THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS THEIR PEOPLE and NATURAL HISTORY, 1945

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION WAR BACKGROUND STUDIES NUMBER TWENTY-ONE THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: THEIR PEOPLE and NATURAL HISTORY (With Keys for the Identification of the Birds and Plants) By HENRY B COLLINS, JR AUSTIN H CLARK EGBERT H WALKER (Publication 3775) CITY OF WASHINGTON PUBLISHED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION FEBRUARY 5, 1945 BALTIMORE, MB., U„ A CONTENTS Page The Islands and Their People, by Henry B Collins, Jr Introduction Description Geology Discovery and early history Ethnic relationships of the Aleuts The Aleutian 17 land-bridge theory 19 Ethnology Animal 20 Life of the Aleutian Islands, by Austin H Clark 31 General considerations 31 Birds 32 Mammals 48 Fishes 54 Sea invertebrates 58 Land invertebrates Plants of the Aleutian Islands, by Egbert H Walker 60 63 Introduction 63 Principal plant associations 64 Plants of special interest or usefulness 68 The marine algae or seaweeds 70 Bibliography 72 Appendix A List of mammals B List C Keys D Systematic E of Keys to 75 birds 77 81 the birds list to the 96 of plants more common 110 plants ILLUSTRATIONS PLATES Page Kiska Volcano Upper, Aerial view of Unimak Island Lower, Aerial view of Upper, U Lower, Village of Unalaska 4 Upper, Aerial view of Cathedral Rocks, Unalaska Island S Akun Head, Akun Island, Krenitzin group Navy submarine docking at Dutch Harbor Lower, Naval air transport plane photographed against peaks of the Islands of Four Mountains Upper, Mountain peaks of Kagamil and Uliaga Islands, Four Mountains group Lower, Mount Cleveland, Chuginadak Island, Four Mountains group Upper, Mount Cleveland, and Mount Herbert on Herbert Island Lower, Army observation post overlooking Kuluk Bay, Adak 4 20 Island iii 20 ILLUSTRATIONS IV Page 20 Upper, Kanaga Island, Andreanof group Upper, Landing of barges on Kiska, August 1943 Lower, Allied amphibious forces, shore of Kiska, August 1943 Upper, Landing on the beach at Kiska, August 1943 20 Lower, Unloading ammunition and supplies on Kiska beach, August 1943 20 Upper, Buldir Island 36 Lower, Aerial view of 10 Little Sitkin Island, Rat Island group 20 20 20 Lower, Aerial view of Attu Island, showing Cape Wrangell and Massacre Bay 11 36 Upper, Village of Attu, Attu Island Lower, Tent city raised 36 by Seabees, Massacre Bay, Attu 36 12 Upper, Camouflaged Japanese cook shack and 13 Upper, Aleut Lower, Semisubterranean Aleut house, or barabara 36 14 Birds of the Aleutian Islands 52 15 Left, Pelagic tents, Attu Lower, American soldiers carrying a wounded comrade, Attu woman weaving cormorants on a Left, cliff young Right, Pelagic cormorant and 16 a basket Murres on Bogoslof Island Right, Kittiwakes on Whale Island 17 Upper, Castle Rock and sea lion herd, Bogoslof Island 18 Upper, Sea 19 20 21 36 36 36 52 52 52 52 52 Lower, Sea lions on Bogoslof Island 52 on the kelp beds, Ogliuga Island Lower, Blue whale on dock at Pacific American Whaling Company station, Akutan Island Upper, Blue foxes Lower, American soldier off duty at trout stream on Kiska 68 otter Upper, Sitka spruces on Amaknak Island 68 68 68 68 Lower, Blue lupine, Unalaska Island 68 Left, Cottongrass 68 Right, Narcissus anemone 68 TEXT FIGURES Page Map Aleut house and natives of the Aleutian Islands underground Aleut house 22 22 Interior of Man Aleut hunter in skin-covered bidarka 28 Bird sketches 40 46 and woman of Unalaska Bird sketches Explanation of principal terms used in keys to plants 24 131 THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: THEIR PEOPLE and NATURAL HISTORY By HENRY B COLLINS, AUSTIN JR., (With H CLARK, and EGBERT H WALKER Plates) 21 THE ISLANDS AND THEIR PEOPLE By HENRY COLLINS, B Jr Bureau of American Ethnology INTRODUCTION The Aleutian long curving arc from the Alaska Islands, stretching in a mainland almost to Kamchatka, are the northernmost of a island chains, including the Kuriles, and the Philippines, islands west that border the Pacific basin of series the Japanese islands, the Ryukyu on the north and These island chains and archipelagoes have several important structural features in common They are mainly of volcanic origin and contain numerous active or recently active volcanoes; they are zones of intense earthquake Pacific side activity; and they are paralleled on the outer or by great oceanic troughs reaching depths of from 3,000 to 5,000 fathoms on the Aleutians, much has been Since the war has focused attention written of the almost constant rain, wind, and fog that make living so unpleasant on these remote and cheerless islands Allowing for some exaggeration, the