Landslide response to the 27 October 2012 earthquake (MW 7.8), southern Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada

In this paper, we examine the influence of the 27 October 2012, Mw 7.8 earthquake on landslide occurrence in the southern half of Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia, Canada. Our 1350 km2 study area is undisturbed, primarily forested terrain that has not experienced road building or timber harvesting. Our inventory of landslide polygons is based on optical airborne and spaceborne images acquired between 2007 and 2018, from which we extracted and mapped 446 individual landslides (an average of 33 landslides per 100 km2). The landslide rate in years without major earthquakes averages 19.4 per year, or 1.4/100 km2/year, and the annual average area covered by non-seismically triggered landslides is 35 ha/year. The number of landslides identified in imagery closely following the 2012 earthquake, and probably triggered by it, is 244 or an average of about 18 landslides per 100 km2. These landslides cover a total area of 461 ha. In the following years—2013–2016 and 2016–2018—the number of landslides fell, respectively, to 26 and 13.5 landslides per year. In non-earthquake years, most landslides happen on south-facing slopes, facing the prevailing winds. In contrast, during or immediately after the earthquake, up to 32% of the landslides occurred on north and northwest-facing slopes. Although we could not find imagery from the day after the earthquake, overview reconnaissance flights 10 and 16 days later showed that most of the landslides were recent, suggesting they were co-seismic.

On the land mammals of the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, by John Henry Keen, with a catalogue of specimens

From 1890 to 1899, the Reverend John Henry Keen collected plants and animals in the vicinity of the Anglican mission at Massett, on the north-central coast of the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii), British Columbia, Canada. Keen's prodigious collecting efforts resulted in the first detailed information on the natural history of that region, particularly of the beetle fauna. Keen also observed and collected mammals, depositing specimens in museums in Canada, England and the United States, for which a catalogue is given. Several mammal specimens provided the basis for new distributional records and nine new taxa, two of which were named for Keen. In 1897, Keen prepared an annotated list of ten taxa of land mammals of the Queen Charlotte Islands, including the first observations of natural history for some of the species. Particularly important were the insightful questions Keen raised about the evolution of mammals isolated on the Islands, especially why certain species, abundant on the mainland, were absent.

Mitochondrial DNA suggests recent origins in two coastal avian subspecies in northwestern North America

Genetic studies of subspecies endemic to Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia and the Alexander Archipelago of southeast Alaska have frequently found genetic corroboration for these phenotypically based taxa. Divergence and speciation are common among island populations of birds, and evidence suggests this region has fostered such divergence during previous glacial maxima. We examined genetic divergence in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of two coastal subspecies endemic to this region: sharp-shinned hawk (Accipiter striatus perobscurus) and great blue heron (Ardea herodias fannini). Genetic diversity in both species was remarkably low, with both coastal subspecies possessing only the most common haplotype found in continental populations. We found low but significant population divergence between A. s. perobscurus and continental populations of sharp-shinned hawks and no significant population divergence in the herons. The refugial history of the region suggests that these subspecies may have arisen relatively recently compared with other regional endemics for which genetic and phenotypic data both show divergence. Alternatively, species-wide selective sweeps of mtDNA prior to divergence may have rendered this genetic marker less useful for tracking that divergence.

Mitochondrial DNA suggests recent origins in two coastal avian subspecies in northwestern North America

Genetic studies of subspecies endemic to Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia and the Alexander Archipelago of southeast Alaska have frequently found genetic corroboration for these phenotypically based taxa. Divergence and speciation are common among island populations of birds, and evidence suggests this region has fostered such divergence during previous glacial maxima. We examined genetic divergence in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of two coastal subspecies endemic to this region: sharp-shinned hawk (Accipiter striatus perobscurus) and great blue heron (Ardea herodias fannini). Genetic diversity in both species was remarkably low, with both coastal subspecies possessing only the most common haplotype found in continental populations. We found low but significant population divergence between A. s. perobscurus and continental populations of sharp-shinned hawks and no significant population divergence in the herons. The refugial history of the region suggests that these subspecies may have arisen relatively recently compared with other regional endemics for which genetic and phenotypic data both show divergence. Alternatively, species-wide selective sweeps of mtDNA prior to divergence may have rendered this genetic marker less useful for tracking that divergence.

Time dependent seismicity along the western coast of Canada

Decelerating generation of intermediate magnitude earthquakes (preshocks) in a narrow region (seismogenic region) and accelerating generation of relatively larger such earthquakes in a broader region (critical region) has been proposed as an appropriate model for intermediate-term earthquake prediction. We examined the seismic activity which preceded the M_w=7.7 (October 28, 2012) thrust event that occurred off the west coast of Haida Gwaii, Canada (formerly the Queen Charlotte islands), by applying the decelerating-accelerating seismic strain model. We found that this mainshock was preceded by a pronounced accelerating seismic sequence with the time to the mainshock, as well as by an equally easily identifiable decelerating seismic sequence. Both precursory seismic sequences occurred in different space, time and magnitude windows. The behavior of previous mainshocks that occurred close to the 2012 earthquake was also examined by the time and magnitude predictable regional model. An attempt was also made to identify such seismic strain patterns, which may also be related to the generation of strong mainshocks along the western coast of Canada.