Kenai Fjords National Park

Kenai Fjords National Park
Kenai Fjords National Park
Coordinates: 59 ° 59 '2 "  N , 149 ° 46' 58"  W.
Location:	Alaska , United States
Next city:	Seward (Alaska)
Surface:	2,709.98 km²
Founding:	2nd December 1980
Visitors:	321,596 (2018)
Address:	Kenai Fjords National Park

The Kenai Fjords National Park ( English Kenai Fjords National Park ) is a national park in the USA on the Kenai Peninsula in southern Alaska . In the park is the Harding Icefield , the largest ice field in the United States .

Aialik Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park

The park is famous for the 1600 meter high Kenai Mountain, which is completely covered by the 777 km² Harding Ice Field. The ice runs in the form of several glaciers down to the sea. One of the most popular tourist attractions in the national park area is Exit Glacier , which can be accessed by road from Seward.

The temperatures in rainy summer are on average between 10 ° C and 15 ° C.

The national park with 966  km of coastline is despite an area of ​​2711 km² the smallest national park in Alaska. It was founded on December 2, 1980 under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act . The park is managed by the World Conservation Union in category II ( national park ).

geography

The national park is located on the southeast side of the Kenai Peninsula, about 210 kilometers south of Anchorage. The closest town is Seward on Resurrection Bay . Much of the park is covered by the Harding Icefield. The highest point is an unnamed peak in the Kenai Mountains at an altitude of 1970 meters. The landscape of the park was shaped by plate tectonics , as the Pacific plate dips below the North American plate here .

fauna

The glacier landscape of the Kenai Fjords National Park is increasingly retreating. The glaciers are shrinking and the ice is releasing new land that plants and animals can colonize.

Large land mammals such as grizzly bears , black bears , elk and mountain goats live in the park , but also smaller mammals such as North American otters and beavers . In the area of ​​the national park there are also marine mammals such as sea ​​otters , seals and Steller sea lions . Various species of whales can be found along the coast of the Gulf of Alaska, including killer whales , fin whales , humpback whales and minke whales . The white-striped dolphin can also be found in these waters.

The most well-known bird species in Kenai Fjords National Park include the bald eagle , a subspecies of the peregrine falcon , yellow cape and hornlund .

Web links

Commons : Kenai Fjords National Park  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• National Park Service: Kenai Fjords National Park (official site; English)
• Cultural Resources of Kenai Fjords National Park (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ World Database on Protected Areas - Kenai Fjords National Park (English)