fact remains that the Aleutian weather deserves reputation Temperatures are moderate and around 33° F in winter as zero and 50° F in fairly uniform, its summer, and never going as In the Aleutians, however, temperature alone means very Here the cold winds from Siberia from Bering Sea meet the warm bad averaging low little and the ocean currents flowing down masses and ocean currents moving air eastward across the Pacific, and their interaction produces winds of high velocity, dense fog, rain, mist, and snow JPlate l This striking photograph of cloud-capped Kiska Volcano was made by a U Navy photographer on island, August (Official U S the day of the initial Allied landing on The volcano 15, 1943 Navy photograph.) rises to S that Aleutian a height of almost 4,000 feet — WAR BACKGROUND STUDIES, NO 21 Probably nowhere have military operations in this there were no adequate surveys of many of the especially and none of the geographic the for latter carried the war began islands Detailed and topographic information was lacking, in the western part of the chain, war been When out under greater difficulties than in the Aleutians were islands fortified Uncharted reefs and shoals, strong currents and tide rips, the paucity good harbors, and the unpredictable weather, combined to make dangerous and navigation difficult all of having to contend with Aviators, sudden storms and almost constant fog, faced even greater hazards Under these handicaps it has required a high degree of courage, determination, men and resourcefulness on the part of our strong and well-entrenched enemy and drive out a to defeat force and to secure the island outposts against further attack One might assume that the desolate, treeless, storm-swept Aleutians On the contrary, When discovered by would have been avoided by primitive man they were densely populated in prehistoric times Bering in 1741, the native inhabitants of the Aleutian Islands are estimated to have numbered from 20,000 to 25,000, more than the aboriginal Indian population of the Ohio Valley, or of Florida, New York State, or New England lions, was The sea otters, birds, this assured large birds, fishes, it in may animal life —whales, it to live in so limited life, and rich sea —and it possible for such a relatively an area Whatever other possess, the Aleutian region, with abundant marine seals, mollusks and other invertebrates food supply that made number of people disadvantages abounded Aleutians and varied its myriads of cannot be de- flora, scribed as "lifeless." The purpose of this paper history, native inhabitants, It will, we is to describe briefly the physical features, and fauna and flora of the Aleutian Islands hope, provide an opportunity for our servicemen stationed in the Aleutians to identify the plants and animals around learn something of the people way between America and American Asia containing such publications scientists who At present information, have shown there are for little interest as yet unpublished, to no readily available with a few exceptions in the Aleutians comprehensive description of the Aleutian fauna is them and formerly lived on these islands mid- — and our knowledge of the that by O flora is J The only Murie based almost on the publications of the Swedish botanist Hulten and the Japanese botanists Tatewaki and Kobayashi The ethnological literature entirely is fuller but of print or is contained in scattered publications, most of which are out difficult to obtain KEYS TO PLANTS G Plants with G2 Plants 117 upright unbranched stem; flowers purple {Orchis aristata) with several upright branched stems; flowers blue Sea bluebells D {Mertensia maritima) Flowers green or greenish E Leaves long and narrow E Leaves oval Tall leafy green orchid {Platan tbera hyperborea) F Flowers in cluster at end of unbranched stem False hellebore {Veratrum album subsp oxysepalum) F Flowers single at bases of leaves on branched stems Cucumber plant C2 Leaves opposite D E {Strep to pus amplexifolius) or whorled Flowers white Leaves whorled F Stems erect with one whorl of leaves F Stems erect or spreading with many whorls of leaves Starflower {Trientalis europaea) Catchweed bedstraw {Galium aparine) E F Leaves opposite Flowers in a compact mass at end of upright stem surrounded by petal-like bracts; the whole resembling a single flower Dwarf F cornel; bunchberry {Corn us suecica) Flowers not in a compact mass at ends of stems, without petal- like bracts G Plants hairy; fruiting capsules elongate, opening at outer end H Leaves % inch long or less I Petals less than twice as long as sepals I Petals twice as long as sepals or longer Bering chickweed {Cerastium beeringianum) Large-flowered Bering chickweed {Cerastium beeringianum var grandiflorum) H Leaves over % inch long Fischer's G chickweed {Cerastium fischerianum) Plants not hairy H Leaves thick and fleshy; plants of sandy seashores H2 Leaves not thick and fleshy; plants not confined to the Sea-beach sandwort {Honckenya peploides) seacoast I Plants forming low dense tufts or mats, individual stems more than inches long, single stems separated from the mass with considerable difficulty scarcely ever Pearlworts {Sagina eras sicau lis These species can be separated only by rather technical and S intermedia ) characters WAR BACKGROUND 118 STUDIES, NO 21 with tangled stems but not usually forming low- I Plants tufts or mats, the individual stems usually more than inches long, easily separated Starworts {Stellar ia calycantha, S media, and sitcbana ) S D E Flowers yellow Leaves pair on each plant Broad- lipped twayblade E {List era convallarioides) Leaves more than one pair on each plant Fl Flowers conspicuous, on elongate stalks large, Common F2 Flowers rather monkeyflower {Mimulus guitatus) hidden among the end leaves, Rattleweed {Rbinantbus groenlandicus) more or small, without stalks D E less Flowers purple or pink Leaves deeply divided on margins; not F all flowers Plants usually more than foot high ; flowers long; stems stout F2 Plants usually less than foot high; flowers Stamens only Stamens more than inch y2 inch long; all ; flowers alike American brooklime {Veronica americana) G y2 {Pedicularis verticillata) Leaves not deeply divided on margins, sometimes toothed not hooded, the petals F F more than {Pedicularis chamissonis) stems usually slender E hooded, the petals Louseworts; woodbetonies {Pedicularis) alike Main stems long and trailing on the ground; flowers in 2's on upright branches; seeds not carried on white hairs by Twinflower {Linnaea borealis) the wind G2 Main stems upright, not trailing; flowers not in 2's; seeds on white hairs by the wind Willowherbs {Epilobium anagallidijolium, carried E behringianum, E glandulosum, E sertulatum) D E Flowers blue Flowers long, tubular; stamens more than Northern gentian {Gentiana acuta E var plebeja) Flowers open, spreading, not tubular; stamens only Speedwells (Veronica) F Petals large, about V2 mcri l° n g- F Petals small, scarcely over 14 inch long Large-flowered speedwell {Veronica grandiflora) G Flowers in a single raceme on the upper end of the main unbranched stem Hi Flower clusters short; leaves distinctly toothed H clusters long Steller's Flower speedwell {Veronica stelleri) and narrow, leaves obscurely toothed Thyme-leaved speedwell {Veronica humifusa) These species can be separated only by rather technical characters ; KEYS TO PLANTS G Flowers in several racemes coming from bases of the upper American brooklime {Veronica americana) leaves D E 119 Flowers purplish green or brownish green Leaves in or more whorls; flowers large, over 1 inch long, lilylike Eskimo potato; Indian riceroot E (Fritillaria camschatcensis) Leaves only; flowers smaller Broad-lipped twayblade (Listera convallarioides) B C Leaves compound D Leaves alternate Flowers white E Leaves with only leaflets F Flowers in compact round F Flowers in broad flat-topped clusters White clover (Trifolium G Leaflets re pens') clusters whitish and woolly beneath, the leafstalks bearing prominent leaflike or bladdery expansions Cow-parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) G and not hairy beneath, expansions Leaflets green leafstalks not bladdery E F Leaves with more than Leaves once compound G Flowers small leaflets petals 4, all alike, separate ; Alpine cress G2 Flowers F G large, at base of Ligusticum (Ligusticum bultenii) (Cardamine umbellata) hooded; petals united, not all alike Lousewort; woodbetony {Pedicularis Leaves twice or thrice compound Flowers in flat-topped capitata) clusters HI.' Leaflets deeply divided or toothed on margins Hemlock H2 parsley (Conioselinum gmelini) Leaflets broad, not deeply divided, toothed on margin but not deeply so Wild G celery; wild parsnip (Coelopleurum gmelini') Flowers not in flat-topped H1 clusters Leaflets few-toothed or lobed, small, under inch long flowers on distinct stalks Meadowrue H Leaflets many-toothed, over directly to branches of the flower cluster without Goatsbeard (Aruncus D D E kemense) (Thalictrum inch long; flowers attached stalks Sylvester) Erect-pod wintercress (Barbarea ortboceras) Flowers yellow Flowers red, pink or purple F Leaflets more than Leaflets toothed; leaves not tendril-bearing Purple or marsh cinquefoil (Potentilia palustris) F2 Leaflets not toothed; leaves bearing tendrils Beach pea (Lathyrus maritimus) WAR BACKGROUND 120 E D E Leaflets STUDIES, NO 21 Red Flowers in (Trifolium pratense) Monkshood (Aconitum maximum) Flowers fewer or more scattered along upper part of more slender stems usually with leaves or less Monkshood {Aconitum C more close clusters at ends of stems usually bearing than leaves E clover Flowers blue Leaves delphinifolium) Lousewort; woodbetony (Pedicularis opposite Group Woody semiwoody or verticillata) plants (Includes those with tough, wiry, creeping stems.) A A Sitka spruce Cone-bearing, needle-leaved trees Shrubs or low semiwoody plants, not cone bearing, (Picea sitchensis) usually not leaves needlelike B Leaves small, under showing side C !