Barrow Area Research Articles

Lingering Chukchi Sea sea ice and Chukchi Sea mean winds influence population age structure of euphausiids (krill) found in the bowhead whale feeding hotspot near Pt. Barrow, Alaska.

Interannual variability in euphausiid (krill) abundance and population structure and associations of those measures with environmental drivers were investigated in an 11-year study conducted in late August–early September 2005–2015 in offshelf waters (bottom depth > 40 m) in Barrow Canyon and the Beaufort Sea just downstream of Distributed Biological Observatory site 5 (DBO5) near Pt. Barrow, Alaska. Statistically-significant positive correlations were observed among krill population structure (proportion of juveniles and adults), the volume of Late Season Melt Water (LMW), and late-spring Chukchi Sea sea ice extent. High proportions of juvenile and adult krill were seen in years with larger volumes of LMW and greater spring sea ice extents (2006, 2009, 2012–2014) while the converse, high proportions of furcilia, were seen in years with smaller volumes of LMW and lower spring sea ice extent (2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2015). These different life stage, sea ice and water mass regimes represent integrated advective responses to mean fall and/or spring Chukchi Sea winds, driven by prevailing atmospheric pressure distributions in the two sets of years. In years with high proportions of juveniles and adults, late-spring and preceding-fall winds were weak and variable while in years with high proportions of furcilia, late-spring and preceding-fall winds were strong, easterly and consistent. The interaction of krill life history with yearly differences in the northward transports of krill and water masses along with sea ice retreat determines the population structure of late-summer krill populations in the DBO5 region near Pt. Barrow. Years with higher proportions of mature krill may provide larger prey to the Pt. Barrow area bowhead whale prey hotspot. The characteristics of prey near Pt. Barrow is dependent on krill abundance and size, large-scale environmental forcing, and interannual variability in recruitment success of krill in the Bering Sea.

A Context-Appropriate Approach to Marine 14C Calibration: Δr and Bayesian Framework for the Nuvuk Cemetery, Point Barrow, Alaska

ABSTRACTThis study provides an assessment of the temporal changes in ΔR, which is the local deviation from the global surface water marine reservoir effect (MRE), in the Point Barrow area of the Alaskan Arctic, a coastal archaeological area that has experienced severe erosion accelerated by global warming. A total of 26 samples were submitted for radiocarbon (14C) dating from eight secure Thule (AD 1000–1750) archaeological contexts, and specifically from archaeological features with paired processed seal and caribou bones that had been frozenin situ. This new approach towards ΔR estimation provides a best-fit local correction for the14C dating of human populations by focusing on the marine mammal (seals) predominantly consumed by the Thule (Coltrain et al. 2016). The weighted-mean ΔR value on these pairs is 450 ± 84 yr, which is about 50 years less than the weighted-mean (506 ± 69 yr) for the Point Barrow area calculated through14C measurements from four known-age bivalves collected in AD 1913 (McNeely et al. 2006). The effects of using this new ΔR value for calibration was assessed through the Bayesian chronological modeling of 5414C measurements from samples of human skeletons interred in the Nuvuk cemetery at Point Barrow, the largest ancient cemetery in northwest Alaska and traditionally thought to date to the Thule and earlier Birnirk (AD 500–1000) periods.

Arctic plant responses to changing abiotic factors in northern Alaska.

Understanding the relationship between plants and changing abiotic factors is necessary to document and anticipate the impacts of climate change. We used data from long-term research sites at Barrow and Atqasuk, Alaska, to investigate trends in abiotic factors (snow melt and freeze-up dates, air and soil temperature, thaw depth, and soil moisture) and their relationships with plant traits (inflorescence height, leaf length, reproductive effort, and reproductive phenology) over time. Several abiotic factors, including increasing air and soil temperatures, earlier snowmelt, delayed freeze-up, drier soils, and increasing thaw depths, showed nonsignificant tendencies over time that were consistent with the regional warming pattern observed in the Barrow area. Over the same period, plants showed consistent, although typically nonsignificant tendencies toward increasing inflorescence heights and reproductive efforts. Air and soil temperatures, measured as degree days, were consistently correlated with plant growth and reproductive effort. Reproductive effort was best predicted using abiotic conditions from the previous year. We also found that varying the base temperature used to calculate degree days changed the number of significant relationships between temperature and the trait: in general, reproductive phenologies in colder sites were better predicted using lower base temperatures, but the opposite held for those in warmer sites. Plant response to changing abiotic factors is complex and varies by species, site, and trait; however, for six plant species, we have strong evidence that climate change will cause significant shifts in their growth and reproductive effort as the region continues to warm.

