Birds

In this episode of Outside Science (inside parks), join the team at Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve as they monitor the amazing recovery of peregrine falcons along the Yukon River.

Read the abstract and get the link to an article about bird population changes in the subarctic as treeline and shrubline shift: Mizel, J. D., J. H. Schmidt, C. A. Roland, and C. L. McIntyre. 2023. Tree and shrub expansion at treeline drive contrasting responses in a subarctic passerine community. Journal of Animal Ecology 92(6): 1256-1266.

Wrangell St. Elias NPP to Bering Land Bridge NP: summer movements of Golden Eagle 1502. Satellite telemetry is expanding our understanding of Golden Ecology and revealing the stories of non-territorial Golden Eagles in Alaska during the breeding season.

Read the abstract and link to an article that describes the short-term impacts of weather and the long-term impacts of climate on northern songbird species: Mizel, J.D., J. H. Schmidt, and C. L. McIntyre. 2021. Climate and weather have differential effects in a high-latitude passerine community. Oecologia.

Read the abstract and link to a peer-reviewed article on Arctic shorebird adaptations: Shaftel, R., D. J. Rinella, E. Kwon, S. C. Brown, H. R. Gates, S. Kendall, D. B. Lank, J. R. Liebezeit, D. C. Payer, J. Rausch, S. T. Saalfeld, B. K. Sandercock, P. A. Smith, D. H. Ward, and R. B. Lanctot. 2021. Predictors of invertebrate biomass and rate of advancement of invertebrate phenology across eight sites in the North American Arctic. Polar Biology 44: 237-257.

Read the abstract and get the link to a paper published in Ecotoxicology on mercury contamination in subarctic migratory songbirds: Stenhouse, I.J., E.M. Adams, L.M. Phillips, S. Weidensaul, and C.L. McIntyre. 2019. A preliminary assessment of mercury in the feathers of migratory songbirds breeding in the North American subarctic. Ecotoxicology, DOI 10.1007/s10646-019-02105-2.

Read the abstract and get the link to an article published in Ecosphere: Mizel, J. D., J. H. Schmidt, C. L. Mcintyre, and C. A. Roland. 2016. Rapidly shifting elevational distributions of passerine species parallel vegetation change in the subarctic. Ecosphere 7(3):1-15.

Telemetry studies provide new information on the movements of non-territorial (migrating) Golden Eagles in Alaska during the breeding season, expanding our understanding of the ecology of this species. This information should be useful for developing effective management and conservation. Alaska Park Science 17(1), 2018.

The American peregrine falcon is one of the best known raptors in North America. For years, American peregrine populations declined due to problems with egg-shell thinning caused by persistent organic pollutants such as DDT. The American peregrine is one of three peregrine species found throughout North America, from northern Mexico all the way to Alaska.

Alaska Park Science (2015) - Within just six weeks of fledging, some of Denali’s juvenile eagles fly over 4,000 miles to spend the winter in central Mexico. Here they are in the company of other migratory golden eagles from interior and northern Alaska and northwest Canada, flying back to Alaska in the spring. Changing climate, and changing habitat over those thousands of miles, presents significant challenges to eagles' survivability.