Overview

Ecogeomorphology is a selective field course in applied watershed science offered through the UC Davis Department of Geology. Taught by Professors Jeff Mount and Peter Moyle, the course focused on the Kobuk River in Alaska's Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve for its seventh year. Previous field course destinations include the Copper River, Green River, and Colorado River, among many.

The ability to work closely and collaboratively with professionals from different backgrounds is fundamental to success in the field of watershed science. This year's Ecogeomorphology course brought graduate students together from a variety of disciplines, including ecology, engineering, fisheries, and geography.

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The array of academic backgrounds allows students to work in collaborative, multidisciplinary teams on critical river and stream management questions. This year, the Ecogeomorphology course examined the most critical issue facing arctic and sub-arctic aquatic ecosystems: global climate change. By preparing background synopses prior to the field expedition, students were able to synthesize a body of knowledge regarding many aspects of arctic and sub-arctic aquatic food webs and potential changes to watershed functioning, such as productivity, permafrost, and altered hydrology. This background information was contributed to Wikipedia in an effort to facilitate the diffusion of knowledge and improve our ability to adaptively manage critical ecosystems.

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During class, the students discussed several issues in detail, reviewed published literature, and prepared individual reports for publication on Wikipedia. Following this period of classroom study, the students conducted a two-week field study of the Kobuk River watershed, located above the Arctic Circle in northern Alaska. A primary focus of this study was the status of sheefish (Stenodus leucicthys, or "Tarpon of the Tundra"), a unique arctic fish species of limited distribution, and potential changes to its habitat due to climatic change. The field study included the collection of original information on aquatic and riparian ecology, hydrology and fluvial geomorphology, which are published herein. Please see the attachment below for the final report of this study.

Funding for the course has been provided by the Roy Shlemon Chair in Applied Geosciences. Many thank yous to all that made this trip possible.


AttachmentSize
Conceptual_ecosystem_model_of_the_Kobuk_River_UC_Davis_September_2009.pdf1.13 MB

Featured Flogs

Muskegs and Tundra Ponds of the Arctic

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Posted By: 
Sarah Gatzke
Date: 
August 21, 2008
Location: 
Camp 11 - Twenty-Ought-Three

Summer air temperatures and the presence of permafrost in the subsoil of the Kobuk Valley create conditions suitable for the seasonal development of poorly drained, sparsely vegetated, swampy plains often referred to as muskegs or tundra. In our expedition down the Kobuk River, observations of muskeg were limited to the reach of the river within the broad, flat Kobuk Valley. Here, elevated above the banks of the Kobuk River, existed flat stretches of treeless plains interdispersed with swampy areas and tundra ponds extending from the river to the mountains encompassing the valley.

Sheefish TV: Observations of Sheefish Spawning Substrate in the Upper Kobuk River

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Posted By: 
Jacob Katz
Date: 
November 20, 2011
Location: 
Site 10 - Pah River - Tributary

Fish of the subfamily Coregoninae (family Salmonidae) are commonly known as whitefish. The center of whitefish diversity is in the North. While California has only a single species of native coregonid, the Kobuk River is home to at least six species (Morow 1980). The largest member of the family, the sheefish (Stenodus leucichithys), is found in three river systems in Alaska, the Yukon, the Kuskokwim and the Kobuk-Selawik. The range of the species is circumpolar, yet in Alaska it is not found north of the Kobuk River (Morrow 1980).

Vegetative patterns, scale and climate change in the Kobuk River Valley. August 13, 2008.

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Posted By: 
John Durand
Date: 
August 13, 2008

The vegetative communities adjacent to the Kobuk River are comprised of alpine tundra; successional willow/cottonwood forest and climax spruce boreal forest on well-drained soils; and lowland tundra on poorly-drained soils. Soil drainage is determined by slope, soil type, bedrock type and the presence of permafrost.