Shakun Islets is a group of grass-covered islands and submerged reefs extending 1.8 miles (2.9 km) north to south at the entrance of Swikshak Bay in Shelikof Strait, about 108 miles (174 km) southwest of Homer and 57 miles (92 km) northwest of Kodiak, Alaska. The islets are on the coast of the Alaska Peninsula and in Katmai National Park and Preserve. The name is a transliteration of “Kamen Shakhun,” meaning Shakun Rock, presumably referring to the largest islet. It was published in 1852 by Mikhail Tebenkov of the Imperial Russian Navy. The name Shakun Islands was first published for the entire group by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1943. The islets are composed of igneous intrusive rocks formed during the late Miocene to Pliocene epochs, about 10 to 3 million years ago. These rocks are mostly erosion-resistant granodiorite and quartz diorite.

Sea otters are keystone predators in the nearshore community. They are preyed upon by higher trophic level predators, including bald eagles, brown bears, wolves, sharks, and killer whales. Once prolific around the Shakun Islets, sea otters were hunted nearly to extinction in the 1800s by Aleuts for Russian-American Company fur trading stations at Afognak, Douglas, and Kukak. However, the population has since recovered, with recent observations noting rafts of hundreds among the Shakun Islets, indicating a potential food-limited status. To minimize predation, sea otters have developed strategies such as vigilant behavior, group rafting, and using islands and reefs for hauling out. They typically rest at sea but may come ashore when threatened by marine predators.

The islets are about 2.5 miles (4 km) off the mainland coast near Swikshak Lagoon. Despite the distance, coastal brown bears frequently swim across from the mainland to forage. On the Katmai coast, these bears are known to dig for razor clams from exposed intertidal sand flats. They also use offshore islands to access bird eggs and marine mammals. Additionally, they scavenge for carcasses washed up by the surf, and it is common to see several dozen bears feeding on a single whale carcass. Sea otters, harbor seals, and sea lions haul out on the islets and reefs at Shakun. In 2015, remote cameras on the largest Shakun island recorded bears eating shellfish and targeting harbor seals and sea otters. Read more here and here. Explore more of the Shakun Islets and Swikshak Bay here: