The Threatened Eider Geodatabase for Northern Alaska is a compilation of spectacled and Stellerӳ eider data. This database is intended to be a qualitative "first look" at where spectacled and Stellerӳ eiders have been found and where surveys have been conducted. This dataset is intended for general planning and mapping purposes, it should NOT be used for deriving density estimates. The dataset is available either as an ESRI ArcGIS 10 file geodatabase or as a shapefile with associated tables.
Resources
LCCs have produced a wealth of informational documents, reports, fact sheets, webinars and more to help support resource managers in designing and delivering conservation at landscape scales.
The Dunlin (arcticola subspecies) is a common breeding bird in Arctic Alaska from the area
surrounding Barrow to the east. The pacifica subspecies also occurs within the Arctic LCC
assessment area in the region around Cape Lisburne and Cape Krusenstern. Dunlin use a wide
variety of breeding habitats found in the northern sub-arctic and arctic. On the Arctic Coastal
Plain of Alaska, C. a. arcticola breed in moist-wet tundra, often in areas with ponds, polygons,
and strangmoor landforms (Warnock and Gill 1996). The arcticola subspecies winters in Asia
Date posted: June 23, 2018
These raster datasets represent historical stand age. The last four digits of the file name specifies the year represented by the raster. For example a file named Age_years_historical_1990.tif represents the year 1990. Cell values represent the age of vegetation in years since last fire, with zero (0) indicating burned area in that year. Files from years 1860-2006 use a variety of historical datasets for Boreal ALFRESCO model spin up and calibration to most closely match historical wildfire dynamics.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) and the North Slope Science Initiative have both identified the importance of synthesizing and disseminating existing climate and hydrology data as well as improving the design of climate and hydrologic monitoring networks to meet management and research needs. We have partnered with the Arctic LCC to address this issue. During this project we designed a geodatabase called Imiq, inventoried hydrologic, climate, and related datasets, and populated the Imiq database with both data and metadata.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This dataset includes Snow Free Date(sfdt) for northern Alaska in GeoTiff format, covering the years 1980-2012. Snow Free Date is defined as day of the end of the core snow period(day of simulation). The core snow season is defined to be the longest period of continuous snow cover in each year. The dataset was generated by the Arctic LCC SNOWDATA: Snow Datasets for Arctic Terrestrial Applications project.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
These rasters represent output from the Boreal ALFRESCO (Alaska Frame Based Ecosystem Code) model. Boreal ALFRESCO operates on an annual time step, in a landscape composed of 1 x 1 km pixels, a scale appropriate for interfacing with mesoscale climate and carbon models. The last four digits of the file name specifies the year represented by the raster. For example a file named Age_years_historical_1990.tif represents the year 1990. Cell values represent the age of vegetation in years since last fire, with zero (0) indicating burned area in that year.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Common Raven is wide-ranging throughout much of North America utilizing a variety of
habitats from deserts in the southwestern U.S. to tundra habitats in Arctic Alaska (Boarman and
Heinrich 2000). Historically, this species did not nest in the northern portion of the Arctic
Coastal Plain of Alaska but with the growing human presence in the region, particularly from oil
development activities, they have been able to utilize human structures for nesting (Johnson and
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Potential Evapotranspiration (PET): These data represent decadal mean totals of potential evapotranspiration estimates (mm). The file name specifies the decade the raster represents. For example, a file named pet_mean_mm_decadal_CCCMA_CGCM31_A1B_annual_2000-2009.tif represents the decade spanning 2000-2009. The data were generated by using the Hamon equation and output from CCCMA (also CGCM3.1), a third generation coupled global climate model created by the Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis. Data are at 2km x 2km resolution, and all data are stored in geotiffs.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Ruddy Turnstone, named after its habit of turning over stones and other objects in search of
prey, occurs throughout the circumpolar arctic. In Alaska, this species typically nests in barren
halophytic, sparsely vegetated sites (Bart et al. 2012, Nettleship 2000), usually near the coast or
along rivers, and rarely inland (Johnson et al. 2007). During the breeding season, Ruddy
Turnstones feed primarily on dipteran insects obtained in dry to wet habitats near ponds and
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This dataset includes Last Snow Date(lsdt) for northern Alaska in GeoTiff format, covering the years 1980-2012. Last Snow Date is defined as day of last snow occurrence during the year(day of simulation). The dataset was generated by the Arctic LCC SNOWDATA: Snow Datasets for Arctic Terrestrial Applications project.