Stratigraphy of the Birdrong: an integrated approach

A detailed study of the Early Cretaceous Birdrong Sequence (S. areolata - P. burgeri) has been undertaken in the East Spar and Woollybutt fields, which lie in the northern end of the Barrow Delta complex in the Barrow Sub-basin, Northern Carnarvon Basin. This project integrates palynological, sedimentological and seismic stratigraphic interpretations to progress our understanding of the way in which the Barrow Delta evolved. The results will help develop remaining hydrocarbon prospectivity in the northern Barrow area. Palynological analysis within the Helby, Morgan and Partridge (2004) zonation scheme for the North West Shelf has enabled the identification of several significant biostratigraphic events, which have allowed further subdivision of the existing broad palynological zones. These palynological events represent influxes of specific dinoflagellate cyst taxa that may be tied to key stratal surfaces. These surfaces include transgressive ravinement surfaces, sequence boundaries and flooding surfaces. The palynological and sedimentological data, when combined, indicate a strong facies relationship between specific taxa and interpreted depositional environment. Such taxa include Gagiella, freshwater and brackish algae, and fully marine dinoflagellate cysts including Kaiwaradinium scrutillinum, Systematophora areolata, Phoberocysta neocomica and Cribroperidinium muderongense. The integration of sedimentology and palynology provides a powerful tool in interpreting depositional systems in shallow marine palaeoenvironments. Initial results indicate this may be used as a predictive tool for reservoir correlation and facies modelling. Key stratal surfaces identified through palynological and sedimentological study will be tested against 3D seismic to understand fully the stratigraphy of the study interval.

Using aerial photography to investigate evidence of feeding by bowhead whales

AbstractAerial photographs were analyzed to investigate the feeding habits of the Bering‐Chukchi‐Beaufort (BCB) population of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), particularly epibenthic feeding near Barrow, Alaska. Evidence of epibenthic feeding was based on mud visible on the dorsal surface of whales, resulting from feeding near the seafloor. Other cues used to assess feeding were an open mouth or the presence of feces in photographs. Over 3,600 photographs were analyzed including photos from surveys in spring and late summer and in both the western and eastern Beaufort Sea. Of all the photographs analyzed, 64% were scored as definitively muddy. In spring, ratios ranged from a low of 27% in 2003 to a high of 76% in 2004. When all May sample sets off Barrow were combined (1985, 1986, 2003, 2004), there was a significant difference (t‐test, P < 0.004) between the proportion of muddy juveniles to the proportion of muddy adults, with muddy adults being more common. The Barrow area was a commonly used feeding ground during migrations in both the spring (61% of the sample were feeding; 55% epibenthically) and autumn (99% of the sample; 97% epibenthically). Bowheads both migrate and feed through areas where petroleum extraction is underway and anticipated; hence, exposure to oil after a spill is of considerable concern to Native communities and management agencies.

Sphagnum beringiense sp. nov. (Bryophyta) from Arctic Alaska, Based on Morphological and Molecular Data

A new species of Sphagnum section Subsecunda, S. beringiense, is described from arctic Alaska from the vicinity of Barrow along the northern coast. The species is distinguished morphologically by the light, yellow-green color of the gametophytes, multistratose stem cortex with 2–4 layers of enlarged thin-walled cells, round, medium-size (ca. 5 μm diameter) outer branch leaf pores, scattered inner branch leaf pores, typically few outer stem leaf pores, and abundant, round to elliptic inner stem leaf pores. Two unique plastid DNA haplotypes occur among Barrow area plants of S. beringiense, and these differ by a minimum of three nucleotide substitutions from those of other Alaskan Sphagnum species in the section Subsecunda. Microsatellite markers show that S. beringiense is genetically variable despite the fact that all plants were sampled from within an area of a few km2 and neither gametangia nor sporophytes have been observed. A key to the six Alaskan species of Sphagnum section Subsecunda is provided.

