Game Board Limits Income for Nelchina Tier II Hunters

The Alaska Board of Game has capped the income for Tier II Nelchina caribou and moose hunters at $51,460 beginning with the 2007 season according to the Anchorage Daily News.

From the article: "Those new rules are part of what hunters are calling an extraordinary decision by the Board of Game Friday that dramatically changes the state's most sought-after subsistence hunt. It also marks a shift in the way the state looks at subsistence, at least in this particular hunt, hunters said.

The rules also apply to subsistence hunting for moose in the Nelchina area.

The Game Board's decision is the first time in Alaska's history that access to a hunt has been tied directly to income, said Alaska Department of Fish and Game spokesman Bruce Bartley."

Read the entire article in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

High 20A Moose Numbers a Success Story

The large number of moose now inhabiting the Tanana Flats south of Fairbanks is a management success story recorded in this month's Alaska Wildlife News. With few moose in the area after a steep decline in the early 1970's, GMU 20A now holds approximately 16,000 moose, enough that biologists are working to reduce the population to keep it in balance with its habitat.

“We probably have the highest moose densities in the state, and it’s a success in providing hunting opportunities and harvest,” said Fairbanks wildlife biologist Don Young. “More than 1,000 moose have been harvested in 20A for the third year in a row.”

The News reported also that hunters and trappers have been successful at keeping predator numbers at a relatively low level, and this has helped keep moose numbers up.

Read the entire story in Alaska Wildlife News >>>

ADFG Wants Helicopters to Finish Wolf Control for Season

With wolf control efforts lagging far behind levels state biologists want, ADFG managers are asking Governor Palin for approval to use helicopters, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

Longer days and warmer weather make March the best month for the wolf reduction project. Expensive fuel and poor winter weather conditions have hampered the efforts of volunteers. Helicopters would be much more expensive than the volunteer teams that have taken the wolves in this most recent project.

ADFG staff are awaiting a decision from the governor for the more effective, but "politically volative" decision to use helicopters, the paper reported.

The wolf control project is designed to build depressed moose and caribou populations in Interior and Southcentral Alaska.

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

McNeil Area Bear Hunt Closed

The Alaska Board of Game decided on Tuesday to not permit hunting on state lands near the famous brown bear viewing sanctuary on the west side of Cook Inlet, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

A bear hunting season scheduled to begin in the area in the fall of 2007 is now removed from the books.

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Alaska Questions Polar Bear Listing

The State of Alaska questioned whether listing polar bears as a threatened species as proposed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service is wise, according to a news article in the Anchorage Daily News (ADN).

"Tina Cunning, a biologist and a special assistant to the commissioner of the Department of Fish and Game, questioned whether polar bears really need sea ice to survive. She said polar bears are adaptable to use land for hunting, and though their preferred food, ice seals, may be declining, bears are adapting to alternative food sources.

She also testified that a listing in the United States ultimately could harm bears in Canada because Inuit villagers would no longer have an incentive to preserve them for American hunters. An ESA listing would ban importation of polar bear trophy hides."

The Palin administration had earlier questioned the move, according to the ADN, saying "The driving force in the concern over polar bears, she said, is the decline in sea ice. Listing bears as threatened, would not cause sea water to freeze."

Read the entire article in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Board of Game to Meet in Anchorage, March 2-12

From an ADFG news release >>>

The Alaska Board of Game will meet March 2-12, 2007, in Anchorage at the Coast International Inn to consider more than 200 proposals regarding hunting and trapping regulations in the Southcentral and Southwest regions, along with other topics.

Proposals have been submitted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, state advisory committees, and the general public seeking adjustments to hunting and trapping regulations in the Southcentral and Southwest regions, including subsistence hunting, methods and means for hunting and trapping, intensive management programs, restricted areas, and miscellaneous statewide regulations. For more detailed information on the subject matter, members of the public are encouraged to read the meeting notice which can be viewed on-line.

The board will take oral public testimony beginning Friday, March 2nd. Anyone wishing to testify before the board must sign up at the meeting site before the announced deadline. Public testimony will continue until everyone who has signed up has been given the opportunity to be heard.

The deadline to ensure written comments on proposals are included in the Board of Game members’ meeting binders was February 16. Written comments on specific proposals that are received after that date will be accepted and distributed to members during the meeting up until they begin deliberation on the proposal. Written comments can be mailed to: Alaska Board of Game, Boards Support Section, P.O. Box 115526, Juneau, AK 99811-5526, or faxed to (907) 465-6094.

Deliberations on the proposals will begin following public testimony and continue through the remainder of the meeting. Copies of the proposals, the agenda, and the “roadmap” can be viewed online.

Homer Seeks Legislative Remedy on McNeil Bear Hunting Area

Homer, Alaska is seeking a legislative change to the boundaries of the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary as a means of limiting the area in which brown bears may be hunted around the famed bear viewing area. The Anchorage Daily News reports that Representative Paul Seaton (R-Homer) has introduced legislation to expand the sanctuary, and thus eliminate the possibility of restoring a currently closed area nearby to hunting status.

"Seaton said the bill is in response to constituents in his district asking him to prevent the game board from allowing the McNeil River bears to be hunted, especially when numbers gathering at the McNeil Falls to fish for salmon have declined in recent years. The game board's 2005 decision takes effect July 1, clearing the way for an October hunt. The board is expected to reconsider the issue at a meeting in March in Anchorage."

