Wildlands

The windswept, often foggy lands of the Alaska Maritime Refuge are a vital treasure, not only for animals whose life depends on them, but also for us as citizens of a sustainable world.

Most Expansive Refuge

The refuge lands stretch along Alaska's coast from the southeast panhandle west to Attu Island at the tip of the Aleutian Chain and north through the Bering Sea to above the Arctic Circle. This is the most extensive refuge in the National Wildlife Refuge System.

Born of Fire

Volcanic activity shaped and continues to shape refuge islands along this Ring of Fire. Most of the nation's historically active volcanoes are on this refuge. Many islands are a wonderland of volcanic features: calderas, craters, cone shaped peaks, hot springs and lava flows

Wilderness Homes

More than 2,500 islands, spires, rocks and coastal headlands provide a variety of habitat to shelter the nests or breeding colonies of more than 40 million marine birds and mammals. At least half of the land is within the National Wilderness Preservation System. Learn more. St. Matthew Island, a 32-mile-long dot in the Bering Sea, is the most remote place in all of Alaska.

Ancient Willows - Two Inches Tall

Much of the refuge is treeless, except for the rainforest islands of St. Lazaria, Hazy and Forrester in Southeast Alaska. Willow shrubs do grow on other islands and north of the Arctic Circle, but they grow outward, not upward. They hug the ground and sometimes spread over an area 50 feet wide. If you press your hand to the tundra, even on blustery days, you can feel the warmth compared with the upper air - and understand how a carpet of tiny wildflowers blooms is such a seemingly hostile climate.

Natural Bridge Between Continents

Many islands in the refuge are closer to Asia than mainland North America. These islands become a path over which plants and animals from each continent can travel to mingle and evolve. That makes this a frontier where the next new bird or plant may be discovered.

The tiny Aleutian shield fern (Polystichum aleuticum ) is known to exist only on Adak Island in the central Aleutians. It is on the Endangered Species List.

International Biosphere Reserve

The Aleutian Islands received international recognition in 1976 as a biosphere reserve, designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

A biosphere reserve conserves examples of ecosystems typical of that world region, managed for their protection and as a center for monitoring and research. Learn more.

Last updated: September 8, 2008