Spatial Variability of Barrow-Area Shore-Fast Sea Ice and Its Relationships to Passive Microwave Emissivity

Aircraft-acquired passive microwave data, laser radar height observations, RADARSAT synthetic aperture radar imagery, and in situ measurements obtained during the AMSR-Ice03 experiment are used to investigate relationships between microwave emission and ice characteristics over several space scales. The data fusion allows delineation of the shore-fast ice and pack ice in the Barrow area, AK, into several ice classes. Results show good agreement between observed and Polarimetric Scanning Radiometer (PSR)-derived snow depths over relatively smooth ice, with larger differences over ridged and rubbled ice. The PSR results are consistent with the effects on snow depth of the spatial distribution and nature of ice roughness, ridging, and other factors such as ice age. Apparent relationships exist between ice roughness and the degree of depolarization of emission at 10, 19, and 37 GHz. This depolarization would yield overestimates of total ice concentration using polarization-based algorithms, with indications of this seen when the NT-2 algorithm is applied to the PSR data. Other characteristics of the microwave data, such as effects of grounding of sea ice and large contrast between sea ice and adjacent land, are also apparent in the PSR data. Overall, the results further demonstrate the importance of macroscale ice roughness conditions such as ridging and rubbling on snow depth and microwave emissivity

Pollen Morphology of Tundra Shrubs and Submarginal Plants from Barrow, Alaska

AbstractInvestigation of plant morphological features, pollen, and habitat have been made for two shrub species from Barrow, Alaska, namely Dryas integrifolia M. Vahl and Salix rotundifolia Trautv., both of which are endemic to the Arctic floristic area. The former species has small lanceolate or plate leaves, whereas the latter has rounded leaves with distinct veins, rich in vitamin C. Both have dwarf and sprawling habits. Pollen studies showed that the pollen grains of the two species are spheroidal to sub‐spheroidal or prolate. The type of aperture was tricolporate; pollen size 26.3–31.3 μm; ornamentation finely reticulate under a light microscope (LM) and striate‐reticulate under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) for D. integrafolia and finely reticulate under the LM and SEM for S. rotundifolia. Comparisons were made between the pollen from the same species from Arctic collections with those from China and Japan. Investigation of pollen morphology of tundra plants can provide significant data for comparative studies of fossil pollen and for the reconstruction of paleovegetation and paleoclimate in the Barrow area.(Managing editor: Ya‐Qin Han)

Alaska's indigenous muskoxen: a history

Muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus) were widespread in northern and interior Alaska in the late Pleistocene but were never a dominant component of large mammal faunas. After the end of the Pleistocene they were even less common. Most skeletal finds have come from the Arctic Coastal Plain and the foothills of the Brooks Range. Archaeological evidence, mainly from the Point Barrow area, suggests that humans sporadically hunted small numbers of muskoxen over about 1500 years from early Birnirk culture to nineteenth century Thule culture. Skeletal remains found near Kivalina represent the most southerly Holocene record for muskoxen in Alaska. Claims that muskoxen survived into the early nineteenth century farther south in the Selawik - Buckland River region are not substantiated. Remains of muskox found by Beechey's party in Eschscholtz Bay in 1826 were almost certainly of Pleistocene age, not recent. Neither the introduction of firearms nor overwintering whalers played a significant role in the extinction of Alaska's muskoxen. Inuit hunters apparently killed the last muskoxen in northwestern Alaska in the late 1850s. Several accounts suggest that remnant herds survived in the eastern Brooks Range into the 1890s. However, there is no physical evidence or independent confirmation of these reports. Oral traditions regarding muskoxen survived among the Nunamiut and the Chandalar Kutchin. With human help, muskoxen have successfully recolonized their former range from the Seward Peninsula north, across the Arctic Slope and east into the northern Yukon Territory.

