Meetings – Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges

Flying Wild Alaska: Aerial bird surveys give a bird’s-eye view of refuges and waterbirds

Presented by Heather Wilson, Fish and Wildlife Service Pilot/Biologist

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 5 – 6 p.m. AKT

In Person, Watch Parties and on Zoom

Anchorage, REI Community Room Heather Wilson in person. Speaker Reception at 4:30, presentation at 5.
Soldotna, Watch Party at Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, Ski Hill Rd.
Homer, Watch Party at Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, 95 Sterling Hwy.
Zoom link will be posted HERE on this page closer to the time of the program.

“I think of the Cessna 206 as a Swiss army knife. It can do so many things well…and that makes it a very useful plane for aerial survey work” Heather Wilson as quoted in Vogue magazine. Heather flying the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Cessna 206 over the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. PC Erinn Springer, Vogue.

Heather Wilson has said that if she could have one animal adaptation it would be flight! She’s been featured in Vogue, Outside, and Smithsonian magazines and now she will be here with us on the 19th to share her unique dual-function position of both pilot and wildlife biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Migratory Bird Management. Learn how aerial bird surveys are conducted, the logistics of flying and surveying in some of the most remote parts of Alaska, and the research and management implications of the survey data she collects. Heather’s work takes her to ALL of Alaska’s National Wildlife Refuges and her surveys determine hunting regulations and management actions for an array of common and threatened species.

Heather is currently the project lead/pilot-observer for:

Population surveys for winter and fall brant at Izembek & Maritime National Wildlife Refuges
Breeding pair surveys across the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Coastal Zone, Arctic Coastal Plain, Copper River Delta, Kenai and Kanuti National Wildlife Refuges
Molting goose surveys and captures in the Teshekpuk Lake Special Use Area and Innoko Refuge.

She’ll touch on these, as well as other waterbird surveys and field work past and present across the state.

Counting Cackling Canada Geese by eye on the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge flying only 125 feet AGL (above ground level). PC Tim Bowman/USFWS

Biography

Heather Wilson’s interest in conservation (and aviation) developed from growing up and working in the mountains, rivers, and forests of northern California. She holds a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks and a B.A. in Biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. After several years of working as a field biologist in North, Central, and South America (focused on neo-tropical migratory birds and bats), Heather moved to Alaska in 2001. Within a year, she became a private airplane pilot, adding commercial, instrument, and float ratings in 2008.

Heather has said what she likes most about her work is the autonomy and challenge of aerial surveys in Alaska and getting to blend biology and piloting. She also enjoys visiting the vast lands that Fish and Wildlife Service manages across Alaska, seeing all the animals from above (100 ft), and working with a great group of people, “biologists and pilots are salt of the earth”. Although Heather is Anchorage based, she flies bird surveys throughout the state on National Wildlife Refuges, and beyond. Most of her aerial surveys serve as the primary population indices for setting hunting regulations through the Pacific Flyway and Alaska Migratory Bird Co-Management Council, as well as assisting in conservation of Threatened species. When not in the work plane, Heather is busy compiling data and preparing for more surveys.

In her off time Heather enjoys hiking, skiing, hunting/fishing, playing music with her family and flying in the family’s Piper Super Cub. Heather Wilson with her children in the Super Cub.

See some great footage of bird flocks and learn more about her work as a Wildlife Biologist/Airplane Pilot in these short videos.

Mission Unstoppable TV show – How Biologists Count Birds: Biologist/Pilot Heather Wilson

LifeOnTERRA film – Chasing Birds in Beringia

Chasing Answers in the Arctic: Researching the Effects of Climate Change on the Porcupine Caribou Herd

Presented by Heather Johnson USGS Research Wildlife Biologist and Paul Leonard Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Supervisory Biologist
Tuesday, Oct. 15, 5 – 6 AKDT

This event was held with in person speakers at Fairbanks and Anchorage, at watch parties in Soldotna and Homer and on Zoom.

