~The Natural State~.....ALASKA

[olena]

State Flower

Asian Forget-me-not
Myosotis asiatica


Description One to several stems rise 6-16 in. from long-petioled, lance-shaped, hairy basal leaves. Stem leaves are shorter and broader. Tiny, bright blue flowers to pale blue flowers with yellow centers are saucer-shaped and occur in dense clusters.
Flower June - August.
Habitat Meadows; woods; moist slopes; moderate to high elevations.
Range Alaska south through British Columbia, to Oregon, c. Idaho, and n.w. Colorado.
Discussion The common cultivated forget-me-not is Myosotis sylvatica var. sylvatica, a European plant of lower elevations, distinguished primarily by its less clumped form and less perennial habit.

 

[olena]

State Tree

Sitka Spruce
Picea sitchensis


Description The world's largest spruce, with tall, straight trunk, from buttressed base, and broad, open, conical crown of horizontal branches.
Height: 160' (49 m).
Diameter: 3-5' (0.9-1.5 m), sometimes much larger.
Needles: evergreen; spreading on all sides of twig; 5/8-1" (1.5-2.5 cm) long. Flattened and slightly keeled, sharp-pointed; dark green.
Bark: gray, smooth, thin; becoming dark purplish-brown with scaly plates.
Twigs: brown, stout, hairless, rough, with peglike bases.
Cones: 2-3 1/2" (5-9 cm) long; cylindrical, short-stalked, light orange-brown; hanging at ends of twigs; opening and falling at maturity; cone-scales long, stiff, thin, rounded, and irregularly toothed. Paired, brown, long-winged seeds.
Habitat Coastal forests in fog belt, a narrow strip of high rainfall and cool climate; in pure stands and with Western Hemlock.
Range Pacific Coast from S. Alaska and British Columbia to NW. California; to timberline at 3000' (914 m) in Alaska; below 1200' (366 m) in California.
Discussion The main timber tree in Alaska, Sitka Spruce produces high-grade lumber for many uses and wood pulp for newsprint. Special products are piano sounding boards, boats, and food containers. It was formerly used in aircraft construction.

 

[olena]

State Insect

Four-Spot Skimmer Dragonfly

Description:
Naiad-
• Medium to large naiad, with a length of 7/8 to 1 1/16 inches (22 to 26 mm).
• Orange-brown in color
• Abdomen is rounded, giving it a short, stocky appearance known as the sprawler form. Small hook exists on the top of abdominal segments three through eight, while the hooks on segments five through seven are noticeably larger. Also a small, rear-facing spine on each side of abdominal segment eight and nine.
Adult-
• Medium-sized dragonfly with a length of 1 5/8 to 1 13/16 inches (40 to 45 mm).
• Wings clear except for along the leading edge, which is clouded with a transparent yellowish brown. Center of each wing is marked with a small dark spot, also on the leading edge. Additionally, each hindwing is marked with a dark patch near the base.
• Males and females look alike, generally dark brown.
• Face and each side of the thorax are marked with patches of greenish yellow.
• Sides of the abdomen lined with yellowish orange dashes.
Key Idenfication Features
• Small brown patch on the middle of the leading edge of each wing, this combined with the dark pterostigma is the origin of the name "Four-spotted Chaser".
• Brown tapering abdomen, becoming black towards the posterior end.
• Yellow markings on sides of abdomen.
• Dark brown patch at the base of the wings.

Range:
Labrador to New Jersey, southwest to Arizona, north to British Columbia, Alberta, and Alaska.


Habitat:
Near ponds or broad, slow parts of rivers, sometimes straying to open woods.

Adult Flight Season:
Early April to mid-August

Diet:
Naiad- Feeds on small aquatic insects.
Adult- Eats small flying insects.

Ecology:
The naiad does particularly well in acidic bogs, and lives in the debris on the bottom of lakes, ponds, bogs, and marshes. They do not actively pursue prey but wait for it to pass by, a strategy which affords them protection from other predators. Naiads emerge as adults at night. Adults generally fly from early April to mid-August. Hunting occurs from perches on twigs or rocks. This is the only Libellula species in our area in which the males do not become pruinose. Although it does not regularly migrate in North America, this species has been known to migrate in Europe, generally in 10 to 15-year cycles. The direction of the migration varies, and the migrations are thought to be triggered by a trematode parasite (it is known that several types of parasites can cause unusual behaviors in their hosts that promote the dispersal of the parasite). This species has also been known to form large swarms in Europe, often covering 100 square miles (roughly 300 square km).

