AP reveals Alaska tribes in crisis as salmon runs disappear
Michael Williams scans the shoreline for moose while traveling up the Yukon River on Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, near Stevens Village, Alaska. For the first time in memory, both king and chum salmon have dwindled to almost nothing and the state has banned salmon fishing on the Yukon. The remote communities that dot the river and live off its bounty are desperate and doubling down on moose and caribou hunts in the waning days of fall. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
By Gillian Flaccus and Nathan Howard
Reporter Gillian Flaccus and freelance photographer Nathan Howard documented the plight of remote Alaska Native tribes facing a lean winter because the once bountiful salmon runs on the Yukon River have all but stopped, likely due to climate change.
Howard traveled to Stevens Village, more than 300 miles north of Anchorage along the Yukon. He made striking images and drone video as hunters tracked moose and caribou, hoping to get enough to replace what would usually be a large bounty of salmon dried and smoked for winter months. The hunters worked nearly around the clock, even cleaning and gutting moose under the northern lights.
Bernard Ishnook, left, examines a freshly killed moose as Steven Guinness Jr., 14, and Ben Stevens discuss how to pack out the 2-year-old moose, near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 14, 2021. As winter approaches, the remote communities that dot the Yukon River are doubling down on moose and caribou hunts in the absence of salmon. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
A cow and calf moose pair exit the Yukon River near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Bernard Ishnook checks a hunting rifle before leaving the Stevens’ family hunting camp for the day, near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
The Yukon River stretches past Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. Two salmon species have all but disappeared from the river this year, prompting the state to shut down fishing in an effort to save them, creating a crisis for remote river communities that have depended on fishing for generations. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Unused salmon nets hang in the Stevens family’s empty smokehouse, which would normally be filled with salmon at this time of year, in Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Salmon hangs on a drying rack at a fish camp in Fort Yukon, Alaska, in an undated photo provided by the Tanana Chiefs Conference. Families would traditionally spend the summer at fish camps using nets and fish wheels to snag adult salmon as they migrate inland from the ocean to spawn. – Rachel Saylor / Tanana Chiefs Conference via AP
Bernard Ishnook moves butchered moose meat into Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Ben Stevens stokes the camp’s cooking fire after a day searching for moose along the Yukon River near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 14, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Giovanna Stevens, left, and Kori Williams clean moose intestines at the Stevens family’s hunting camp near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Bernard Ishnook butchers a moose head in the Stevens family’s hunting camp near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 16, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Giovanna Stevens weaves a new strap for her hunting rifle as the sun sets on the Yukon River near Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 14, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Bernard Ishnook moves butchered moose meat into the smokehouse of village elder Harold Simon, in Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Steven Guinness Jr., 14, carries his hunting rifle into the village after returning from the Stevens family’s hunting camp on in Stevens Village, Alaska, Sept. 15, 2021. – AP Photo / Nathan Howard
Flaccus, who has written extensively on the consequences of climate change, reported from Oregon, describing how tribal members are upset they haven’t received more help from state and federal authorities. Some feel their plight isn’t getting as much attention as farmers, ranchers and others affected by climate change in the lower 48.
The pair’s vivid text and photo package led reader engagement for the weekend and was near the top in pageviews for the same period.
