FAUNA OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS AND ALASKA. PENINSULA 11 



ATTLl, 1 880-81 



July 



August 



September 

 October __ 

 November 

 December. 

 January. . 

 February _ 

 March... . 



April 



Mav 



42 

 38 

 36 

 30 

 25 

 22 

 17 

 17 

 11 

 26 

 31 



5 

 3 

 6 





 

 



1 







1 





 



3 

 5 

 6 

 4 

 4 

 1 

 6 

 8 

 7 

 3 

 1 



Sutton and Wilson (1946) observed birds on Attu Island from 

 February 20 to March 18, 1945. They report, 



The air temperatures at sea level did not vary much from freezing as 

 a rule. During the daylight hours it sank somewhat below 32° F. on 20 

 of the 27 days, climbed as high as 38° during the day on March 4, sank 

 as low as 15° during the night on March 15, and averaged 31°. On March 

 18 the greatest temperature variation (15° to 31°), as well as the lowest 

 temperature, was recorded. The general aspect was wintry: the sky over- 

 cast, the wind raw, the sea turbulent. Highlands and lowlands alike were 

 covered with snow. Along the shore, tufts of rank grass and coarse stalks 

 of wild parsnip protruded from the drifts, and boulders, turfy mounds and 

 narrow gray beaches were always bare. Elsewhere, save for an occasional 

 cliff or exposed slope, everything was white. 



A striking feature of the Aleutian climate is the prevalence 

 of foggy or cloudy weather, the abundance of rain in summer, 

 and the frequent violent winds that arise suddenly and un- 

 expectedly. On western Alaska Peninsula, in 1925, we built a 

 windbreak of alder brush to protect our tent, and, on the beach, 

 light gravel occasionally would be blown into our faces. Briefly, 

 then, one might say that although the temperature is mild— 

 neither very low in winter nor very high in summer— there 

 is a minimum of sunshine and a maximum of fog, rain, and 

 storm. 



ENVIRONMENT AND BIOTIC DISTRIBUTION 



The Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands, stretching as a 

 land bridge between two continents, present a most interesting 

 distribution of plant and animal life. There are, of course, a 

 number of physical facts that bear on the distribution of animals 

 and plants— including the location of the area with relation to 

 that of other significant areas, the geologic history, the physio- 

 graphic conformation of the land, the ocean currents, and the 

 temperature, humidity, and other climatic influences. 



