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Alaska collecting trip (June 2011)

In June of 2011 we collected material from birds in Alaska targeting primarily blood flukes for theavian schistosome project funded by NSF. We started out of Anchorage next day after the ASP meeting. We have collected around and north of Fairbanks and went on the Dalton Highway all the way acrooss the Brooks range and beyond the Arctic Circle. Neverending arctic day provided opportunities to work round the clock which first sounded like a fantastic thing, but after of several days of work with virtually no sleep we have realized we could have used a few hours of night. No such luxury in Alaska in June, however. The trip had it all - vast and beautiful vistas, tons of mosquitoes, freezing saline in Petri dishes and ice-cold instruments. Truly wonderful. Sara Brant, Stephen Greiman and I are truly grateful to Rob and his wonderful dog. WIthout their help we would not be able to do much.


Beautiful mountains of the Brooks range.

Sara looks for ducks

Collecting snails

Stephen enjoys a rare moment with few mosquitoes around

Alaska's reputation as a cold icy place is exaggerated

Nice little lake in the lowland

Grayling

Dreaming of ducks, plenty of ducks... A dream come true
Plants try to make the most out of short summer  
 More flowers A lake near Fairbanks
 A glimpse of a lynx. What a beauty! A "platinum" colored grizzly bear is a bit annoyed.
We went well beyond the Arctic Circle   Sara tries to dissect near the fire
In tundra We would not be able to do much without Rob and his dog. Thanks!
 
 Our camp   Midnight