The Porcupine caribou herd is currently the largest in Alaska and one of the largest herds in North America. Each summer, it undergoes one of the longest terrestrial migrations on Earth to birth calves on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. But what is the future of the herd given changing climate conditions? Join us to hear about how an innovative research project aims to discover whether and how a changing climate will impact the herd. Arctic Refuge Supervisory Biologist Paul Leonard will share with us the significance of the Porcupine caribou herd as a cornerstone of the ecological, cultural, and economic landscape of the Arctic Refuge, and as a vital part of the livelihoods and traditions of Indigenous peoples of the region, including the Iñupiat and Gwich’in. Lead researcher Heather Johnson of US Geological Survey (USGS) will discuss the research she is conducting on the Porcupine caribou herd in collaboration with partners including the refuge. Their research aims to understand the influence of changing climate conditions on summer habitat for caribou in the Arctic, the impacts of these changes on caribou behavior and population dynamics, and the implications for the future of the Porcupine herd. As part of the project, caribou wear video camera collars so researchers can ‘see’ life from a caribou’s perspective, footage we look forward to sharing with you!

Cow caribou carried video cameras which turned on every 20 minutes to takea 10 second video. This allowed researchers to see what they were eating, what habitat they were using, if they had calves and other important information.

This is a partnered program with the Campbell Creek Science Center serving as not only our monthly meeting but also their Fireside Chats monthly talk series.

Biographies

Heather Johnson is a Research Wildlife Biologist at USGS Alaska Science Center in Anchorage. Heather has a PhD in Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana, a Masters in Wildlife Science from the University of Arizona, and a Bachelors in Ecology from the University of California, San Diego. Heather’s research focuses on understanding how changes in climate and land-use are influencing the behavior and population dynamics of large mammals, and how management strategies can minimize impacts. In her free time, Heather loves doing just about every type of outdoor adventure, especially when it means playing outside with her son.

Paul Leonard grew up in the rolling hills of central Kentucky and spent most of his youth playing out of doors and being constantly curious about the living things around him. He came to Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2019 after finishing a postdoctoral fellowship at Clemson University in South Carolina. His research and ecological interests are focused on recognizing and quantifying the spatial patterns in the distribution of natural resources and understanding the reasons for those patterns. He strives to synthesize large, complex spatial data on land use change, climate change and other human caused impacts to develop decision support tools and conservation strategies for diverse communities at a landscape level.In his free time, he likes self-powered adventures in the outdoors via boat, bike, and foot. He also spends a fair amount of time studying, photographing, and reading about birds.

Floating to the Hunt on National Wildlife Refuges in Alaska

This meeting was held on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, 5-6 pm AKDT
The recording of this event can be found below:

Presented by Barry Whitehill
Yukon Flats Deputy Refuge Manager (Retired)

Ivishak River in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

From the mountains to the lowlands, rivers can take you to wilderness hunting. Floating has been Barry Whitehill’s primary vehicle for accessing national wildlife refuges in Alaska in order to hunt moose, sheep, and caribou. He also just loves rivers. Barry’s love of rivers was honed through a career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service which enabled him to traverse remote Alaskan rivers for work. His retirement in 2009 as the Deputy Refuge Manager at the 8.6 million acre Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge in central Alaska gave him the time and opportunity to undertake extended personal float trips. He has floated over 1000 miles of Alaska’s rivers in one summer! Barry knows Alaska rivers.

Feast or famine is often the dynamics of Alaska’s ecosystems. As a hunter in that setting, the difference between success and failure can be the ability to tap into the natural rhythm of the land. Barry considers floating to the hunt a great way to match the pace and terms of the Alaska landscape. Barry will share with us lessons learned in over thirty years of floating to these Alaska hunts. He will talk about some of his favorite rivers primarily on the Arctic, Kanuti and Yukon Flats refuges all accessed out of Fairbanks. He will also share tips for planning a float, logistics and gear.

Barry Whitehill’s biography in his own words:

I grew up in eastern Washington and considered myself fortunate to have public lands close at hand. Starting with my first elk at age 14, it became obvious to me that dropping into deep, dark holes and undertaking challenging floats on public lands consistently brought success as a hunter. Also, rivers and wild places rejuvenate my soul. Later, I found this true when living in Idaho, northern Nevada, and, since 1992, in Fairbanks, Alaska. I am a Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges member and on the Board of the Alaska Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. Both organizations do much to support our national wildlife refuges and our opportunities to float and hunt and enjoy these public lands.