/2 veins, inch long, thick, leathery, never thin and never sometimes somewhat needlelike Leaves spreading sideways, not scalelike and not tightly appressed to the stems D1 Flowers very small, without hidden among the leaves stalks, D2 Flowers fruits on ; fruits Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum) black edible berries definite in stalks, clusters at ends of leafy stems; not fleshy and berrylike E Leaves alternate, narrow, needlelike, the sides parallel E Leaves opposite, Aleutian mountain heath (Phyllodoce aleutica) not needlelike, the sides curved elliptical, Alpine or trailing azalea (Loiseleuria procumbens) C Leaves consisting of scales tightly appressed to the stems Cassiope (Cassiope lycopodioides) B Leaves more than V2 mc h long, or if less, then thin and showing side veins C Leaves simple, with or without teeth on the margins, never deeply D lobed Margin of in leaves with compact erect many sharp clusters teeth; flowers minute, greenish, (catkins) Alder (Alnus D Margin of fruticosa var sinuata) leaves with fine hairs; flowers purple, large and showy Kamchatka rhododendron (Rhododendron kamtschaticum) D Margin of tips E F leaves without teeth or with fine teeth with turned-in or teeth very few, blunt Low, dwarf, wiry-stemmed plants with leaves V2 i nc h l° n S or l ess - Leaves nearly round, the tips rounded G Plants with flowers G Plants long slender together, horizontal above-ground stems; on ends of naked erect stems, pink Twinflower (Linnaea borealis) low but stems not long and slender; flowers incon- spicuous, in clusters among the leaves Least willow (Salix rotundifolia) KEYS TO PLANTS F Leaves 121 the tips pointed elliptical, Mountain bog bilberry {Vacclnium uliginosum) E F Low and 1.' prostrate or upright shrubs with leaves over ^> inch long Leaf margins with fine teeth, the turned tips in Alpine partridgeberry (Arctostaphylos alpina) F Leaf margins without teeth G Flowers bell- or urn-shaped; fruits H Leaves thick and leathery, the edible berries very obscure veins side I Leaves broadest above the middle, long-tapering at the I Leaves Bearberry base broadest about (Arctostaphylos middle, the not uva-ursi) long- tapering toward the base Mountain cranberry (Vaccinium H vitis-idaea) Leaves not distinctly leathery, the side veins clearly evident Mountain bog bilberry {Vaccinium uliginosum) G Flowers minute, in dense upright clusters, soft and hairy like "pussy willows"; fruits small pods splitting into two parts Willows exposing white hairs within H much Erect shrubs with leaves to inches long, *£ to (Salix s ) longer than wide; leaves inch wide, usually broadest above the middle, pointed, not especially net-veined I Leaf margin with shallow teeth leaves white ; beneath Barclay willow (Salix bare layi) Leaf margin without teeth I J Lower surface of leaf with dense white Felt-leaf J Lower felt willow {Salix alaxensis) surface of leaf without hairs Beautiful willow (Salix pule bra) H low and spreading shrubs with Prostrate or as wide leaves as I as long, mostly egg-shaped to IV2 inches long, */2 wide leaves nearly with the big end out; from 2/3 as wide to fully (circular), plainly net- veined Branchlets scattered, long, finely slender, prostrate, yellowish; leaves net-veined Oval-leaf willow (Salix ovalifolia) 12 Branchlets short, crowded toward the J dark stiff, tips colored; somewhat leaves of the branchlets Plants prostrate, the leaves white beneath ; the stoutish net-veins sunken in upper surface, raised J Plants prostrate to somewhat ascending, the to whitish beneath; both surfaces C on lower Net-vein willow (Salix reticulata) surface leaves pale the slender net-veins raised on Arctic willow (Salix aretica) Leaves compound or deeply lobed D Stems with alternate leaves El Leaf blades pinnate Siberian mountain ash (Sorbus sambucifolia) The key to willows was prepared by C R Ball WAR BACKGROUND 122 E F Leaf blades of leaflets Flowers purple ; STUDIES, NO 21 or with lobes stems upright, branching Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) F2 Flowers white; main stems low, mostly creeping, the upright flowering stems not