The simulation period runs from 1 September – 31 August. "Day-of-simulation" takes the value of "1" on 1 September, "123" on 1 January, and "365" on 31 August. "Day-of-simulation" files should be used for analysis (trend, mean, etc.).
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Beaded streams are widespread in permafrost regions
and are considered a common thermokarst landform.
However, little is known about their distribution, how and
under what conditions they form, and how their intriguing
morphology translates to ecosystem functions and habitat.
Here we report on a circum-Arctic survey of beaded streams
and a watershed-scale analysis in northern Alaska using remote
sensing and field studies.We mapped over 400 channel
networks with beaded morphology throughout the continuous
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Potential Evapotranspiration (PET): These data represent decadal mean totals of potential evapotranspiration estimates (mm). The file name specifies the decade the raster represents. For example, a file named pet_mean_mm_decadal_CCCMA_CGCM31_A1B_annual_2000-2009.tif represents the decade spanning 2000-2009. The data were generated by using the Hamon equation and output from CCCMA (also CGCM3.1), a third generation coupled global climate model created by the Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis. Data are at 2km x 2km resolution, and all data are stored in geotiffs.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Potential Evapotranspiration (PET): These data represent decadal mean totals of potential evapotranspiration estimates (mm). The file name specifies the decade the raster represents. For example, a file named pet_mean_mm_decadal_CCCMA_CGCM31_A1B_annual_2000-2009.tif represents the decade spanning 2000-2009. The data were generated by using the Hamon equation and output from CCCMA (also CGCM3.1), a third generation coupled global climate model created by the Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis. Data are at 2km x 2km resolution, and all data are stored in geotiffs.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Red Knot, roselaari subspecies, is a relatively uncommon breeding shorebird in Arctic
Alaska. They typically nest in coastal alpine habitats, preferring sparsely vegetated and broad
alpine ridgelines and dome tops (Harrington 2001, J. Johnson, pers. comm.). There is little
information on breeding season diet in this species however; field observations suggest a varied
diet from insects to plant materials (e.g., lichens, leaves, berries) (Harrington 2001). During May,
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Snowy Owl, a conspicuous and majestic bird of the circumpolar arctic, is an efficient hunter
of small mammals in tundra environs. In years of high lemming numbers they will focus on this
abundant food source but will readily switch to a wide variety of other prey when lemmings are
scarce (Parmelee 1992). Their breeding range in Alaska is generally restricted to the Arctic
Coastal Plain, typically nesting in more upland tundra habitats, although they often, though not
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Numerous studies utilizing remote sensing imagery and other methods have documented that thermokarst lakes are undergoing varied hydrological transitions in response to recent climate changes, from surface area expansion to drainage and evaporative desiccation. Here, we provide a synthesis of hydrological conditions for 376 lakes of mainly thermokarst origin across high-latitude North America.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Bar-tailed Godwit completes one of the most incredible journeys of any bird species,
traveling non-stop across the Pacific Ocean from Alaska to Australia and New Zealand during its
fall migration. In Arctic Alaska, this species is found most commonly west of the Colville River
and is particularly frequent in the Brooks Range foothills (Johnson et al. 2007). On the North
Slope, Bar-tailed Godwits nest in moist tussock tundra near wetlands to wet sedge meadows
(McCaffery and Gill 2001). They typically forage in shallow, flooded areas on insects but will
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This raster, created in 2010, is output from the Geophysical Institute Permafrost Lab (GIPL) model and represents simulated mean annual ground temperature (MAGT) in Celsius, averaged across a decade, at the base of active layer or at the base of the seasonally frozen soil column. The file name specifies the decade the raster represents. For example, a file named MAGT_1980_1989.tif represents the decade spanning 1980-1989.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This dataset includes Snow Water Equivalent Depth(swed) for northern Alaska in GeoTiff format, covering the years 1980-2012. Snow Water Equivalent Depth is defined as depth on 1 March(m). The dataset was generated by the Arctic LCC SNOWDATA: Snow Datasets for Arctic Terrestrial Applications project.
