YUKON-CHARLEY RIVERS NATIONAL PRESERVE

national preserve in east-central Alaska, U.S., on the Canadian border. Proclaimed a national monument in 1978, the area underwent boundary and name changes in 1980, becoming a national preserve in the latter year. Preserving the entire 88-mile (142-kilometre) Charley River basin and 115 miles (185 km) of the 1,980-mile (3,190-kilometre) Yukon River, the area contains numerous cabins and other relics of the 1898 gold rush as well as paleontological and archaeological sites. Wildlife includes peregrine falcons and other raptorial birds, caribou, moose, Dall sheep, grizzly bears, and wolves. The total area is 3,943 square miles (10,212 square km).