branching G G and sepals broadly ovate; leaves shallowly lobed Cloudberry (Rubus cha?naemorus) Petals and sepals narrowly ovate; leaves mostly lobed half Petals way D the base to (Rubus stellatus) Stems with opposite leaves Red-berried elder (Sambucus racemosa subsp pubens) Group A Plants of the composite family Flower heads consisting of two kinds of flowers, flowers around the edge with broad, of flowers of other families), and center without B C flat (2) blades (1) a of ray circle (suggesting the petals disk or tubular flowers in the blades flat Ray flowers white Leaves simple, lobed or toothed D Plants usually to 12 inches high, the upright stems with flower head; in low moist soil; common in western Aleutians Arctic chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum arcticum) D 12 inches high or higher, the upright stems often Plants usually branched and bearing several flower heads; a weed escaped from cultivation, not C common, in eastern Aleutians Ox-eye daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum) Leaves compound, very finely divided Northern yarrow (Achillea B C borealis) Ray flowers yellow Leaves alternate D E Flower heads many; rays about Leaves whitish E i ncn l° n g or l ess - or broadly Butterbur (Petasites frigidus) lobed triangular, */2 and woolly beneath, nearly round Leaves not whitish and whoolly beneath, narrow or oval, lobed or merely toothed F Flowers in compact round-topped clusters; leaves without lobes Goldenrod (Solidago multiradiata F2 Flowers leaves D deeply lobed Flower heads % E solitary or arctica) Groundsel (Senecio palmatus) a few in a compact cluster; rays about inch long Flower head solitary on end of slender stem with few upper ones very small E var in spreading branched clusters, often rather flat-topped; Flower heads solitary or leaves, the (Senecio resedifolius) few in a dense cluster at end of leafy stem, the upper leaves about inches long Ragwort (Senecio pseudoarnica) KEYS TO PLANTS C 123 Leaves opposite D D Flower heads solitary on each plant Arnica (Arnica unalaschkensis) Flower heads usually several on each plant Arnica (Arnica chamissonis) B Ray flowers C bluish, purplish, or pinkish and long Rootstock slender, Asters smooth, not scaly or usually purplish C2 Rootstock stems (Aster foliaceus) thicker, shorter, rough and wrinkled; or scaly usually not purplish A rough; stems (Aster peregrinus) Flower heads with disk or tubular flowers only, never yellow (Occasionally the bracts beneath the flower heads resemble ray flowers.) B Leaves without teeth or lobes C C Flower heads one on each plant Pussytoes (Antennaria monocephala) Flower heads more than one on each plant D Stem tall D leaves small, narrow, the basal leaves broader; plants inches Pussytoes (Antennaria dioica) or less Stem leaves at least inches long, basal leaves none or different from the stem leaves; plants over inches tall scarcely Pearly everlasting (Anapbalis margaritacea var occidentalism B C Leaves toothed, lobed or deeply divided Plants with sharp spines; flowers purple or pink Kamchatkan C2 D thistle (Cirsium kamtschaticum) Plants without spines; flowers not purple or pink Leaves deeply cut or divided E Leaves whitish beneath; leaf segments coarse E Leaves green beneath; leaf segments Sagebrush (Artemisia unalaskensis) D Leaves coarsely toothed or fine Arctic sagebrush (Artemisia arctica) lobed but not more than half way E Lower surfaces of leaves whitish and woolly E Lower surfaces of leaves not woolly Butterbur (Petasites frigidus) Indian plantain (Cacalia auriculata) A3 Flower heads with B B ray (strap-shaped) flowers only; flowers yellow .Dandelion (Taraxacum sppA) Flowers solitary on Flowers several on hairy stems bearing a few leaves leafless, hairless stems Hawkweed A Leaves Group than y2 less B triste) Plants with conspicuous edible berries inch long, crowded, suggestive of juniper needles; Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum) berries black A (Hieracium Leaves more than V2 mcn l° n S> not as above Leaves simple, deeply lobed C Berries without separate stalks, in a compact cluster on end of a single stem above a whorl of leaves Dwarf The cornel; bunchberry (Cornus suecica) separation of the different species of dandelion the use of obscure characters is difficult and requires WAR BACKGROUND 124 C Berries D E on distinct stalks, single or in small clusters at ends of branches among or STUDIES, NO 21 the leaves Berries with sepals at base Fruits containing a single stone of or Bearberry green E fused nutlets ; {Arctostaphylos leaves uva-ursi) Fruits with or separate nutlets; leaves usually reddish Alpine partridgeberry (Arctostaphylos alpina) D Berries with sepals or their remnants at