Geographical analysis of California condor sighting data: D. M. Stoms & 6 others, Conservation Biology, 7(1), 1993, pp 148–159

<dm:abstracts xmlns:dm="http://www.elsevier.com/xml/dm/dtd"><ce:abstract xmlns:ce="http://www.elsevier.com/xml/common/dtd" view="all" class="author" id="aep-abstract-id1"><ce:section-title>Publisher Summary</ce:section-title><ce:abstract-sec view="all" id="aep-abstract-sec-id1"><ce:simple-para id="fsabs014" view="all">Shorebirds or waders are small to medium-sized birds of the order Charadriiformes that frequently are associated with shorelines and wetlands. In northern Alaska, where shorebirds dominate the avifauna in number of individuals and species, two families regularly occur—the plovers (Charadriidae) and the sandpipers (Scolopacidae). Arctic shorebirds have attracted considerable study because of their abundance and diversity, their exceptional migrations, and their variety of mating systems. Northern Alaska has hosted considerable research on arctic shorebirds. Studies of shorebird foraging and breeding biology took place during the 1960s and 1970s in the western Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP), primarily in the Barrow area. In more recent years the major focus of shorebird study has been the oil-field region of the central ACP. Arctic-breeding shorebirds undertake some of the most extreme migrations of any birds, many traveling across continents during their annual movements. During the breeding season, most occur widely in arctic environments and have ranges extending into Canada and/or Russia. The only taxon whose breeding range is restricted to northern Alaska is the dunlin <ce:italic>(Calidris alpina articola)</ce:italic>; other races of this species are found throughout the Arctic.</ce:simple-para></ce:abstract-sec></ce:abstract></dm:abstracts>

STRATIGRAPHIC FRAMEWORK OF THE BARROW GROUP AND IMPLICATIONS FOR THE HYDROCARBON POTENTIAL OF THE WEST BARROW AREA

An integrated sequence stratigraphic approach has been used to resolve, with high resolution, the chronostratigraphy of the Barrow Group in the West Barrow area. Assessment of the hydrocarbon potential has resulted in identification of various play concepts and exploration risks.Five Barrow Group sequences are identified; each developed in response to tectonically or eustatically induced changes in sea level. The sequence stratigraphic framework provides an explanation for the distribution of reservoir and overpressure encountered in the area, and insight to the sealing potential within the Lower Barrow Group.Utilising the sequence analysis results, two strategies for geophysical mapping were established; structural mapping of reservoir/seal interfaces identified in Top Barrow and intra-Lower Barrow Group intervals, and secondly, amplitude mapping of seismic events associated with sandstones within the overpressured Lower Barrow Group. Amplitude extraction mapping of a seismic reflection generated by the submarine fan complex intersected by the West Barrow wells demonstrates a lobate areal geometry with well developed apparent channel axes. The occurrence of lobate sands within an overpressured shale, combined with hydrocarbon shows within the interval, highlight the stratigraphic potential in the area. Petrographic studies, however, indicate that diagenetic occlusion of pore space has downgraded the reservoir quality of these sands.At Top Barrow Group level, depth conversion of time structure maps using the midpoint depth technique has revealed structures not evident with time mapping. The largest closure encompasses the West Barrow-1A location where log analysis and gas homologue ratios indicate that a potential light oil/condensate hydrocarbon column may remain untested.

Bowhead Whale (&lt;i&gt;Balaena mysticetus&lt;/i&gt;) Feeding near Point Barrow, Alaska, During the 1985 Spring Migration

Examination of stomach contents and behavioral observations showed conclusively that bowhead whales were feeding in the Point Barrow area during the spring of 1985. All three bowheads harvested near the village of Barrow had over five litres of pelagic zooplankton (calanoid copepods and euphausiids) in their stomachs. Over 60 whales were observed during the period 26 May through 6 June diving repeatedly under the landfast ice and feeding in an area 11.2 km southwest of Point Barrow. Observers recorded times for dive, surfacing and respiration intervals for these whales. The recorded times were significantly different from those of bowhead whales migrating past Point Barrow in the spring and from bowheads, whose major activity was feeding, recorded in the Canadian Beaufort Sea during the summer and fall.Key words: Balaena mysticetus, Point Barrow, feeding, bowhead whale, behavior, copepod,&nbsp; euphausiid, respiration, spring