Kanuti River on the Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge.

Background on Hunting on Refuges

Some of you may be surprised to learn that hunting is one of the “Big Six” priority wildlife dependent recreational uses of national wildlife refuges along with wildlife viewing, wildlife photography, interpretation, education and fishing. These were established as priority recreational uses in the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997. Some lower 48 refuges are closed to hunting to protect species where the populations are not large enough to support hunting or where hunting would conflict with other priority uses. All national wildlife refuges in Alaska are open to hunting except for very small areas adjacent to visitor facilities and the Skilak Loop Road on the Kenai Refuge where wildlife viewing, wildlife photography and small game specialty hunts (youth, bow, and falconry) are the priority uses. Protection of species is accomplished through game regulations usually set by the state. Many Alaskan households utilize wild meat as a big part of their diet.

Subsistence hunting for rural residents is also one of the purposes of all national wildlife refuges in Alaska as established by Congress in the Alaska National Interests Lands Act (ANILCA) of 1980.

Riverside camp on the Ivishak River, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Friends partnered for this program with the Alaska Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, a group dedicated to “ensuring North America’s outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing in a natural setting, through education and work on behalf of wild public lands, waters, and wildlife.” They have been advocates for refuges, wilderness and wildlife including taking positions opposing the Ambler Road and defending the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge during the 2016 takeover and occupation by the Bundys.

Conserving the Whole Lifecycle of Salmon: Gravel to Gravel in Alaska

Tuesday, April 16, 5-6 pm AKDT
Presented by Boyd Blihovde: Senior Advisor for Conservation, USFWS Alaska
This presentation was recorded. Watch below:

Salmon have been in trouble in western Alaska and for a long time. The people of the rivers who depend on salmon for much of their food resources and cultural identity are hurting. Boyd Blihovde, head of the Fish and Wildlife Service’s new Gravel to Gravel Initiative, will share with us this situation and his hopes for what this new approach will bring. Boyd, then manager of the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge, was in the thick of it in 2022 when salmon conservation discussions reached a peak in the villages of Western Alaska and beyond. Protecting Pacific Salmon’s entire lifecycle (from the spawning grounds to the ocean, and back to the spawning grounds) was not a new concept.

Yukon River smokehouse. Putting up salmon for the winter. pc S. Zuray

However, during several hearings and listening sessions with villages and tribes, it became clear that rebuilding salmon runs across Alaska was critical for indigenous people and other rural subsistence users. Leadership from the Department of Interior heard this message from the Tribes and responded with Gravel to Gravel. It is one of nine “Keystone Initiatives” in the United States that are being prioritized by the Department of Interior to focus agency attention and resources on priority conservation issues. The primary goal of Gravel to Gravel is, through tribal engagement and participation, to restore salmon streams and ensure food security to subsistence users within the lower-Arctic, Yukon, and Kuskokwim region of Alaska and into Canada. However, Boyd added that “we hope our efforts just bring back salmon numbers for everyone and all users.” Our vision is: “With Tribes centered, we unite to care for salmon, from gravel to gravel.

Fish drying racks and fishing boats are a key part of life in the salmon dependent villages of western Alaska pc USFWS

Bio: Boyd Blihovde is the Senior Advisor for Conservation at the USFWS Regional Office in Anchorage. He was the Refuge Manager at the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge based in Bethel, Alaska, from 2020 to August 2023. Prior to moving to Alaska, Boyd was the Refuge Manager at Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, located in Los Fresnos, Texas. He began his Service experience in 1989 as a GS-3, Youth Conservation Corp member at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge eventually moving on to the University of Central Florida, receiving a bachelor’s and master’s degree in biology. Boyd studied and researched sea turtles on Archie Carr Refuge Canaveral National Seashore, and Puerto Rico and conducted research and wrote his thesis on the terrestrial behavior and site fidelity of gopher frogs.

More recently, Boyd and his wife Gisela have focused more attention on their twins (Ava and Taylor). Boyd writes “The kids have been a lot of fun and have changed our focus from work and self to family and fun.”