upper end El E B C C Fruits red Fruits' bluish Mountain cranberry {Vaccinium vitis-idaea) Mountain bog bilberry {Vaccinium uliginosum) Leaves compound or simple and deeply lobed Shrubs; leaves opposite; Red-berried elder (Sambucus racemosa subsp pubens) Herbs or very low wiry-stemmed plants; leaves alternate or basal; leaflets D 3, leaflets or simple leaves deeply 3-lobed Berries salmon colored, without green bracts beneath E Flowers purple; stems upright, branching E Flowers white; Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) main stems low, mostly creeping, the upright flowering stems not branching F Petals and sepals broadly ovate; leaves shallowly lobed Cloudberry {Rubus chamaemorus) F Petals and sepals narrowly ovate; leaves mostly lobed half way to the base D {Rubus stellatus) Berries red, with green bracts or "hull" beneath Wild Group strawberries {Fragaria chiloensis) Plants of special habitats {exclusive of ferns and their relatives, and composites) A B Plants growing normally in fresh- water lakes, ponds, or streams Leaves all basal, the flowering stem rising from Flowers large, yellow, one on each stem; leaves broad, raised above the C Flowers minute, in several burlike clusters; leaves narrow grasslike, Cowlily {Nuphar sp.) water surface Burreed {Sparganium hyperboreum) often submerged B their center C Leaves borne on elongate stems C Leaves alternate, about inches long C Leaves opposite, finely divided, the divisions threadlike, the elongate C Leaves whorled, not divided Northern pondweed {Potamogeton alpinus) leafy stems tail-like A Water milfoil Plants of seashores, especially of sandy beaches grow on sandy {Myriophyllum spicatum) Marestail {Hippuris vulgaris) (Although many plants can beaches, there are certain plants that occur only in such places, perhaps because of the salty nature of the sand This key includes only the characteristic beach plants.) B Flowers yellow; leaves compound, covered, hairs at least beneath, with silky KEYS TO PLANTS 125 Cl Basal leaves mostly with three leaflets; plants without runners C2 Basal leaves with Hairy cinquefoil more than spreading runners B C {Potentilla villosa) three leaflets, pinnate; plants usually with (Potentilla pacifica) Flowers white, blue, or pink Leaves alternate D D flowers blue ; Leaves simple; petals alike Sea bluebells all (Mertensia maritima) Leaves pinnately compound; flowers like sweet peas Beach pea (Lathyrus maritimus) C Leaves opposite or D all basal Flowers very short stalked, in stems or in angles of leaves tips of Sea-beach sandwort (Honckenya peploides) D E E Flowers on distinct Leaves short stalks, inch (!/2 mostly arising from ends of stems long or less), awl-like; flowers white Thick-stemmed pearlwort (Sagina crass icaulis) the blades more or less flattened; flowers white or Leaves longer, pink F Leaf blades broad; at least the basal leaves with stalks Siberian springbeauty (Claytonia sibirica) F Leaf blades 1/3 or less as wide as long; basal leaves absent or without long stalks .Water springbeauty {Claytonia chamissoi) A B Plants found only in alpine regions or high mountains in the Aleutians inches high Plants woody, low, sometimes only or ; flowers without Willows colored petals, gathered in compact cylindrical masses C C D Leaves under 1/2 Least willow (Salix rotundifolia) inch long Leaves over V2 inch long Branchlets elongate, slender, prostrate, yellowish; leaves scattered, Oval-leaf willow (Salix ovalifolia) finely net-veined D Branches short, toward the dark stiff, colored; leaves somewhat crowded with stoutish net-veins sunken in tips of the branches, upper surface, raised on lower surface Net- vein willow (Salix reticulata) B Plants herbaceous, the lower parts sometimes tough; flowers with colored petals C Flowers blue or D violet Plants with a basal cluster of leaves, stem-leaves alternate or none; flowers more than *4 inch long E Sepals very narrow, usually toothed on the margin E Sepals about 1/3 as Bering bellflower (Campanula lasiocarpa) as long, not toothed on the margin wide (Campanula dasyantha) D Plants without flowers % a basal cluster inch long or of Flowers red or pink D Flowers about l/ broad, toothed stem-leaves opposite; less Steller's C leaves; speedwell (Veronica stelleri) inch long; petals united into a tube; basal leaves Primrose {Primula cuneifolia) WAR BACKGROUND 126 D Flowers inch l /$ long, STUDIES, NO 21 dense in clusters petals ; leaves grasslike C separate basal ; coccinea) {7of.eld.ia Flowers yellow, one to several on upright stems rising from a basal more than cluster of leaves; petals D D Leaves with pinnate Leaves with three Avens {Geum leaflets at leaflets end of rossii) stalk Sibbaldia {Sibbaldia procumbent) C