham shared about the priority and need to increase habitat connectivity. Borough Mayor Peter Micciche also added his support.

Later in the day, she visited the refuge’s newly improved access to Kenai River at Jim’s Landing, partially funded by the Great American Outdoors Act. The Secretary walked the edge of the river, took photos as a pair of bald eagles flew overhead, and witnessed the final salmon lifecycle stages typical of late fall in Alaska.

Secretary Haaland (center) on her visit to the FWS booth at AFN in Anchorage
The Secretary also visited the Fish and Wildlife Service booth at the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) convention in Anchorage, where she met Refuge Information Technicians and Tribal Liaisons from across the state. Crystal Leonetti, Fish and Wildlife Service’s Alaska Native Affairs Specialist, reflected, “the Secretary so graciously shook each of our hands, asked us our names and where we work, and spent a few minutes with a youngster at one of the booth’s highlights – a kid’s coloring activity. It was a dream to spend just a few moments with her.

Even K9 Officer Togo turned out with all the Kenai Refuge staff to be photographed with the Secretary in front of the Kenai Refuge’s Moose. pc Lisa Hupp/USFWS