The dataset is delivered in the ZIP archive file format. Each year is output in a separate GeoTiff file, where the year is indicated by the filename.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
These maps show baseline (1961-1990) average air temperature and projected air temperature for the decades spanning 2010-2039, 2040-2069, and 2070-2099. Temperature is expressed in both Celsius (у) and Fahrenheit (ц). Baseline results for 1961-1990 are derived from Climate Research Unit (CRU) TS 3.1. data and maps for future time periods are based on a composite of projections from five GCMs (CCSM4, GFDL-CM3, GISS-E2-R, IPSL-CM5A-LR, and MRI-CGCM3) under the AR5-RCP 8.5. Data courtesy of Scenarios Network for Alaska and Arctic Planning.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Appendix B (species fact-sheets) excerpted from the Assessing Climate Change Vulnerability of Breeding Birds in Arctic Alaska Report
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Pomarine Jaeger, the largest of the three jaegers, prowls the arctic tundra subsisting on a diet
composed almost entirely of brown lemmings (Lemmus trimucronatus). This species presumably
nests only in years when lemmings are abundant (Wiley and Lee 2000). Their breeding range in
Alaska is relatively close to the coast, typically nesting in wet tundra habitats, the same habitats
as those utilized by their favorite prey. Pomarine Jaegers may forgo breeding in low lemming
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Rough-legged Hawk is truly a hawk of the far north, with its breeding range largely
restricted to arctic tundra and taiga habitats. In open tundra, this species typically places nests on
steep outcroppings and cliff faces. Rough-legged Hawks rely on a diet of small mammals
(mostly lemmings, voles) although a variety of birds are also eaten (Bechard and Swem 2002).
On the coastal plain of Alaska they typically forage in open tundra and low-brush habitats (e.g.
river floodplains) (Bechard and Swem 2002). Rough-legged Hawks spend their winters in
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Summary report titled "Development of Shorebird Distribution Maps for the North Slope of Alaska Using Geospatial Habitat Modeling: the First Step in Assessing Effects of Climate Change." The report includes an Appendix that identifies data layers that were unavailable but would have been useful to include in the study.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Average historical total precipitation (mm) in summer (June - August) and projected relative change in total precipitation (% change from baseline) for Northern Alaska. 30-year averages. Handout format. Maps created using the SNAP 5-GCM composite (AR5-RCP 6.0) and CRU TS3.1.01 datasets.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Cackling and Canada Geese were recently split into two species. The Cackling Goose taverneri
subspecies is thought to be the dominant breeder on Alaska’s Arctic Coastal Plain although some
evidence suggests they may interbreed with Canada Goose parvipes subspecies (Mowbray et al.
2002). Coastal plain Cackling/Canada geese nest in moist sedge shrub tundra with brood rearing
in wet sedge meadows, often near the coast (Mowbray et al. 2002). On the coastal plain their diet
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Lakes are prevalent in the Arctic and thus play a key role in regional hydrology. Since many
Arctic lakes are shallow and ice grows thick (historically 2 m or greater), seasonal ice commonly freezes to
the lake bed (bedfast ice) by winter’s end. Bedfast ice fundamentally alters lake energy balance and meltout
processes compared to deeper lakes that exceed the maximum ice thickness (floating ice) and maintain
perennial liquid water below floating ice. Our analysis of lakes in northern Alaska indicated that ice-out of
Date posted: June 23, 2018
These maps show baseline (1961-1990) average total precipitation and projected change in precipitation for the decades spanning 2010-2039, 2040-2069, and 2070-2099. Precipitation is expressed in both millimeters (mm) and inches (in); projected change in precipitation is expressed as percent of baseline. Baseline results for 1961-1990 are derived from Climate Research Unit (CRU) TS 3.1.01 data and maps for future time periods are based on a composite of projections from five GCMs (CCSM4, GFDL-CM3, GISS-E2-R, IPSL-CM5A-LR, and MRI-CGCM3) under the AR5-RCP 8.5.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Short-eared Owl occurs widely throughout North America. An owl of open country, they
nest on the ground inhabiting marshes, grasslands, and tundra throughout their range. Like
Snowy Owls, Short-eared owl population dynamics are linked to cycles in their primary prey -
small mammals (Holt and Leasure 1993). In the Alaskan Arctic, they typically nest on drier
tundra sites, usually with enough vegetation to conceal incubating females. They often forage in
wet tundra habitats, though not exclusively (Holt and Leasure 1993). Short-eared Owls migrate
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Baseline (1961-1990) average winter temperature in and projected change in temperature for for the northern portion of Alaska. For the purposes of these maps, 'winter' is defined as December - February. The Alaska portion of the Arctic LCC's terrestrial boundary is depicted by the black line. Baseline results for 1961-1990 are derived from Climate Research Unit (CRU) TS3.1 data and downscaled to 2km grids; results for the other time periods (2010-2039, 2040-2069, 2070-2099) are based on the SNAP 5-GCM composite using the AR5-RCP 8.5, downscaled to 2km grids.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Aquabase is a geodatabase that links freshwater fish and hydrological information with referenced waterbody locations. Presently, the geospatial region covered is Alaska's central and eastern North Slope, between the Kuparuk River and USA/Canada border. The dataset is available either as an ESRI ArcGIS 10 file geodatabase or as a shapefile with associated tables.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This map was created by Arctic LCC staff and depicts the general boundaries of the Arctic LCC. This map is in PDF format, suitable for printing.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Lapland Longspur is the most abundant passerine breeder on the North Slope of Alaska.
