TODAY...RAIN SHOWERS...BECOMING MIXED WITH SNOW IN THE AFTERNOON
FROM MENDENHALL VALLEY NORTH. SNOW ACCUMULATION AROUND 1 INCH.
HIGHS AROUND 39...THEN FALLING THROUGH THE DAY. SOUTHEAST WIND 5 TO
15 MPH.

TONIGHT...SNOW SHOWERS LIKELY...MIXED WITH RAIN IN THE EVENING.
SNOW ACCUMULATION 1 TO 2 INCHES. LOWS 23 TO 27. EAST WIND 10 MPH
BECOMING LIGHT AND VARIABLE LATE.

SUNDAY...SNOW SHOWERS LIKELY. SNOW ACCUMULATION 1 TO 2 INCHES.
HIGHS AROUND 30. SOUTHEAST WIND 10 MPH.

The slow accumulation of precipitation, but still relatively high rain, line keeps the same strengths and concerns in play.

An additional 4 to 8 inches of snow is expected to fall in the start zones over the next twenty-four hours, but winds should remain moderate out of the south. This is falling on warmer snow and should bond well.

Pockets of instability remain up high in the form of wind slabs. There is steady cross loading along the channel and small naturals are possible within the new storm layers. However slides large enough to impact the urban zone are unlikely.

Lower down the snow pack is very wet, never having completely refrozen after all the rain we have had. Wet slides are a definite possibility here, but full depth releases are unlikely and the small precip amounts expected would only trigger superficial results.

Though large slides are not expected it is still a good idea to stay off the flume trail today as even smaller slides can be funneled down the creek beds with destructive force.

While the character of the snowpack retains a number of crusts throughout, the moist/dry nature of the snow changes with elevation.

Avalanche Danger is MODERATE today: Natural avalanches are unlikely at upper elevations, and possible below the rain line. Human triggered avalanches possible. Generally stable snow. Isolated areas of instability.

In Urban Zones normal caution is advised. Backcountry Travel is generally safe. Normal caution is advised with particular attention to wind affected slopes, and ridgetops facing North.

AVALANCHE ECOLOGY
For people caught on the wrong mountain slope at the wrong time, avalanches can be lethal. But for wildlife, they can be a benefit, carving out habitat and increasing biodiversity.

Shrub-filled avalanche paths are attractive to a variety of species because the paths exhibit a diverse structure: a tall stratum of vegetation, such as alder; a middle level that may consist of chokecherry and serviceberry; and a short understory of small shrubs such as bearberry and snowberry, plus an abundance of grasses and flowering plants. This vegetative structure nurtures a variety of insect species as well as the different insect-eating birds that prey on them. Birds respond to the kind of landscape diversity found in avalanche paths?vertical and horizontal diversity?simply by having more food available, more nesting sites, and more cover from predators.

Larger birds also find ways to exploit avalanche paths. Bald and golden eagles check out avalanche chutes for carrion after the snow has melted out. They try to beat bears to the carcasses of elk or goats that got caught in winter avalanches. Moreover, golden eagles in particular will use avalanche paths to hunt for ground squirrels, marmots, and other prey. In spring this may be an important food source for bald and golden eagles migrating through.

At the top of the food web are brown bears. One can frequently see them moving through the shrubby vegetation growing in avalanche chutes. ?Bear elevators? is how Dan Fagre, a U.S. Geological Survey ecologist, describes these chutes. That's because the bears that start foraging at the bottom work their way to the top, feasting on berries and other delectables as they go.

The bear elevators illustrate one of the direct ecological impacts of avalanches. But there are indirect impacts, too. For example, by moving large amounts of debris, water, and chemicals from higher to lower elevations, avalanches redistribute resources in ecologically significant ways.