The Pribilofs are treeless; the 

 ground is covered by shrubs, creep- 

 ing willows, and dwarfed heath- 

 like plants. The larger islands 

 have an abundance of flowering 

 plants of subarctic species which 

 bloom from early June to late 

 August. Fields of saxifrages, arc- 

 tic poppies, and lupines grow with 

 almost tropical luxuriance because 

 of the moist summer. 



Land mammal life is limited. 

 There is a Pribilof shrew known 

 only on St. Paul and a black-footed 

 brown lemming peculiar to St. 

 George. Both larger islands have 

 the blue fox, whose main food is the 

 least auklet, and the house mouse 

 was accidentally introduced. There 

 is evidence that the giant mammoth 

 once lived on the islands, possibly 

 when they were connected with the 

 mainland. 



Like the Aleutians, the Pribilofs 

 have quantities of birds. About 100 

 species have been noted, and 20 

 species breed there. Among the 

 shore birds are the Pribilof sand- 

 piper which winters in Southeast- 

 ern Alaska, and the black turnstone 

 which winters in Lower California. 

 Sea birds include the king and Pa- 

 cific eiders and black-legged and 

 red-legged kittiwakes. Migrants 

 include the red phalarope, the Pa- 

 cific golden plover, the wandering 

 tattler, and the horned puffin. 

 Year-round bird residents are the 

 Aleutian rosy finch, the Pribilof 

 snow bunting, the Alaska wren, and 

 the western harlequin duck. 



Most important of the sea mam- 

 mals on the Pribilofs is the Alaska 

 fur seal which summers on the two 

 larger islands, and uses them as 



breeding grounds. Once nearly ex- 

 tinct, the seals receive special care 

 from the Fish and Wildlife Service, 

 and are now an important source of 

 revenue for the United States. 



Other sea mammals found in the 

 vicinity of the Pribilofs are the rib- 

 bon seal, the Pribilof harbor seal, 

 and Steller's or the northern sea 

 lion. At one time, these islands 

 were also the home of the sea otter. 

 Killer whales are generally present, 

 and the bowhead can sometimes be 

 seen in the vicinity of St. Paul. 

 Fish taken in Pribilof waters are 

 halibut, Alaska cod, flounders, and 

 sculpin. 



NUNIVAK ISLAND 



Nunivak Island, 50 miles long, is 

 the second largest island in Bering 

 Sea. Now a national wildlife 

 refuge, this is the home of an intro- 

 duced herd of musk oxen, and of the 

 introduced blue fox and reindeer. 

 During migration time, the waters 

 around Nunivak Island are thick 

 with scoters and eiders of several 

 species. The grasshopper warbler 

 and the mountain accentor have 

 been found as accidental visitors 

 from Siberia. 



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