Salmon in the Trees: Life in Alaska's Tongass Rain Forest

Description

* Protect or exploit? The Tongass is in the center of pending legislation & strong emotions.
* Illustrations by celebrated artist Ray Troll
* Includes Tongass soundscape on CD
* A carbon-neutral publication

One of the rarest ecosystems on Earth, the Tongass rain forest fringes the coastal panhandle of Alaska & covers thousands of islands in the Alexander Archipelago. It's a place where everything is interconnected: Humpback whales, orcas, & sea lions cruise the forested shorelines. Wild salmon swim upstream into the forest, feeding some of the world's highest densities of grizzlies, black bears, & bald eagles. Native cultures endure with Raven, Eagle, & Salmon. Local communities benefit from the gifts of both the forest & sea.

But the global demands of our modern world may threaten this great forest's biological treasures. Salmon in the Trees: Life in Alaska's Tongass Rain Forest fully explores the entire ecosystem of the Tongass National Forest-its habitat, wildlife, & people. Here, millions of wild salmon are the crucial link between the forest & the sea, & shape both animal & human lives. With camera & rain gear in hand, photographer Amy Gulick spent more than two years trekking & paddling among the bears, misty islands, & salmon streams to document the intricate connections within the Tongass. Along the way, she met Alaskans -- bush pilots, fishermen, guides, artists -- who call the Tongass home.

Together with engaging & accessible essays from renowned conservationists, scientists, & journalists, as well as salmon-spawned illustrations from artist Ray Troll, Gulick portrays a hopeful story of a magnificent -- & intact -- ecosystem where trees still grow salmon, & salmon still grow trees.