The importance of sulfur isotope ratios in the differentiation of Prudhoe Bay crude oils

Sulfur isotopic analyses have been completed for eight Triassic, Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous oils from the Prudhoe Bay field, Alaska. Results presented complement earlier work and further indicate the diagnostic importance of δ 34S values in correlation studies of crude oils. The present work supports an earlier contention that Kuparuk River, Sadlerochit and Lisburne crude oils have a similar source of origin, distinct from that of Kingak oil. If Kingak and Shublik Formations contribute to the Sag River Sand crude oil in the Prudhoe Bay area of Alaska, the same may not be the case for Sag River Sand oil in the Point Barrow area which apparently originated from a different source or combination of sources.

North Slope Oil and Gas: The Barrow Arch Paradox: ABSTRACT

In the 40-year history of hydrocarbon exploration on the Alaskan North Slope, about 21 accumulations with a total in-place volume of more than 60 billion bbl of oil and 35 trillion ft3 of gas have been discovered. Although the density of exploratory drilling in this region is not uniform, enough drilling has been done to show a distinct concentration of oil and gas in the Prudhoe Bay area between the Colville and Canning Rivers. This concentration is also evident when the Prudhoe area resources are compared with the USGS estimates of undiscovered in-place oil and gas resources of the adjacent areas, the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Most oil and gas in the Prudhoe area accumulated near the present coastline in res rvoirs that overlie a southeasterly plunging basement ridge, the Barrow arch. The location of these accumulations, in low-relief structural-stratigraphic traps midway along the arch and downdip from its apex at Point Barrow, is the paradox. An answer to this paradox is provided by analysis of two cross sections, one along the Barrow arch and one perpendicular, showing their original structural positions for the beginning, middle, and end of Cretaceous time. In the Early Cretaceous (mid-Neocomian), the crest of the Barrow arch was near sea level along its entire length. Because of northeasterly sediment progradation during later Cretaceous time, the Barrow area became more deeply buried than the Prudhoe area, thus making the Prudhoe area the focal point for migrating oil and gas. Beginning in the early(?) Tertiary, the Barrow area was slowly uplifted while the Prudhoe area subsided, thus beginning the process that resulted in the reversal of their relative elevations and the focus for migrating oil and gas. Studies show t at the Prudhoe Bay field was tilted during the Tertiary, and some oil and gas escaped, migrated toward Barrow, and was trapped in the Kuparuk, West Sak, and Ugnu fields. This analysis suggests that most North Slope oil and gas were generated during the Cretaceous. End_of_Article - Last_Page 656------------

Petroleum Geochemistry of Alaskan North Slope--An Update: ABSTRACT

When the U.S. Geological Survey took over the drilling program in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA), many explorationists expected that a major accumulation would be found on or adjacent to the Barrow arch. This expectation was based on the presumption that the source rocks are buried to great depths in the Coville trough and that the generated would have migrated north to be trapped in sandstone or carbonate reservoir rocks near the Barrow arch. Subsequent drilling failed to confirm this model for occurrence in NPRA. To date, commercial generated in the Colville trough appears to be limited to the Prudhoe Bay area. Understanding the geological reasons for localization of major occurrence has important implications for exploration in northern Alaska, both onshore and offshore. Consideration of the basic requirements for occurrence (source, migration pathway, reservoir, trap, and seal) suggests that source rock adequacy may be a limiting factor in NPRA. Two geochemically distinct types of North Slope have been recognized: the Simpson-Umiat type (associated with a pebble-shale unit/Torok Formation source) and the Barrow-Prudhoe type (associated with a Shublik Formation/Kingak Shale source). Except for the from the Fish Creek 1 well and the reservoirs of Cretaceous age in the Prudhoe area, the Barrow-Prudhoe reservoirs are in Ellesmerian sequence rocks on the Barrow arch. The source-reservoir thermal-maturity patterns, the inferred timing of generation, and the structural configuration of the Ellesmerian rocks all suggest that the sho ld have migrated to the Barrow area as well as to the Prudhoe area. The presence of subcommercial Barrow-Prudhoe-type in NPRA also suggests that deficiencies in the oil plumbing system do not explain the lack of accumulations along the Barrow arch. The large volumes of in the Prudhoe area, as compared to only oil shows in the Barrow area, are best explained by the greater amount and better quality of organic matter in the Shublik Formation and the Kingak Shale to the east of NPRA. End_of_Article - Last_Page 669------------