Reproduction:
After males and females mate, the female flies singley, without the male attached, to lay her eggs. She does this by dipping the tip of her abdomen in the water while hovering just above its surface.

 

[olena]

Willow Ptarmigan
Lagopus lagopus

Description 15-17" (38-43 cm). A small tundra grouse with red comb over each eye. In winter, entirely white except for black tail. In summer, male rusty red with white wings and belly; female mottled and barred with brown except for white wings. Spring and fall molting plumages show a variety of checkered patterns. Summer males of other ptarmigan species more grayish. Winter Rock Ptarmigan has black stripe through eye. White-tailed Ptarmigan has entirely white tail.
Voice In flight, courting males have a loud, staccato go-back, go-back, go-back, and other guttural calls.
Habitat Tundra; also thickets in valleys and foothills; muskeg.
Nesting 7-10 yellowish eggs, blotched with brown, in a scrape lined with grass and feathers, often sheltered by vegetation, rocks, or logs.
Range Breeds from Alaska east to Labrador, and south to central British Columbia, northern Ontario, and central Quebec. Winters south to forested regions of central Canada. Also in Eurasia.
Discussion The most widespread ptarmigan of the Far North, this species increases in number in some years but in others is very scarce. While the female incubates, the male guards the territory. When the chicks grow up, several families gather in large flocks and often migrate southward together when winter arrives. In summer ptarmigans feed on green shoots, buds, flowers, and insects; in winter they take mainly twigs and buds of willows and alders.

 

[olena]

State Fish

Chinook Salmon
Oncorhynchus tshawytscha
King Salmon

Description To 4'10" (1.6 m); 126 lbs (57.2 kg). Elongate, fusiform. Marine coloration: greenish-blue to black above, silvery-white below, oblong, black spots on back and entire caudal fin; very dark overall in fresh water. Gums at base of teeth black. Adipose fin present; striations on caudal fin rays smooth.
Endangered Status The Chinook Salmon is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. The Sacramento River winter-run population in California is classified as endangered wherever it is found. Other naturally spawned populations in California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington are classified as threatened. Why the Chinook and other Pacific Northwest salmon have declined is no mystery. The causes are known as "the four H's": harvest, habitat, hatcheries, and hydroelectric power. Harvest refers to the overfishing of these species by commercial fishing interests. Habitat refers to the degradation of habitat, usually by pollutants or sediment in the water that make it uninhabitable by the salmon or their eggs. Logging, agriculture, and mining interests have had a large hand in contaminating fish-run habitats. Captive-bred hatchery fish, released in the waterways used by native fish, compete and interbreed with the natives, weakening their stocks. Hydroelectric dams have had perhaps the largest impact, blocking migration routes and changing the quality, quantity, rate of flow, and temperature of the water in rivers, lakes, and tributary streams that once supported tens of millions of salmon.
Similar Species Coho Salmon (O. kisutch) lacks spots on lower lobe of caudal fin; gums at base of teeth white; striations on caudal fin rays strong, rough.
Habitat Ocean near surface and at mid-depths, may feed near bottom; spawns in fresh water in large rivers.
Range Bering Straight south to S. California; in freshwater streams south to Sacramento River; widely introduced.
Discussion Chinook Salmon enter fresh water most months of the year, but their major spawning runs occur in the spring and fall. Their diet, similar to that of the Coho Salmon, consists of a variety of crustaceans, and fishes such as anchovies, herrings, young rockfishes, and sand lances. Chinook Salmon are the most highly prized ocean game fishes from Alaska to northern California. They also support a large and valuable commercial troll fishery.

Previous Natural Staes
Alabama
West Virginia
Utah

 

[Snowwark]

I'm sure I've had one of those Four Spot Skimmer dragonflys land on me at that cottage. I didn't realize he/she was Alaska's State insect...hope I didn't crush the poor thing!!

I certainly hope they can save the Chinook Salmon. It's so sad that we often kill off nature's wonders, in the name of progress.

Thank you Heather, for taking us north to Alaska!

Where the river is winding
Big nuggets they're finding
North to Alaska
They go north,the rush is on

I couldn't resist...

 

[nativetxn]

What great information. Thank you for doing this, Olena.

 

[binny]

awesome thank you!

PS the state bird should be the mosquito LOL they grow that big there


here is one of my favourite shots of Alaska for you...

ok Im cheating.. I think this might be over the Canadian border.. Rachel will know


I loved living in Alaska and miss it terribly!

 

[olena]

Oh, I want to go there someday. The scenery is just too beautiful for words...

Thanks for the breathtaking pic....

 

[Snowwark]

Wow, fabulous picture Binny, thank you!!