Alaska's Wildlife

Wildlife

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Alaska is home to many different kinds of wildlife. It is truly a wilderness of great beauty and variety. In this page I will introduce you to many of the different types of animals that share the state with us.

Moose are the largest mammal in Alaska. It is also the state mammal. The locals call moose the "Ultimate Eating Machine" because an adult can eat up to 60 pounds of vegetation every day. Moose calves are born in May, usually a cow will give birth to two but if attacked by a predator she will be able save only one. The top predator of the moose is the grizzly bear.In the spring the bull moose starts to grow a set of antlers called a "rack". While these are growing they are protect by a covering of skin and blood vessels called "velvet". The velvet is really soft to the touch, but when it falls off it reveals deadly weapons. That are anywhere from 4-6 ft. in width and 4 ft in height. There can be anywhere from 6-10 points on a bull's antlers.

The caribou are another common sight across the state because they are constantly on the move. If they were to stay long in one place the land would be overgrazed. The name caribou means "Scratchier of the Ground" They are also commonly known as Reindeer. The caribou are the only members of the deer family where both the males and females have antlers. The antlers on a Bull caribou can grow over 4 ft. high

The grizzly bear is one of the Alaska's fiercest predators. In the early summer they are carnivores, feeding mainly on newborn caribou and moose calves. By mid summer they have turned their attention to berries and other vegetation.When cubs are born in January they weigh 1 pound. By May when they leave the den they weigh 10-15 pounds nourished only by their mother's milk. By September their weight doubles. Another staple of the grizzly diet is fish. Mother's are fiercely protective of their cubs and would kill anything that came too close. The cubs stay with their mother for 2 years learning how to survive in the Alaska wilderness.

Another one of Alaska's native animals is the Kodiak Bear. They make their home on Kodiak Island in the state's southwest region. Kodiaks are related to the grizzly, but are much bigger and stronger. These bears can grow to be 8 ft 8 inches tall with some reaching heights of 10 ft. They are homebodies that establish home bases along the coastline, never straying more than 15 miles away in their lifetimes. Instead of roaming, Kodiaks become intimately familiar with every rock and bush of their individual turf. Kodiaks jealously defend their homes, and if another wanders into the area, the bear in residence will size him or her up for a confrontation. The smaller of the two ends up retreating. Kodiaks are usually solitary creatures, except in the summer months, when they mate and gather on the banks of streams to fish.However, despite their size and lack of adventurousness, Kodiaks aren’t coach potatoes. To the contrary, they’re powerful swimmers and almost unbelievably fast runners that can reach speeds of 35 miles an hour in a short sprint. Their distinctive shoulder humps are actually masses of powerful muscle, concealed by their thick fur. Kodiaks also have long, sharp claws. From June to October, when salmon migrate upstream to reproduce, Kodiak bears will gather along the rivers to catch them. (Kodiaks can be very aggressive among themselves, and they have been known to fight viciously for the best spots.) In addition to salmon and trout, Kodiaks will also eat seaweed and crabs, and they’re not above dining on whale and seal carcasses that wash up on island shores. They also eat grass, nuts, berries and other plant material.June is the mating season for Kodiak bears, and males, which aren't normally that sociable, will compete for females. Kodiaks reach sexual maturity at between 4½ and 7 years, but males usually don’t manage to breed successfully until they are 8 to 10 years old, because of the competition from older and tougher males. After the bears mate, the egg doesn't actually implant in the female bear’s uterus until October or November. This enables a female to give birth during the winter season, when she is in her den. A fertile female can mate with several males, so that the cubs in a litter may have different fathers. Females can have from one to four cubs in a litter. Kodiak cubs need up to two and a half years to mature before they can fend for themselves, and they stay with their mother during that time. That means that a female may only be able to breed once every three years.