This species is most commonly associated with the Arctic Coastal Plain, but also nests in alpine
habitats in the interior Brooks Range. High nesting densities have been found throughout the
Alaskan coastal plain (Custer and Pitelka 1977, Liebezeit et al. 2011) with nesting sites often in
dry/moist tundra near tussocks and less frequently in wetter tundra habitats (Hussell and
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Baseline (1961-1990) average winter temperature in and projected change in temperature for for the northern portion of Alaska. For the purposes of these maps, 'winter' is defined as December - February. The Alaska portion of the Arctic LCC's terrestrial boundary is depicted by the black line. Baseline results for 1961-1990 are derived from Climate Research Unit (CRU) TS3.1 data and downscaled to 2km grids; results for the other time periods (2010-2039, 2040-2069, 2070-2099) are based on the SNAP 5-GCM composite using the AR5-RCP 8.5, downscaled to 2km grids.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Yellow-billed loon Geodatabase is a compilation of Yellow-billed loon observations and survey data. This database is intended to be a qualitative "first look" at where loons have been found and where surveys have been conducted. This dataset is intended for general planning and mapping purposes, it should NOT be used for deriving density estimates. The dataset is available either as an ESRI ArcGIS 10.1 file geodatabase or as a shapefile with associated tables.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Average historical annual temperature, projected air temperature, and change in air temperature (degree C) for Northern Alaska. GIF formatted animation and PNG images. Maps created using the SNAP 5-GCM composite (AR5-RCP 8.5) and CRU TS3.1 datasets.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Hoary Redpoll, closely related and often difficult to distinguish from the Common Redpoll,
is a common finch of the circumpolar arctic. In Alaska their range is largely sympatric with the
Common Redpoll although they tend to be more common further north. Like the Common
Redpoll, they utilize both forested and tundra habitats although they tend to utilize tundra
habitats more extensively (Knox and Lowther 2000). In Arctic Alaska tundra, this species nests
in willows (primarily along riparian areas) or on the ground in shrubby areas (Knox and Lowther
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This dataset includes Solid Precipitation(spre) for northern Alaska in GeoTiff format, covering the years 1980-2012. Solid Precipitation is defined as snowfall(m/yr). The dataset was generated by the Arctic LCC SNOWDATA: Snow Datasets for Arctic Terrestrial Applications project.
