Mariner - Spring 2008 - (Page 7)

Refuge for the rare. Many species that have become rare in the Lower 48 states are not only surviving, but thriving in Alaska. Take grizzly bears, for instance. One of the largest land mammals in the world, these animals can weigh up to 1,500 pounds and reach five feet at the shoulder. Just a few live today in remote areas of the Northwest, but in Alaska there’s a healthy population of approximately 31,000. Another example are gray or timber wolves, once one of the most widespread mammals in North America. Small groups remain in just nine of the Lower 48 states, but they’re doing well in Alaska, where populations have risen to 11,200—more than twice its population in the rest of the country. They’re not just in isolated pockets either, roaming an estimated 85 percent of the state. Another animal closely associated with the North is the caribou, or reindeer, which once lived in large numbers in most of the states along the Canadian border. Only a few dozen animals now survive in a single small band that ranges from Northern Idaho and northeastern Washington state into Canada. In Alaska, though, there are nearly one million, divided among 25 separate herds including the famous herd in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Watching grizzlies casually swatting salmon from a raging stream, seeing the silhouette of a wolf loping along a distant ridge, feeling the thunder of a herd of caribou moving across the tundra—these experiences are unforgettably Alaskan. Sharing the wealth. Other states can also thank Alaska for replenishing their own vanishing species. Just delisted from the threatened and endangered species list in June of 2007, the most American of birds— the bald eagle—owes much of its recovery to Alaska. Alaska eaglets have been shipped to New York, Tennessee, Mariner Spring 2008 North Carolina, Indiana, Missouri and California to aid recovery efforts in those states. As a result, bald eagles are regaining their iconic place in the American landscape. The majority, though, still make their home in Alaska. Visible all along the coast, the greatest congregations can be found in the Chilkat Valley in fall and early winter when up to 3,000 of them flock to feed on salmon runs. Safe haven for recovery. Some mammals—like sea otters and whales—suﬀered great depredation even in Alaska, yet their numbers are starting to rebound while they still struggle south of the border. When the Russians fi rst came to Alaska, they came in search of fur, and sea otters oﬀered some of the fi nest. In a way, we owe our possession of Alaska to the sea otter, as it was the crash of the sea otter population that motivated the Russian czar to sell the land. Today, sea otters are still threatened along the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington, but this “Old Man of the Sea” has made a dramatic recovery in Alaska where numbers have reached nearly 150,000. Rare whales are also becoming more numerous in these food-rich northern waters. As recently as 2004, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) discovered nearly double the number of critically endangered right whales in the Bering Sea oﬀ Alaska. They also made the fi rst confi rmed sighting of blue whales in these waters in 30 years, a promising sign that populations may be returning to traditional territories. Furred, feathered or fi nned, animal populations flourish in Alaska’s vast wilderness areas, as do the visitors fortunate enough to come and witness this state’s natural abundance. View Alaska’s wildlife on a Holland America Line cruise or cruisetour. The opportunities for wildlife observation in Alaska are almost endless. Cruise the Inside Passage, Kenai Fjords National Park and Glacier Bay watching for sea birds, whales and other marine life. Search for sea otters out of Sitka. Visit the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve out of Haines. Watch bears fish for salmon on an excursion out of Anchorage or Ketchikan. Or travel north to Prudhoe Bay and across the Arctic Circle on a cruisetour for a look at the wildest part of Alaska few are privileged to see. CruiseTours can also take you to Denali National Park, known as “the Serengeti of the North” for its prolific wildlife. Here are just a few itineraries: Explorer Coach™ highway travel and Denali: CruiseTours 1–10, 13, 14, 25–28 Kenai Fjords National Park and Seward: CruiseTours 17, 18, 27, 28 and 29 Off the beaten path Featuring Prudhoe Bay and the Arctic Ocean: CruiseTours 21, 22 Featuring Alyeska Resort and Denali: CruiseTours 19, 20 Featuring Homer and Kenai Peninsula: CruiseTour 29 Look for additional Alaska cruise sailing dates, itineraries and savings on page 34 of the Mariner Values section. To book your cruise, call your Travel Professional or 1-877-SAIL HAL, or visit www.hollandamerica.com. 7 http://www.hollandamerica.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Mariner - Spring 2008

Mariner - Spring 2008 Table of Contents Black Pearls of the Sea of Cortez St. Lucia’s Drive-in Volcano Alaska’s Prolific Wildlife How Coffee Changed Costa Rica A Traveler’s Guide to Holiday Shopping Malta’s Last Stand Colorful Residents of the Great Barrier Reef Introducing Our New Website, a New Mariner Society® Director, a Face-lift for the Ms Prinsendam and More The Best Cruise Fares Currently Available The Ms Eurodam’s New Tamarind Restaurant Your Guide to Holland America Line Savings 2008/2009 Sailing Schedule

Mariner - Spring 2008

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