Flowers white, several to many on stems rising from a compact basal of very small leaves; petals cluster Arctic draba {Draba fiadnizensis) Group Many Grasses, sedges, rushes, and other grasslike plants of the species belonging in this group can be fully identified only by the use of technical characters to be seen only with the aid of a hand lens following key leads in many cases only to the genera The Hence the grasses, along with the sedges and rushes, form the principal ground cover, at least at the lower altitudes, and in number of individual plants exceed inconspicuously small colored In flowers all the others put together the grasses All have minute the individual flowers, called florets, are aggregated into small groups called spikelets, turn are There is aggregated into various-shaped clusters called heads very If these are little The spikelets are difficult to grasses are here identified A B if which in inflorescences and one in difference between an inflorescence in flower long and narrow they are called spikes, they are panicles or fruit broader and more branching examine without a lens, hence few beyond the genus Stems round (rarely flattended), hollow; jointed .True grasses (Gramineae) C Plants fragrant; in low moist Panicle loose; plants places to feet tall; common Holygrass; vanillagrass {Hierochloe odorata) C Panicle rather compact; plants less than foot tall; less common Alpine holygrass {Hierochloe alpina) B Plants without distinct odor C Robust grasses of sandy beaches, common, up to soft hairy spikes mostly to 10 inches long, feet tall with dense ^ inch thick % to Strand wheat; wild rye {Elymus arenarius subsp mollis) C Slender grasses, the spikes smaller or the inflorescences broader and branching (panicles) D commonly Tall grasses, panicles; in moist E Spikelets to to feet tall or taller with rather large meadows l 1/* inches long, of several florets; common on Unalaska, scarce elsewhere Aleutian bromegrass E Spikelets less than 1/4 inch long, {Bromus V-shaped, in aleutensis) rather large panicles F Panicle erect, open, the branches spreading; leaves very narrow, in a dense tuft at base; in boggy or moist soil Hairgrasses (Deschampsia ) are This is one of the commonest grasses in the islands Plants much dwarfed at higher altitudes KEYS TO PLANTS F 127 Panicle nodding, rather dense, the branches ascending; leaves flat, not crowded at base; in meadows and moist ground Reedgrasses (Calamagrostis) D Lower grasses, commonly less than feet tall E Heads with long bristles (like barley but bristles much finer) common near villages Wild barley {Hordeum boreale) E Heads without long bristles F Heads dense, narrow, cylindrical, spikelike G Heads soft, bronze colored; leaves narrow velvety; in mountain meadows and on slopes ; Downy oatgrass (Trisetum spicatum) G Heads hard, with very short stiff bristles leaves Yq to ^4 inch wide; in meadows and on mountain slopes Hi Heads only twice as long as wide common Mountain timothy {Phleum alpinum) H Heads more than twice as long as wide; less common ; ; Common F Heads G timothy {Phleum pratense) a loose or rather dense panicle, not a cylindrical spike Spikelets mostly about ^2 monly reddish brown mcn l° n g> at base; Fescue {Festuca rubra®) tain slopes G2 H Spikelets mostly less than 14 purplish; stems com- meadows and on moun- in mcn at the tips panicles commonly purplish meadows and on mountain slopes Leaves boat-shaped or bronze; in l° n S- ; Bluegrass (Poa) H2 Leaves pointed only; panicles green or pale; in on sand flats and brackish soil mud or near the coast Alkali-grass {Puccinellia) A B Stems triangular or round, not jointed, usually pithy instead of hollow C Stems triangular (3-sided), pithy Plants bearing white cottony tufts at ends of stems, the minute seeds enclosed in this tuft; in moist or boggy places Cottongrasses {Eriopborum) C B C Plants with fruiting parts not consisting of cottony tufts .Sedges {Car ex) Stems round, mostly pithy Flowers and fruits in a single small compact head at ends of slender green stems rising from a basal cluster of short leaves Tufted club-rush {Scirpus caespitosus) C Flowers and fruits rounded by chaffy D D C branched in clusters, each fruit Leaves narrow or bristlelike; capsule many-seeded Leaves flat, (capsule) sur- scales; stems leafy grasslike; capsule -seeded Rushes (Juncus) Woodrush {Luzula) Flowers and fruits in a long narrow cylindrical spike with a single main stem, each flower on a short stalk; stem leaves all from the base; in marshes and bogs Marsh arrowgrass In fescues and bluegrasses small in place of seeds These drop off plantlets and take leafless, the fleshy {Triglocbin palusire) sometimes develop in the spikelets root WAR