Wrangell - St Elias National Park & Preserve - Coasts / Shorelines

The coastal resources in Wrangell-St. Elias are in the Yakutat area including Icy and Disenchantment Bays and the Malaspina Forelands. The park/preserve has over 1,000 acres of inter-tidal communities and over 125 miles of coastline and these coastal waters support an abundance of fish, invertebrates and algae that provide a food base for a variety of marine mammals such as harbor seals ( Phoca vitulina ), Stella sea lions ( Eumetopias jubatus ), sea otters ( Lontra canadensis ), Dall porpoises ( Phocoena dalli ), and Orca ( Orcinus orca ). Coastal lakes and streams provide spawning grounds for four of the five Pacific salmon species as well as habitat for steelhead ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ), cutthroat trout (O. clarkii ) and Dolly Varden char ( Salvelinu s namaycush ). Many of these species have commercial value and global industrialization and commerce directly affects populations in Wrangell-St. Elias even though the human population centers are distant.