Selawik National Wildlife Refuge

The Selawik National Wildlife Refuge is a 8702 km ² large reserve in the National Wildlife Refuge System of the United States. It is located east of Kotzebue Sund on the west coast of Alaska and was part of the Beringia land bridge that has a connection from Asia to North America formed until about 10,000 years ago.

In the north of the protected area is located to the nearly 1,000 -acre Selawik Wilderness is a wilderness area, the most severe class of natural protected areas of the United States, where human intervention in nature are minimal. North of the Refuges are the Kobuk Valley National Park Noatak National Preserve and the.

Wildlife

The landscape of the reserve consists largely of tundra and wetlands. The Refuge is located in the transition zone of boreal forests to arctic tundra. The rivers Selwawik Kobuk and Selawik Flats form the Delta with her. The Selawik Hills and the Purcell Mountains to the south and the Waring Mountains to the north form ridges in the reserve.

Grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, polar wolves and red foxes also live in the region such as moose and musk ox. The Western Arctic caribou herd draws on her many visits to the area.

The Selawik National Wildlife Refuge provides habitat for many train and seabirds. White-fronted Geese and Pfeifschwäne use the short arctic summer to raise their young. In the spring of Canada cranes arrive in the swamp and wetland areas of the protected area. Even birds like Yellow Wagtail, Yellow Warbler or roof Sammer breed in the region.

History

The Northwest Alaska played a major role in the history of the indigenous people who developed a diverse culture there. The Inupiat lived for thousands of years as hunter-gatherers in the area of present-day reserve.

Until the late 19th century, the Inupiat remained largely untouched by western influences and the development of the North American continent. Only slowly settlements were founded by missionaries to churches and schools. The village of Selawik was 1908.

Only with the gold rush in Nome in 1899 brought hundreds of prospectors to the Noatak and Kobuk River and moved to the region to the attention of the general public.

The Refuge was established in 1980 under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act and is under the administration of the United States Fish and Wildlife Services.

Kotzebue Sound National Wilderness Preservation System Kobuk-Valley-Nationalpark Boreal ecosystem Selawik River White-crowned Sparrow Inupiat people Nome (Alaska) Noatak River Alaska Peninsula National Wildlife Refuge Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Becharof National Wildlife Refuge Izembek National Wildlife Refuge Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Koyukuk National Wildlife Refuge Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge
721906
de