The dataset is delivered in the ZIP archive file format. Each year is output in a separate GeoTiff file, where the year is indicated by the filename.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Terrestrial Environmental Observation Network (TEON) is intended to meet the need for a
sustainable environmental observing network for northern Alaska. TEON is organized around
representative focal watersheds (Figure 1). TEON will collect, distribute, and synthesize long-term
observational data needed to detect and forecast effects of a changing climate, hydrology, and
permafrost regime on wildlife, habitat, and infrastructure in northern Alaska.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Willow Ptarmigan is an abundant and conspicuous breeding bird in Arctic Alaska and is one
of the few birds that remain in the Arctic year-round. During the breeding season this species
nests in tall shrub habitats as well as in well-drained tundra sites (Hannon et al. 1998). In early
spring Willow Ptarmigan are willow bud specialists (constituting up to 80% of their diet); in
summer the dietary breadth widens substantially to include insects, berries, equisetum, and
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Map of the Agashashok River Area and location of proposed observation sites (numbered circles). This focal watershed is in the southwest corner of the Arctic LCC and largely drains the Brooks Range ecoregion with a small portion of the lower basin in the Kobuk Ridges and Valleys ecoregion. The braided character of the lower river prevents us from suggesting a long term gaging station in that location. Inset shows the location of the seven TEON focal watersheds. Image by Arctic LCC staff.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Yukon North Slope (YNS) has been and remains a core hunting territory of the Inuvialuit of the Canadian Western Arctic. From their communities in Aklavik and Inuvik in the Northwest Territories, the Inuvialuit rely on the Yukon North Slope for their subsistence livelihood. They travel by boat, foot, all
Date posted: June 23, 2018
These rasters represent estimated potential evapotranspiration (mm). Data were generated by using the Hamon equation and historical air temperature projections from the CRU dataset.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This dataset includes Rain Precipitation(rpre) for northern Alaska in GeoTiff format, covering the years 1980-2012. Rain Precipitation is defined as (m/yr). The dataset was generated by the Arctic LCC SNOWDATA: Snow Datasets for Arctic Terrestrial Applications project.
The dataset is delivered in the ZIP archive file format. Each year is output in a separate GeoTiff file, where the year is indicated by the filename.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This compilation of references regarding thermokarst and other thaw-related features is focused on the Arctic and the Subarctic. References were drawn from North America as well as Siberia. English-language literature mostly was targeted, with 167 references annotated in version 1.0; however, an additional 28 Russian-language references were taken from Shur and Osterkamp (2007) and are provided at the end of this document. This compilation may be missing key references and inevitably will become outdated soon after publication.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
The Glaucous Gull is a large gull with a circumpolar distribution. In Alaska, it is the most
common gull along Arctic Ocean coastal areas. Like other gulls, this generalist species has
benefited from the presence of humans in the arctic and readily utilizes human-subsidized food
resources (e.g. edible garbage, roadkills; Day 1998). Glaucous Gulls take advantage of a wide
variety of natural prey as well and are a noted nest predator. Alaskan populations of this species
Date posted: June 23, 2018
This pilot project has initiated a long-term integrated modeling project that aims to
develop a dynamically linked model framework focused on climate driven changes to
vegetation, disturbance, hydrology, and permafrost, and their interactions and feedbacks.
This pilot phase has developed a conceptual framework for linking current state-of-thescience
models of ecosystem processes in Alaska – ALFRESCO, TEM, GIPL-1 – and the
primary processes of vegetation, disturbance, hydrology, and permafrost that they
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Potential Evapotranspiration (PET): These data represent decadal mean totals of potential evapotranspiration estimates (mm). The file name specifies the decade the raster represents. For example, a file named pet_mean_mm_decadal_MPI_ECHAM5_A1B_annual_2000-2009.tif represents the decade spanning 2000-2009. The data were generated by using the Hamon equation and output from ECHAM5, a fifth generation general circulation model created by the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg Germany. Data are at 2km x 2km resolution, and all data are stored in geotiffs.
Date posted: June 23, 2018
he Smith’s Longspur is a relatively understudied passerine breeder on the North Slope of
Alaska. In this region, they are most commonly associated with the Brooks Range foothills
where they are found in broad valleys and low passes (S. Kendall, pers. comm.). Smith’s
Longspurs are known for their polygynandrous mating system which is unusual in passerines. In
arctic Alaska, this species nests on open tundra, from upland hummocky terrain (Briskie 2009) to
wet meadow habitats (Johnson and Herter 1989). During the breeding season they forage on a
Date posted: June 23, 2018
Baseline (1961-1990) average winter temperature in and projected change in temperature for for the northern portion of Alaska. For the purposes of these maps, 'winter' is defined as December - February. The Alaska portion of the Arctic LCC's terrestrial boundary is depicted by the black line. Baseline results for 1961-1990 are derived from Climate Research Unit (CRU) TS3.1 data and downscaled to 2km grids; results for the other time periods (2010-2039, 2040-2069, 2070-2099) are based on the SNAP 5-GCM composite using the AR5-RCP 8.5, downscaled to 2km grids.
Date posted: June 23, 2018