Pebble Shale (Early Cretaceous) Depositional Environments in National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA): ABSTRACT

A of Lower Cretaceous age occurs across the North Slope and continues into northwestern Canada. This organic shale (1 to 5% organic carbon) is possibly the source for the Prudhoe Bay hydrocarbons and includes localized well-developed sand bodies such as those in the giant Kuparuk oil field. The inferred rifting of the Arctic basin, subsequent subsidence of a northern source area, and the southern orogeny during the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous contributed to the unique lithology and regional setting of the pebble shale. The pebble shale in NPRA consists of black anaerobic-dysaerobic shales, silty aerobic shales, pebbly mudstones, and sandstones. The shales contain matrix-supported, very well rounded aeolian-derived, fine to very coarse floating quartz grains. Deposition of these diagnostic floating quartz grains occurs rarely in the late Oxfordian (Late Jurassic) time by are abundant during the Neocomian (Early Cretaceous). In the south and central area of NPRA on the southern flank of the Barrow arch, an almost continuous sedimentation record of pebble shale deposition exists, as penetrated by the Tunalik 1 well. To the north the formation thins in a series of intraformational unconformities converging on the Barrow arch. Overlying the uppermost unconformity on the Barrow arch a pebbly mudstone 3 o 8-m (10 to 26 ft) thick, of Hauterivian-Barremian age contains well-rounded sand grains, pebbles and cobbles, pelletal glaunconite, shell fragments, wood chips, and burrows. Chert pebbles from this pebbly mudstone were processed for radiolarians and recovered spumellarians of probable pre-Late Devonian age. A thin zone, basal to an intra-pebble shale sand at Walakpa No. 2 contains siderite and appreciable phosphate in the form of carbonate fluorapatite. A zone of intense gamma radiation (GRZ), which is an easily traced seismic and gamma-ray log horizon across NPRA, is a black carbonaceous papery shale with a End_Page 424------------------------------ relatively high above background uranium-thorium concentration (11 versus 3 ppm U; 26 versus 8 ppm Th). Previously this zone marked the upper boundary of the pebble shale, however, two horizons are recognizable within the gamma zone, the lower one containing rounded quartz grains and hence pebble shale and the upper one devoid of floating quartz grains. Clay mineralogy, organic geochemistry, micropaleontology, and sedimentary structures from core and cuttings indicates a stratigraphic sequence through the Neocomian of upper to lower slope facies followed by inner and outer shelf facies and finally deposition of euxunic sediments. The pebbly mudstone facies, derived from a northerly source, is interpreted as a lowstand and subaqueous delta environment formed as the northern provenance was uplifted during Valanginian time. Rapid subsidence of this basin margin was related to the inferred Atlantic margin type downfaulting north of the Barrow arch. The subsequent deposits produced a blanket of sediment 300,000 mi2 (482,700 km2) in areal extent. Thin (2 to 9 ft, 0.8 m), fine-grained sands occur within the pebble shal of the Barremian silty shale facies and are restricted to the Barrow area. These sands have an average combined thickness of 45 ft (15 m) and contain traces of oil. Paleogeographic considerations imply better reservoir and coalescing of these sands to the north toward the paleoshoreline and suggest potential for discovery of hydrocarbon reserves from drilling locations on the northern barrier island systems and offshore. End_of_Article - Last_Page 425------------

