The Coastal Tundra at Barrow 9 



the Coastal Plain, while in the Brooks Range passerines account for 21 

 species and waterfowl and shorebirds for 18 species (Kessel and Cade 

 1958, Pitelka 1974). Only 13 bird species breed regularly in all three pro- 

 vinces. Thirty-five species, or 46*yo of the regular breeders, are limited in 

 their breeding distribution to the Arctic Slope. Thus the avifauna exhib- 

 its a much higher level of endemism than does any other animal or plant 

 group. The breeding bird faunas of the Barrow and Prudhoe Bay regions 

 are more similar than their floras. 



The Arctic Slope is well known for its wildlife resources, which in- 

 clude dall sheep (Ovis d. dalli), wolves (Canis lupus), grizzly and polar 

 bears {Ursus arctos and U. maritimus), wolverines {Gulo gu/o), moose 

 {Alces alces) and caribou (Rangifer tarandus), as well as golden eagles 

 {Aquila chrysaetas) and peregrine falcons {Falco peregrinus). Musk oxen 

 {Ovibos moschatus) were a part of the fauna until the mid- to late 1800s, 

 when they were eliminated by man. They have been successfully reintro- 

 duced to the Arctic Slope in the Arctic National Wildlife Range and near 

 Cape Thompson (Figure 1-1), and can once again be considered resident 

 mammals of the Coastal Plain and Foothills. Bands of caribou from two 

 major herds roam the Arctic Slope, and have always been important in 

 the economy of the Eskimo. 



The terrestrial mammal fauna of the Arctic Slope is limited to about 

 24 species. The number of species present increases from the Coastal 

 Plain to the Brooks Range. All of the species of the Coastal Plain except 

 polar bears live in the Foothills as well, and all but polar bears and musk 

 oxen live in the mountains of the Brooks Range. Faunal overlap between 

 provinces is very high, as is overlap between the fauna of the Arctic Slope 

 and more southerly locations. Only 5 of the 24 terrestrial mammals are 

 endemic to arctic tundra. 



Microtine rodents are a substantial part of the mammal fauna. 

 Whereas in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago only the collared lemming 

 (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus) is found, on the Coastal Plain at Barrow 

 there are two species, the collared and the brown lemmings (Lemmus si- 

 bericus, = trimucronatus). At Prudhoe Bay, and inland from the coast, 

 these two species occur together with the tundra vole {Microtus oecon- 

 omus). And these microtines are joined by the red-backed mouse {Cleth- 

 rionomys rutilus) in the foothill tundra and by the singing vole {Microtus 

 miurus) in rocky habitats of the southern Foothills and the Brooks 

 Range. 



The adjacent Arctic Ocean is rich in marine mammals such as ringed 

 and bearded seals (Phoca hispida and Erignathus barbatus), walrus 

 {Odobenus rosmarus), and bowhead and beluga whales (Balaena mysti- 

 cetus and Delphinapterus leucas). The marine mammals, probably more 

 than any other resource, were responsible for the development of the rich 

 culture of the people living along the arctic coast of Alaska. 



