Yol xxYr - The Arctic Circle

TI{E ARCTIC CIRCLE VOLWE )O(/I, NO.3 SEPIn{BER 1978
Tfie scenerlz of Kluale is jrrueressive, but hardly barren. Hwdreds
of rzarieties of shrubs and wil-dflorpers can be for-md in the park.
Vegetation ranges frqn forest to turdra; there are swafiPs, and
also sand dunes. Three different kirds of grovrtJr exist in t}te
Kli:ane region: boreal forest, sr:Jc-alpire vegetation, and alpire
twdra. Boreal forests aa.e fourd bel-cnr altitudes of 1,060 - l,2|n
nptres. Abovc ttris elevation a.re $naller Shrubs, birch and willcru
grcturirg fron a nat of plants ard flo*ers. Higher still, above
lr5OO m, is ttre trte ttxtdra, u,here qrovfth rarely exceds 30 sn.
Along the willqrcd streams, in forest and in tundra, are t]'le
creatures of tlre Yulcon. Irdernbers of ttre J-argest sr:bsl:ecies of nroose
in North Anerica inhabit the forests and river walleys. hII sheep
qraze, white against tlre tr:ndra, and nor:rrtain goat clarnber the roc$
slopes above the tiJrerlire. Giant nrcr:rrtain carilcou ard mule deer
have also been seen wittrin the park. Along the nany rivers and
streams are the dens of wolves, coyotes and foxes- frizzlies
forage for food, especially in the river valleys, and blacl< bears,
Al-aska brorrn bears, wolverine and l1mx roam the area. Smaller
mannnals, such as Srrcntsfne hares and arctic g::or-rrd sguirrels, Sl44Drt
the carnivore populalion.
K|:ane is also a land of warblers, eagles and falcons- The nests
ard songs of over I7O species of birds have been identified in t}re
park to date. h4llqs ard rocJ< otarmigans live on tlre tundra slopes.
The forests have their ttrn:shes, the valleys their rnagpies.
A description of Kl:ane is a picture of all thnt is nrgged, wild
and beautiful, and for rnany tlour.sards of years, Kh:ane has been
rnastered only by tfie forces that have created its lroultains and
r,alleys. Its ceattres have lived r:ndisturbed, bl4nssed by the
history of nran.
It rnay seenr strarrge that Kh:ane needs prctection, difficult to
realize that its destnrtion is even ranotely trnssible, but tlre
mining roads tell anctlrer storT. Bulldozer tracJcs have alrea{
left behind deep erosion gullies. Ard in the fragile arctic
lardscapes, manr s effects are not easily erased. Ttees take a
lorg tine to gncw in Kh-ane. Grcnring seasons are Short, and damaged
vegetation leaves the soil wide open to erosion and wild.life habitats
can be desb:oyed. These are scrlE of the facts tiat rnan has ignored
in his recent erplorations for gold and copper in the l0r.:ane area.
And ttre scars camot be repaired, nor the lard replaced. As a
rntiornl park, Kl-r:ane is protecLed, its incredible beauty presera/ed.
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