Monday, February 18, 2008

Otter Cove & Ikatan Village




A couple of weeks ago the temperatures warmed up to around 40 degrees and melted all the snow. Winds were mild and we had the opportunity to get out and explore a lot. On one day we skiffed over to Ikatan Peninsula again. Our goal was to walk across the narrow isthmus and get to the Pacific. It was such a beautiful day! When we landed the skiff we found two sets of wolf tracks walking down the beach side by side. Unfortunately no wolves were seen, but those are two eagles resting on the roof.



Looking back towards Ikatan village.










Otter Cove...The Pacific Ocean




Emperor Geese (Chen canagica)

These geese are looking true to their name. Nearly all emperors winter under harsh conditions in the Aleutian Islands, on the western and south side of the Alaska Peninsula, and on Kodiak Island. So we regularly see them in the coves and flying past the Stonewall bight. Emperor geese are sometimes called “beach geese.” As the name implies, they are rarely found far from marine waters. In late fall and winter emperors feed heavily on seaweeds and animal matter, such as clams and snails. The emperor goose population declined from an estimated 140,000 in 1964 to 42,000 in 1986. Low first-year survival of young, periods of high nest predation and out-dated levels of harvest contributed to the decline. An intensive research and conservation program begun in 1984 has promoted an increase in population to over 71,000 in 1993.




Perhaps a victim of the wolves? or fox?



1 comment:

Clark hoyt said...

I am really enjoying your blog reports. I am a friend of Jim and Joanne Bowen. Please keep them coming. Clark Hoyt