The Cook Inlet taiga is a

taiga and boreal forests Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

Setting

This ecoregion is located around the upper

Cook Inlet Cook Inlet ( tfn, Tikahtnu; Sugpiaq: ''Cungaaciq'') stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Cook Inlet branches into the Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm at its northern end, almost surrounding Anchorage. On its sou ...

on the south-central coast of Alaska, sheltered by mountains on all sides. This coast has a gentle landscape and a relatively mild climate for Alaska with 380–680 mm of rainfall per year.

Flora

The plant life here is varied for Alaska, composted of a mixture of conifers and other trees, shrubs, and herbs. The dominant trees in this region are black spruce ''(

Picea mariana ''Picea mariana'', the black spruce, is a North American species of spruce tree in the pine family. It is widespread across Canada, found in all 10 provinces and all 3 territories. It is the official tree of the province of Newfoundland and Labra ...

)'', white spruce ''(

Picea glauca ''Picea glauca'', the white spruce, is a species of spruce native to the northern temperate and boreal forests in North America. ''Picea glauca'' is native from central Alaska all through the east, across southern/central Canada to the Avalon Pe ...

)'', the large Sitka spruce ''(

Picea sitchensis ''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to almost tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth-larg ...

)'', quaking aspen ''(

Populus tremuloides ''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, mountain or golden aspen, tr ...

)'', balsam poplar ''(

Populus balsamifera ''Populus balsamifera'', commonly called balsam poplar, bam, bamtree, eastern balsam-poplar, hackmatack, tacamahac poplar, tacamahaca, is a tree species in the balsam poplar species group in the poplar genus, '' Populus.'' The genus name ''Populu ...

)'', black cottonwood ''(

Populus trichocarpa ''Populus trichocarpa'', the black cottonwood, western balsam-poplar or California poplar, is a deciduous broadleaf tree species native to western North America. It is used for timber, and is notable as a model organism in plant biology. Desc ...

)'' and paper birch ''(

Betula papyrifera ''Betula papyrifera'' (paper birch, also known as (American) white birch and canoe birch) is a short-lived species of birch native to northern North America. Paper birch is named for the tree's thin white bark, which often peels in paper like ...

)''. The spruce forest is regularly renewed following severe damage by

spruce bark beetle Spruce bark beetle is a common name for several insects and may refer to: *'' Dendroctonus micans'', the great spruce bark beetle *''Ips typographus The European spruce bark beetle (''Ips typographus''), is a species of beetle in the weevil sub ...

infestations.

Fauna

This area is rich in wildlife including

grey wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...

, bears and

Canada lynx The Canada lynx (''Lynx canadensis''), or Canadian lynx, is a medium-sized North American lynx that ranges across Alaska, Canada, and northern areas of the contiguous United States. It is characterized by its long, dense fur, triangular ears ...

. The

Kenai River The Kenai River called ''Kahtnu'' in the Dena'ina language, is the longest river in the Kenai Peninsula of southcentral Alaska. It runs westward from Kenai Lake in the Kenai Mountains, through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge and Skilak Lake ...

is home to five species of

Pacific salmon ''Oncorhynchus'' is a genus of fish in the family Salmonidae; it contains the Pacific salmon and Pacific trout. The name of the genus is derived from the Greek ὄγκος (ónkos, “lump, bend”) + ῥύγχος (rhúnkhos, “snout”), in r ...

, including the largest

chinook salmon The Chinook salmon (''Oncorhynchus tshawytscha'') is the largest and most valuable species of Pacific salmon in North America, as well as the largest in the genus ''Oncorhynchus''. Its common name is derived from the Chinookan peoples. Other ve ...

in the world. Birds include large numbers of

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

s and wintering

snow geese The snow goose (''Anser caerulescens'') is a species of goose native to North America. Both white and dark morphs exist, the latter often known as blue goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage. The species was previously placed ...

from

Wrangell Island Wrangell Island (russian: Остров Врангеля) is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of southeastern Alaska. It is long and wide. It has a land area of , making it the 29th largest island in the United ...

, who gather at the mouth of the Kenai River before their spring migration.

Threats and preservation

The Kenai River,

Anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

Palmer Palmer may refer to: People and fictional characters * Palmer (pilgrim), a medieval European pilgrim to the Holy Land * Palmer (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Palmer (surname), including a list of people and ...

and

Wasilla Wasilla ( Dena'ina: ''Benteh'') is a city in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, United States and the fourth-largest city in Alaska. It is located on the northern point of Cook Inlet in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley of the southcentral part of the st ...

areas are the most populated part of Alaska, and a base for both the logging and oil and gas industries on the

Kenai Peninsula The Kenai Peninsula ( Dena'ina: ''Yaghenen'') is a large peninsula jutting from the coast of Southcentral Alaska. The name Kenai (, ) is derived from the word "Kenaitze" or "Kenaitze Indian Tribe", the name of the Native Athabascan Alaskan tribe ...

. There is also some clearance for farming in Palmer and

Point MacKenzie Point MacKenzie is a census-designated place (CDP) in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States. It is part of the Anchorage, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2020 census the population was 1,852, up from 529 in 2010. Geogra ...

. Nonetheless, natural habitats remain very well preserved, although wildlife of the Kenai Peninsula has become isolated from that of the

Matanuska-Susitna Valley Matanuska-Susitna Valley () (known locally as the Mat-Su or The Valley) is an area in Southcentral Alaska south of the Alaska Range about north of Anchorage, Alaska. It is known for the world record sized cabbages and other vegetables displayed ...

and the west side of Cook Inlet, and therefore from the rest of Alaska. Protected areas include

Kenai National Wildlife Refuge The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife habitat preserve located on the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska, United States. It is adjacent to Kenai Fjords National Park. This refuge was created in 1941 as the Kenai National Moose Range, but in 198 ...

Chugach State Park Chugach State Park covers 495,204 acres (2,004 square kilometers) immediately east of the Anchorage Bowl in south-central Alaska. Though primarily in the Municipality of Anchorage, a small portion of the park north of the Eklutna Lake area in th ...

Nancy Lake State Recreation Area Nancy Lake State Recreation Area is a park near Willow in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough of Alaska. Founded on July 6, 1966, and set aside specifically for recreational use, the park is home to more than a hundred lakes as well as extensive wetl ...

and the

Susitna Flats Susitna may refer to any of: * Susitna Glacier * The Susitna River in Alaska * Mount Susitna, a mountain near the Susitna River in Alaska * The Matanuska-Susitna Valley through which the Susitna River runs * The Matanuska-Susitna Borough, a politi ...

External link

References