Variability in the Diet of Ringed Seals, Phoca hispida, in Alaska

Analysis of stomach contents of ringed seals (Phoca hispida) collected at eight locations along the Alaskan coast showed significant seasonal and regional differences in diet. During the spring–summer period saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) was the most important food item in the nearshore zone of the northeastern Bering and southeastern Chukchi Seas. In that period shrimps (Pandalus spp., Eualus spp., Lebbeus polaris, and Crangon septemspinosa) were the major food in the northcentral Bering Sea, hyperiid amphipods (Parathemisto libellula) in the central Beaufort Sea and euphausiids (Thysanoessa spp.) in the boundary region (Barrow area) between the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. During late summer–early autumn hyperiid amphipods were important foods in the central Beaufort and the southeastern Chukchi. The autumn diet of seals in Norton Sound included mainly saffron cod During winter–early spring Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida) predominated the diet at all localities. During spring and early summer in the northeastern Bering and southeastern Chukchi seas the amount of saffron cod consumed was directly correlated with age. In the Beaufort Sea during autumn and winter Arctic cod were eaten in similar amounts by all age-classes. An analysis of the energy value and quantities of prey consumed indicates that prey species that occur in concentrations (Arctic and saffron cods, hyperiid amphipods, euphausiids and some shrimps) are of particular importance in the annual nutrition of ringed seals. These seals may be food limited in areas and during times when these kinds of prey are not available.Key words: food habits, Phoca hispida, ringed seals, Arctic cod, saffron cod, crustaceans, Alaska

On Some White Women in the Wilds of Northern North America

... Although some Viking woman undoubtedly preceded her onto the North American continent, Natalya Shelekhov became the first European female in Alaska when she and her merchant husband spent four years (1783-1787) on Kodiak Island. ... In Canada, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, Indian women likewise became the (common law) wives of fur traders and trappers of both the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company .... By the 1820s men started bringing European women to Indian country .... Although very few white women lived in Indian country during this period ... more were steadily arriving .... marriages with Indian and mixed-blood women became unacceptable .... for the most part such relationships were abandoned with the coming of white women .... The European wife, in her turn, was often a misfit in the new world, terrified to look about her for fear of seeing some of the results of her husband's earlier liaisons. ... The latter decades of the nineteenth century brought some of the first white women to the arctic coast of North America. They were whaling captains' wives, often with small children. ... During the 1890s gold and all the dreams that went with it brought considerably more women north than did whaling captains. ... Belinda Mulroney, a legendary figure of the Klondike stampede, invested a hard-earned $5,000 ... in cotton cloth and hot water bottles which she and two Indians floated down river to Dawson, to make for her a 600 percent profit .... The 1890s saw white women venturing into still another part of the far north. Josephine Peary, married to the explorer for 31 years, accompanied him on the Greenland expedition of 1891-92 (Peary 1893). ... The twentieth century witnessed a steady increase in the numbers of white women to be found in the north of Alaska .... There were also the dedicated wives of missionaries. ... Single women, almost always nurses or teachers, began to reach the north coast of Alaska duringthe second and third decades of the twentieth century. ... One who did survive and endure was, perhaps, the most exemplary woman ever to come to the Arctic coast - the nurse Mollie Ward Greist. Mollie, the wife of a well-to-do Indiana physician, was shocked when her husband suggested giving up his practice and going north as a missionary to the Eskimo. ... They arrived at Wales, Alaska, in 1920 and stayed there a year before replacing the aging, ailing Dr. and Mrs. Spence at Barrow, where they remained for sixteen long years with only rare periods of leave outside the territory. ... Mollie eventually became head nurse at the hospital, as well as stores manager .... Besides all of her other duties, Mollie, short of cash like most missionaries, ran the U.S. Weather Observatory for many years. ... At the same time that Mollie Greist was at Barrow quite a few other women found their way north. ... During the 1940s petroleum exploration brought many white men into the Barrow area, and a limited number of the men ... were followed by their wives .... After oil exploration stopped, construction of the Distant Early Warning Line (DEW Line) commenced in 1955 .... In summer there was an influx of contractors' wives, and a few scientists' wives came too. ... In the summer of 1956 Dr. Ingrith Deyrup became the first unmarried woman scientist at the [DEW Line Research] Laboratory. ... While the camp was gradually adjusting itself to the idea that men obliged to be away from home for long periods wanted their families near them, the more forward-thinking Canadians were constructing Inuvik, N.W.T. ... Inuvik has welcomed single teacher, nurses and other workers regardless of sex or marital status, and in that respect stands in sharp contrast to Barrow Camp where the single woman has been less than acceptable. ... Very many other white women have resided in the Alaskan North. ... Even more white women have lived in the remote areas of Canada. .... Most of these people, despite the length of their stay, do not look upon the bush as being home. ...

