Petersburg
Mitkof Island, Alaska
Site Description:
Petersburg
is on the north end of Mitkof Island where the Wrangell Narrows meets
Frederick Sound. The town center faces the Wrangell Narrows and
accessible beachfront runs along the entire town. It is
a mostly cobble/rock beach with some boulders, much of it strewn
with kelp. There are also sections of mudstone and small pockets
of sand. Under the piers in town are very large beds of
tubeworms. The northeast side of Petersburg and the island
faces Frederick Sound. Here you'll find Sandy Beach, an expansive
sand flat facing the Sound. It is bordered on both sides by
boulders. Our list covers locations across the entire tip of the
island as it is essentially one continuous beach. Some
species are more common at some spots than others but as the sites are
so near each other, we're treating it as all one location.
Google Map
In town under a pier
Hungry Point at the north tip of the island
Sandy Beach
Species List:
Following is a list of mollusk species observed at this
location by members and associates of the club. This is by no
means a complete list of the species which may occur at this site.
Revisions and additions to the data are made as we acquire new
information. When a site contains more than one very distinctive
type of habitat or if multiple sites were included in a single
location, then a
species list for each is included.
We indicate
frequency of occurrence based on our observations. This is an
indicator of how likely it is that you may be able to find this
species yourself and is not a formal population survey.
Frequency Code:
(Based on the assumption that you are looking in the appropriate
location where the species
likes to live - on rocks, in sand, etc. Some populations fluctuate seasonally. Ours are based
on the spring/summer seasons.)
[4] - Rare - very difficult to find, maybe only a couple found after repeated visits to the site
[3] - Uncommon - difficult to find, may not see on every trip but dedicated searching may turn up a few
[2] - Common - easy to find, should locate a number of them on any given day
[1] - Abundant - very easy to find, large numbers should be seen on every trip
Data is all intertidal unless noted.
Bivalves
Astarte sp. [3]
Chlamys rubida [4]
Clinocardium nuttallii [3]
Entodesma navicula [3]
Hiatella arctica [2]
Leukoma staminea [2]
Lucinoma annulata [4]
Macoma balthica [1]
Macoma golikovi [2]
Macoma inquinata [3]
Macoma nasuta [4]
Mactromeris polynyma [3]
Magallana gigas [3]
Modiolus modiolus [2]
Mya arenaria [3]
Mya truncata [2]
Mytilus trossulus [1]
Nutricola lordi [4]
Panomya ampla [4]
Pododesmus macrochisma [4]
Saxidomus gigantea [2]
Serripes laperousii [4]
Tresus capax [3]
Zirfaea pilsbryi [3]
Gastropods
Aartsenia satura [4]
Amphissa columbiana [2]
Bittium vancouverense [4]
Buccinum baeri [3]
Buccinum glaciale [4]
Buccinum plectrum [4]
Crepidula nummaria [3]
Cryptonatica affinis [4]
Cryptonatica aleutica [3]
Fissurellidea bimaculata [4]
Fusitriton oregonensis [4]
Lacuna vincta [2]
Lepeta concentrica [3]
Lirobittium attenuatum [4]
Littorina sitkana [1]
Lottia pelta [1]
Lottia persona [2]
Lottia scutum [2]
Margarites beringensis [3]
Margarites helicinus [2]
Margarites pupillus [1]
Neadmete modesta [4]
Neptunea lyrata [3]
Neptunea pribiloffensis [4]
Nucella canaliculata [1]
Nucella lamellosa [2]
Nucella lima [2}
Nucella ostrina [4]
Odostomia sp. [4]
Oenopota tabulata [4]
Scabrotrophon maltzani [4]
Scabrotrophon stuarti [4]
Trichotropis cancellata [3]
Trophon sp. [4]
Velutina sp. [4]
Vitreolina columbiana [3]
Volutharpa ampullacea [3]
Nudibranchs/Sea slugs
Coryphella verrucosa [4]
Diaulula odonoghuei [4]
Haminoea vesicula [4]
Onchidella carpenteri [4]
Triopha catalinae [4]
Chitons
Cryptochiton stelleri [4]
Cyanoplax dentiens [4]
Katharina tunicata [3]
Leptochiton cf. rugatus [4]
Mopalia hindsii [4]
Mopalia kennerleyi [3]
Tonicella lineata [2]
Tonicella rubra [4]
This page last revised: 7-2-2024