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Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge | Alaska
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The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is located in the northeast corner of Alaska. In this region of extensive cold, much of the Refuge's soils are underlain with permafrost.
The Beaufort Sea washes against the north coast of the Refuge. These waters remain ice-covered for eight or more months each year. The ice pack is the winter home for polar bear and numerous seals. During the summer, whales migrate through these waters.
South of the coast lies a broad expanse of flat arctic tundra composed mostly of sedges and low shrubs. Musk oxen live year-round on this coastal plain, and caribou produce their calves here in late spring.
The arctic tundra rises to the south through foothills to the rugged, rocky mountains of the Brooks Range. Dall sheep search for winter forage along windblown slopes, while marmots hibernate within stony crevices for nine months each year.
Further south, mountains gradually merge into the spruce and shrubs of the boreal forest. Beaver, mink, and moose, as well as numerous small rodents, inhabit the wet meadows, bogs, and rivers within this forested region.
(Scientific names follow "The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals," 1999, edited by D.E. Wilson and S. Ruff. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C.)
INSECTIVORES (shrews)
____
Masked Shrew
(
Sorex cinereus
) Wet areas and forests.
____
Dusky Shrew
(
Sorex monticolus
) Wet meadows and forests south of the mountains.
____
Pygmy Shrew
(
Sorex hoyi
) Forests and open areas south of the mountains.
____
Tundra Shrew
(
Sorex tundrensis
) Wet tundra and forests.
____
Barren Ground Shrew
(
Sorex ugyunak
) Wet tundra and forests.
____
Holarctic Least Shrew
(Sorex minutissimus
) Wet areas, tundra, shrublands and forests.
LAGOMORPHS (hares and rabbits)
____
Snowshoe Hare
(
Lepus americanus
) Forests and shrub thickets.
RODENTS (squirrels, voles, lemmings, etc.)
____
Alaska Marmot
(
Marmota broweri
) Rocky, mountainous areas.
____
Arctic Ground Squirrel
(
Spermophilus parryii
) well-drained areas.
____
Red Squirrel
(
Tamiasciurus hudsonicus
) Forests.
____
Muskrat
(
Ondatra zibethicus
) Ponds and marshes south of the mountains.
____
Beaver
(
Castor canadensis
) Lakes and rivers south of the mountains.
____
Meadow Vole
(
Microtus pennsylvanicus
) Meadows and open forests south of the mountains.
____
Tundra Vole
(
Microtus oeconomus
) Meadows near water.
____
Yellow-cheeked Vole
(
Microtus xanthognathus
) Forests and wet areas.
____
Singing Vole
(
Microtus miurus
) Well-drained tundra and shrub thickets near water.
____
Northern Red-backed Vole
(
Myodes rutilus
) Tundra and forests.
____
Brown Lemming
(
Lemmus sibiricus (trimucronatus)
) Well-drained raised areas in wet-sedge tundra.
____
Northern Bog Lemming
(
Synaptomys borealis
) Wet areas, forests, and meadows south of the mountains.
____
Collared Lemming
(
Dicrostonyx groenlandicus
) Sedge tundra.
____
Porcupine
(
Erethizon dorsatum
) Forests and shrub thickets.
CANIDS (foxes and wolves)
____
Coyote
(
Canis latrans
) Rare in open areas.
____
Gray Wolf
(
Canis lupus
) All areas.
____
Arctic Fox
(
Alopex lagopus
) Tundra north of the mountains.
____
Red Fox
(
Vulpes vulpes
) All areas.
FELIDS (cats)
____
Lynx
(
Lynx canadensis
) Forests.
URSIDS (bears)
____
Black Bear
(
Ursus americanus
) Forests.
____
Brown/Grizzly Bear
(
Ursus arctos
) Valleys, plateaus, and open areas.
____
Polar Bear
(
Ursus maritimus
) Along the coast and on ocean ice.
MUSTELIDS (weasels)
____
Marten
(
Martes americana
) Forests.
____
Ermine
(
Mustela erminea
) Open forests and tundra.
____
Least Weasel
(
Mustela nivalis
) Open, wet areas.
____
Mink
(
Mustela vison
) Wet areas south of the mountains.
____
Wolverine
(
Gulo gulo
) Forests and tundra.
____
River Otter
(
Lontra canadensis
) Rivers and lakes mainly south of the mountains.
CERVIDS (deer)
____
Moose
(
Alces alces
) Forests, shrub thickets, and wet areas.
____
Caribou
(
Rangifer tarandus
) All areas.
BOVIDS (goats and sheep)
____
Muskox
(
Ovibos moschatus
) Tundra north of the mountains.
____
Dall Sheep
(
Ovis dalli
) Rocky slopes and meadows in the mountains.
PINNIPEDS (seals and walrus)
____
Walrus
(
Odobenus rosmarus
) Rare along the coast.
____
Spotted Seal
(
Phoca largha
) Coastal waters and on ocean ice.
____
Ringed Seal
(
Phoca hispida
) Ocean ice along the coast.
____
Bearded Seal
(
Erignathus barbatus
) Coastal waters and on ocean ice.
CETACEANS (whales)
____
Beluga Whale
(
Delphinapterus leucas
) Coastal waters.
____
Gray Whale
(
Eschrichtius robustus
) Rare in coastal waters.
____
Bowhead Whale
(
Balaena mysticetus
) Coastal waters.
[Mammal list updated May 2017.]
Page Photo Credits
– All photos courtesy of USFWS unless otherwise noted.
Last Updated: Jun 06, 2017