Vascular flora and phytogeography of Cape Prince of Wales, Seward Peninsula, Alaska

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Botany
• Main Author: Kelso, Sylvia
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1989
• Subjects: Plant Science; Bering Strait; Cape Prince of Wales; Seward Peninsula; Alaska
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/b89-404; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/b89-404

Cape Prince of Wales on the western tip of the Seward Peninsula in Alaska is the closest point in continental North America to Asia. From here the eastern tip of the Chukotsk Peninsula is less than 80 km away across the Bering Strait. Owing to the position of the Seward Peninsula, its flora is of great biogeographic interest, yet until recently was poorly known because of the remoteness of the region. Here I document the 292 vascular plant taxa that compose the flora at Cape Prince of Wales. I consider this Bering Strait region a distinct phytogeographic zone. The flora has strong alpine affinities, and it is marked by the local abundance of certain Asiatic and Beringian species, and the absence of continental species requiring summer warmth that are common elsewhere on the Seward Peninsula.