Eaglecrest Ski Area was open, because it was spring break for the schools. So, two snowshoers crept up the very edge of the groomed slope in order to (try to) stay out of the way of all the fearless little zoomers who were out to enjoy their holiday at top speed. A few of them apparently also enjoyed lunging over the edge of the groomed slope and plunging over drifts into the woods, so we kept a sharp eye out in case one came our way. Eventually we made it to the top of the slope and the upper cross-country loop, where things were calmer.

There are many species of sculpins in Alaska, mostly living in intertidal zones. One of the species a shore-bound person is most likely to see is the staghorn sculpin, so-called for the little “horns” or spines on the rear edge of the preoperculum (a bone that helps cover the gills). Staghorns can be as long as 46 centimeters and many live for several years. They are common in estuaries, but venture into fresh water as juveniles. As they grow older, they may move into deeper marine waters, down to about 50 meters, but many spend their lives in estuaries.

A major source of mortality for wolves, in areas without much human interference, is starvation. Because food-deprivation is a real risk, much of what wolves do is driven by the search for food. An adult wolf can gobble down prodigious amounts of meat in one day. For example, on Isle Royale in Lake Superior, where wolves have been studied for decades, adults averaged about six kilograms (over thirteen pounds) of meat (usually moose) per day.

A week or two ago, I enjoyed watching a young otter, grooming and snacking, on the banks of my home pond. The next morning, when I peered out my windows, it was clear that the otter had come back, leaving a furrow in the snow, across the frozen pond, under my front-entry deck, and around the house. A few days later, it was back, scouting around the house and garden and checking out the pond, leaving a new furrow in the snow. Perhaps it has a regular (but temporary) route it follows, revisiting places where foraging has been successful in the past.