Background Articles

Thanks to a growing tick database at the University of Turku, researchers have new insights into the disease pathogens that the tiny, blood-sucking arachnids carry.

Following an extremely dry summer, October started off equally dry. But, the second half of the month has brought enough rain that Ketchikan’s electric utility is finally switching off its diesel generators.

Reports that the sea star population was rebounding appear to have been overly optimistic, says the Coastal Ocean Research Institute.

Our hottest and coldest days are both getting warmer and tropical nights are becoming more common, a report says.

Fewer than expected animals have been slaughtered early due to the unusually dry weather, reports a business association for Swedish slaughterhouses.

The Icelandic lobster stock is at an historic low and last fishing season was the worst catch ever known in Iceland.

Sockeye salmon runs across Alaska were dismal this year. But no one is certain why.

Record-breaking October weather in much of Alaska has meant ice-free Arctic communities and fresh fruit and foliage in Southcentral.

On the edge of the Third Pole, a retreating glacier draws tourists and worries over climate change.

Researchers examined 179 radio-marked young moose over the course of a four-month period. Of those calves they screened, 125—or nearly 70 percent—of the moose calves died. The researchers suspect this is primarily because of the winter tick.

If spotted seal numbers continue to decrease at the same rate, they will decrease by 84% over the next 45 years, a time period of three generations for the animals.

The news isn’t getting any better for New Hampshire’s moose, as the population explosion of winter ticks driven by warmer winters continues to take a toll.

Arctic boxes connect water and sewer service to rural homes in Alaska. These boxes experience a lot of stress from differential ground movement caused by permafrost thaw. This video demonstrates how to repair a damaged Arctic box. Functional arctic boxes are an important part of water and wastewater services in Alaska.

On October 9, participants of the Youth Ecological Forum (IEF) attended a lecture by Mike Brook of the LEO Network. Participants who presented reports on northern biodiversity were particularly interested in the lecture. The delegation from Abyisky ulus prepared a report on “Cranes in the North-East of Yakutia and shared with the participants their observations of rare birds.

Drought, warmth, and a towering ridge of high pressure make an unusual start to fall in Alaska.

Fifty percent of Saimaa ringed seal pups born between the years of 2014-2017 entered the world in a snowdrift constructed by volunteers.

Bad weather is bad news, also for the red-listed kittiwake. New research reveals that wind conditions combined with the availability of different prey species are determinants of chick production in this seabird.

Researchers from the National Research Council Canada investigated why the Yukon River didnt freeze at the George Black ferry crossing, where the ice bridge is usually built, for the last two winters.

Three hundred large forest fires scorching 21,000 hectares of land but this summer's intense heatwave triggered fewer fires than expected, said a report ...

Some Indigenous people are applauding the “precautionary” approach several nations are taking to protect the environment through a new moratorium on commercial fishing in the High Arctic.