Find out more about the fascinating subjects on Encounters
like polar bears, caribou, boreal forests, bird migration and humpback whales.
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Text by Liz McKenzie and Photos by Richard Nelson
Alaska's Wild Salmon
Wild salmon are one of the earth’s most extraordinary sustainable and renewable resources. They nourish our bodies, enrich our cultural traditions, and support our economies. And salmon are crucial to the health of living communities in the ocean, in fresh water and on the land.
Beaver
The North American beaver is a crafty, intelligent, and industrious animal best known for ingeniously altering its environment to create the watery world it needs.
Beaver Summary
Bird Migration
Imagine waking up to a May sunrise and hearing a bright new song in the back yard. It takes a sharp eye to pick out the singer, a miniature bird with a voice as brilliant as its gleaming golden feathers.
Bird Migration Summary
Boreal Forest
When people think of the biggest forest in the world, usually it's the tropical rain forest that comes to mind. But in fact, the boreal forest is the largest intact forest ecosystem on earth.
Boreal Forest Summary
Caribou
For many thousands of years, caribou have been awakening the quiet world of the north as they've journeyed across the landscape during their annual migrations.
Caribou Summary
Cold
In the North summers are fleeting and winters long—up to 8 months—and brutally cold. Temperatures can plunge to minus 70 degrees. Gales make it feel even colder, and deep or drifted snow can make simply moving around an energy-draining ordeal.
Cold Summary
Grizzly Bear
There is simply nothing more impressive, more captivating, more emblematic of the North American wilds than the grizzly bear.
Grizzly Bear Summary
Humpback Whale
As whales go, humpbacks aren't the biggest—a "mere" 40-45 feet long compared to 60 foot sperm whales and 100 foot blue whales—the biggest animal that has ever lived. But humpbacks are arguably the best loved and they're definitely the biggest show offs of all the cetaceans.
Humpback Whale Summary
Moose
If ever there was a creature with a confusing mix of body parts, the moose is it. Some parts seem too big—the outsized nose and huge ears, a bulked-up torso and massive rack. Other parts seem too small—long, slender, racehorse legs holding everything up and a ridiculously stubby tail.
Moose Summary
Polar Bear
Imagine a creamy-white mountain moving gracefully across a frozen sea. Imagine a land mammal morphing over time into a marine mammal—now with a thick insulating layer of fat for protection against frigid arctic cold, and hollow hairs that trap air to keep it warm and buoyant in freezing water.
Polar Bear Summary
Wild Sounds
Some of the loveliest and most inspiring sounds on earth are made by animals. These wild voices are all around us, from the most remote forest to the heart of the city.
Wild Sounds Summary
Scientists at Work
Meet the researchers who study our world, who reveal the beauty and magic of nature, and whose research contributes to building a more successful and sustainable relationship to the earth.
Scientists at Work Summary