BACKGROUND 128 Group A STUDIES, NO 21 Ferns and their relatives Leaves large, few, simple or compound, lobed or divided B ing leaflets the top of a leafstalk, the whole being a single leaf at from an underground stem Spores borne on the backs of leaves or arising B , Moonwort leaflets, the (Not or rolled under, covering the spores C True ferns Spores borne in erect grapelike structures arising from a whorl of spread- all {Botrychiutn lunaria) edges sometimes turned leaves bear spores.) Spores covered by the folded or rolled-back leaf margins D Spore-bearing and non-spore-bearing about the same, D Spore-bearing the edges the others, the margins widely and appearing somewhat podlike rolled back American rockbrake (Crypto gramma C Spores not covered by leaf margins D E acrostichoides) Leaves simple but deeply pinnately divided nearly to the midrib Western polypody (Polypodium vulgare D appearing leaflets and narrowly turned back Maidenhair-fern (Adiantum pedatum) very unlike leaves and leaves sharply occidentale) var Leaves compound Leaves once pinnately compound F Leaflets sharpely F Leaflets (pinnae ) lobed as far as the midrib toothed Mountain hollyfern (Polystichum G Lobes of the lonchites) leaflets finely toothed Ladyfern (Atbyrium jilix-femina subsp cyclosorum) G E Lobes of the leaflets not toothed Northern woodfern (Dryopteris Leaves twice pinnately compound F oreopteris) Leaf blades broadly triangular, nearly as broad as long, the and underground stems slender stalks Oakfern (Dryopteris linneana ) F G Leaf blades at least twice as long as broad Lower pinnae nearly or quite as long as the middle pinnae; lobes finely and sharply toothed Spreading woodfern (Dryopteris austriaca ) G Lower pinnae gradually shorter than the middle pinnae; lobes slightly toothed, sometimes wavy-margined Ladyfern (Atbyrium filix-femina subsp cyclosoru?n) A2 Leaves very small, sometimes scalelike, numerous, never lobed or divided Horsetails and clubmosses The pinnae are the first be simple or compound If divisions of a compound they are compound, leaf, which may themselves then the leaf is called twice compound This is more often known as Phegopteris dryopteris ( L ) Fee, Dryopteris dryopteris (L.) Britt., or Dryopteris disjuncta (Rupr.) Morton, the last preferred This is more often known as Dryopteris dilatata (Hoffm.) tichum spinulosum Ledeb., or Aspidium spinulosum Rothr., the A Gray, Polysfirst preferred KEYS TO PLANTS B Stems green, jointed, ridged, bearing slender whorled branches joints; leaves consisting of a ring of minute Common B 129 Stems not jointed, little at the scales at the joints horsetail (Equisetum arvense) branched; leaves elongate or sometimes scalelike and appressed, usually covering the stems, green C Spores borne in cylindrical cones at the ends of the branches D Leaves of the upright branches scalelike, appressed, borne in rows D Leaves of the upright branches elongate, not appressed and scalelike, Alpine clubmoss {Lycopodium alpinum) borne in or more rows E Plants appearing like small trees, the single upright stem bearing E Plants trailing, not treelike Groundpine branches F Cones not G stalked, {Lycopodium obscurum) usually solitary at ends of branches Creeping stems bearing leaves little different from those on upright stems; cones always solitary Stiff G2 Creeping Alaskan clubmoss {Lycopodium sabinaefolium var shchense) stalked, more than one on ends of branches Runningpine {Lycopodium clavatum) Spores borne at bases of ordinary leaves, not in compact cylindrical Fir clubmoss {Lycopodium selago) cones F C clubmoss {Lycopodium annotinum) stems bearing reduced leaves; cones usually solitary Cones — Explanation of principal terms used in the keys The plants or plant Fig parts shown here to illustrate these terms are: 1, Eskimo potato (Frhillaria camschatcensis) 2, section through an aster flower head; 3, single flowers from ; aster head; 4, cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus) leaf; 5, lupine (Lupinus) leaf; 6-8, grass flower clusters; 9, Bering bellflower (Campanula lasiocarpa) ; 10, basal leaf of burnet (Sanguisorba sitchensis) 131 ... of the Aleutian D R Islands E A Insert shows position of the Islands with relation to Alaska and Siberia The southern Aleutians are in the same latitude as London — THE ISLANDS AND THEIR PEOPLE. .. south of the Arctic Circle Lying between the 51st and 55 th parallels, they are in the same latitude as England, Ireland, Belgium, Holland, northern France, and Germany The climate and the islands. .. east side of the island between the islands of Akutan and Unalaska, are the two other principal passes through the eastern Aleutians Unalaska, the second largest of the Aleutian Islands, long,