What We Monitor

The Southwest Alaska Network uses long-term ecological monitoring to track changes in selected park resources and processes, called "vital signs." Monitoring these key resources helps us to understand the overall condition of park resources.

Freshwater Systems

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  Freshwater Contaminants

  To understand freshwater contaminants, we monitor mercury levels in resident, non-migratory lake fish.

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  Water Quality

  Water quality is an indicator of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem health in Southwest Alaska.

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  Water Quantity

  Lake levels affect how water integrates energy, nutrients, and pollutants from the landscape and atmosphere.

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  Salmon

  Each year, millions of sockeye salmon return to Bristol Bay, infusing life into the culture, economy, and ecosystem at large.

Nearshore Marine Systems

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  Kelp and Eelgrass

  Kelps and eelgrasses provide understory and ground cover for planktivorous fish, clams, and urchins.

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  Marine Water Chemistry

  Marine water chemistry, including temperature and salinity, are critical to intertidal fauna and flora.

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  Marine Intertidal Invertebrates

  Intertidal marine invertebrates are a food source for seabirds, marine mammals, and terrestrial carnivores, such as bears.

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  Marine Birds

  Marine birds are top-level consumers of marine invertebrates such as mussels, clams, snails, limpets, and forage fish.

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  Black Oystercatchers

  Black Oystercatchers provide a unique opportunity to view the nearshore zone from the perspective of an avian predator.

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  Sea Otters

  Sea otters can dramatically affect the structure and complexity of their environment.

Terrestrial Systems

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  Bald Eagles

  Southwest Alaska parks support large populations of Bald Eagles.

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  Insect Outbreaks

  A warmer climate is known to facilitate the growth of spruce beetle and spruce aphid populations.

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  Glacial Extent

  Glaciers currently cover approximately one-eighth of Southwest Alaska parks.

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  Seasonal Processes

  Seasonal processes are natural cycles such as lake ice formation and breakup or snowpack accumulation and melt.

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  Sensitive Plant Communities

  Salt marshes are important habitat to many species and are sensitive to environmental changes.

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  Vegetation Composition and Structure

  Vegetation drives ecosystem productivity, provides habitat and forage for wildlife, and food and materials for subsistence.

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  Visitor Use

  Identifying where visitors go in our parks and what they do helps us maintain excellent visitor experiences and protect natural resources.

Weather, Climate, & Air Quality

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  Weather and Climate

  Weather and climate are key physical drivers of ecosystem structure and function.

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  Air Quality

  The air quality monitoring program has three primary components: visibility, atmospheric deposition, and gaseous pollutant monitoring.

Vital Signs On Hold

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  Geomorphic Coastal Change

  Changes in shoreline geomorphology affect coastal and nearshore habitats and the species that depend on them.

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  Brown Bears

  Brown bears play an important ecological role as top predators influencing population dynamics of other species.

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  Moose

  Moose are an important subsistence and cultural resource to local Native Alaskans.

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  Land Cover Change

  Land cover change examines biophysical patterns on the landscape and how they change over time.