Photosynthesis and Respiration in Arctic Tundra Grasses: Field Light Intensity and Temperature Responses

The influence of light intensity and temperature on the photosynthetic responses of intact leaves was studied in the principal grasses in the vicinity of Barrow. Alaska. Light saturated rates of young expanded leaves varied from 7.0 mg CO2 · dm-2 · hr-1 in Hierochloë alpina to 30.8 mg CO2 · dm-2 md hr-1 in Elymus arenarius although most species possessed rates in the range 10 to 20 mg CO2 · dm-2 · hr-1. Saturation was usually attained near 0.4 cal · cm-2 · min-1 (400 to 700 nm) suggesting that few leaves would be light saturated in situ. Light compensation was attained at 0.008 to 0.010 cal · cm-2 · min-1 which suggests that CO2 exchange could be positive for 24 hr in most leaves until late in July. The shape of the temperature response curves were similar in all species with optima usually around 15°C. All species possessed positive photosynthesis at the lowest temperatures (0 to 5°C) tested. Dark respiration was more temperature de-the range 10 to 20 mg CO2 · dm-2 · hr-1. pendent than the combined effect of light respiration and oxygen inhibition as shown by a comparison of CO2 exchange in 20% oxygen and 0% oxygen.All species utilized ribulose-1,5-diphosphate carboxylase as the principal carboxylating enzyme, possessed high CO2 compensation points (around 50 ppm at 15°C), and were inhibited by On. The absolute magnitude (mg CO2 · dm-2) of this inhibition was generally greatest at the light intensities and temperature regimes which supported the highest rates of photosynthesis. Inhibition, expressed as a percentage of the photosynthesis rate, increased with an increase in temperature and decreased with an increase in light intensity.All grasses in the Barrow area are C3 plants and possess relatively high rates of CO2 uptake at the low temperatures and light intensities characteristic of these high latitudes. On a daily basis photosynthetic rates should be high and should be closely coupled to radiation.

Radiation Climate of Barrow Alaska, 1962–66

Observations of the radiation climate near Point Barrow, Alaska, were conducted during a five-year period between 1962 and 1966. Data on incoming shortwave radiation, albedo, incoming longwave radiation, and net total radiation are summarized in the form of monthly and annual averages. Due to the prevalence of summer clouds, incident shortwave radiation (Q) reaches a peak in early June with maximum flux values in excess of 50 mW cm−3. Increasing cloud cover throughout the snow-free period results in a distribution for Q which is asymmetric about the summer solstice. Atmospheric transmissivity averages vary between 34% in late summer and 69% in late winter, the annual average being 51%. The albedo regime exhibits four distinctly different parts: 1) a winter stationary period, 2) a spring transitional period, 3) a summer stationary period, and 4) an autumn transitional period. Incoming longwave radiation (E) averages 24 mW cm−2 for the year with a seasonal variation of around 7 mW cm−2 year−1. On an annual basis, the surface receives more than twice as much longwave as shortwave radiation (744 vs 320 kJ cm−1). The data indicate that E can be calculated from the empirical relationship.where T is the air temperature at screen height and G is the cloudiness in tenths. Using this formula, the standard deviation of the percent difference between the observed and predicted values of E is 9%. Net total radiation (B) over the tundra averages 45 kJ cm−2 year−1; the annual total is critically dependent upon the date of snow melt. Bemuse of the lower summer albedos, the numerous lakes in the region have annual B values which are 25% larger than those over the tundra, resulting in an integrated average for the Barrow area of about 50 kJ cm−2 year−1. On the basis of this study it appears that with routine data from the Barrow Weather Station, together with supplemental snow cover data, the components of the radiation balance along the coastal portions. of the Alaskan North Slope can be estimated with an accuracy that may be sufficient for many biological and engineering applications.