Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Applications for the lottery must be in by June 1
st
and winners will be announced by mid-
July. Plenty of time to make plans to be there.
Denali Wildlife
Denali National Park is home to 39 species of mammal - big ones include grizzly bears,
caribou, moose, wolves and Dall sheep. Smaller species include collared pika, ground
squirrel, marmot, snowshoe hare, voles, shrews and mice. Some dinosaur tracks were dis-
covered in 2005 so who knows what will be found in the future.
There are 167 species of birds including many jet setters that migrate back and forth from/
over Denali:
Arctic Tern - migrates 19,000 km /12,000 mi back and forth to Antarctica
Wandering Tatler - to the Philippines and Australia
Golden Eagle - all the way to Mexico
Northern Wheatears - to subSaharan Africa and back
American Golden Plovers - to South America and the South Pacific
Sandhill Cranes - all the way to Mexico
Denali Vegetation
Denali is a subarctic wilderness with permafrost that has been frozen year round for thou-
sands of years. Only the thinnest layer of topsoil thaws each summer to support the 650
species of plants found in Denali.
In this area you hear the words “taiga” and “tundra” used a lot when describing vegetation.
Taiga is a Russian word for “northern sparse evergreen forest.” Tree growth is predomin-
antly scraggy-looking white and black spruce. Taiga is common in the valleys that cradle
rivers, with open areas that are also home to dwarf birch, blueberry, and willow species.
Abovethetreeline,(800metres/2700feet)tundraprevails.Thisrollinglandscapecanlook
desolate, with scrubby little shrubs interspersed with barren rock. But where soil offers
enough moisture there are luscious meadows that burst into a profusion of purples, yel-
lows and blue wildflowers. Look for tussocks of sedge and cotton grass, dwarf birch and
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