Read the entire article in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

McNeil River Area Bear Hunting Issue Heats Up Again

Where to draw the no-hunting boundary lines around the McNeil River brown bear viewing area are an issue again.

The Alaska Board of Game reduced the size of the no-hunting zone in a previous cycle, but delayed the actual opening for one more board meeting cycle to allow additional discussion on the subject.

The Anchorage Daily News printed an Associated Press article on the subject today. AP writer Mary Pemberton wrote the following, which summarizes the issue:

"If nothing changes, state lands used by the bears near the 114,400-acre sanctuary in Southwest Alaska will be open to hunting as of July 1, clearing the way for a fall hunt.

Opponents say it's not sporting to hunt the McNeil River bears, which are accustomed to humans and routinely come to within 10 or 15 feet of small groups of bear viewers allowed into the sanctuary each summer. Supporters say the bears are fair game when they wander outside the sanctuary."

Read the entire article in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Hunters "Lucky to be Alive"

Two moose moose hunters last season shot a charging grizzly bear with a .44 magnum pistol near Dillingham as they returned from their riverboat to start packing moosemeat.

"In the blink of an eye, they found themselves in the center of a chaotic reality that seemed more like some crazy dream. There was the dead moose they had shot on the ground, a grizzly bear that wanted the moose almost on top of them, and only a .44-caliber Magnum handgun with which to defend themselves," wrote Anchorage Daily News writer Craig Medred in the 11 February paper.

ADFG Supports Status Quo Around McNeil

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will not support additional restrictions in hunting regulations in the vicinity of the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary, according to an agency supervisor, but will support proposals reversing the Alaska Board of Game's recent opening of the Douglas River area.

"We are proud of our sound history of providing outstanding opportunities for all users through our existing management strategies and plan to support few, if any, changes to the management strategies and regulations we have employed over the past decades," wrote Division of Wildlife Conservation Southcentral Region Supervisor Grant Hildebrand in an ADFG publication.

Read the entire editorial in the February issue of Alaska Wildlife News >>>.

Fed Subsistence Board Refuses Reconsideration on Bear Claw Sales

From an ADFG News Release

The Federal Subsistence Board recently denied a Request for Reconsideration (RFR) submitted by the State of Alaska, through the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G), asking the Federal Board to reconsider its decision that allows commercial sale of bear parts including claws, skulls, teeth and bones taken under federal subsistence regulations. Federal regulations allow the sale of handicrafts made from bear parts on the Internet and in curio shops.

In May 2006, the Federal Board refused the State’s request to limit sales, but did adopt an unenforceable prohibition against sales of handicrafts that are “significant commercial enterprises.” In August 2006, the State filed an RFR challenging the Board’s May 2006 decision. This request was recently denied.

“It is important to allow customary and traditional use and exchange of handicrafts made from bear parts,” said ADF&G Commissioner Denby S. Lloyd. “However, the Federal Board went too far in creating a new market for bear parts that will mask illegal sales and provide incentive for more harvest. The State wants the Federal Board to minimize commercial sale of handicraft made from bears before, not after, it jeopardizes bear populations.”

The Federal Board’s refusal to limit commercial sale creates problems for management biologists and enforcement officers because purchase of claws, teeth, skulls, and bones is prohibited under State law. The State argues that federal regulations violate sound management and create problems under the Endangered Species Act. Unrestricted sales may contribute to illegal harvest, overharvest, and waste of bears in Alaska, and in other states and countries, in the same manner that legal sales of elephant ivory contribute to the illegal harvest of elephants.

The State manages bear populations for sustained yield and provides subsistence use of bears throughout Alaska, including on federal lands. The State allows bear parts to be used in handicrafts that are not sold, but only allows the sale of bear fur in handicrafts and, in limited circumstances, allows intact bear hides to be sold under a permit. State authorized sales do not raise conservation concerns because the fur products are not extremely valuable and because intact hides can be tracked under a sealing and transfer permit system. Federal regulations authorize sales of extremely valuable bear parts without implementing a tracking system.

The State has also submitted a proposal for consideration at the Federal Board’s April 30-May 2, 2007, meeting to revise the definition of “skin, hide, pelt, or fur” to exclude claws in federal regulation and to limit the sale of handicraft articles made from allowable bear parts among federally-qualified subsistence users.

To learn more about this issue and view the State’s RFR recently denied by the Federal Board, visit the Subsistence Division Website page on this subject.

GMU13 Tier II Caribou Season to Close

The State GMU 13 Tier II caribou hunt closes at the end of the day February 4, according to a news release from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The harvest objective of 2000 bulls and 1000 cows is expected to be reached by the time of the closure.

According to the news release, the Nelchina herd has increased to the target range of 35,000 - 40,000 caribou since wolf control was implemented in the area.

Read the entire ADFG news release (PDF) >>>

Judge Refuses to Halt Wolf Control Program

An Alaska Superior Court judge has refused to halt the State's wolf control program, saying that there was no showing of immediate harm. The request came as part of yet another lawsuit by Defenders of Wildlife, The Alaska Wildlife Alliance and the Alaska chapter of the Sierra Club.

The judge ruled that wolf packs can regenerate, but if the State's plans were halted, harm would be done to the project.

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Aerial Wolf Shooting Ban to be on 2008 Ballot

In the here we go again department, initiative petition sponsors have collected enough signatures to put yet another aerial wolf shooting ban ballot measure before voters in the August 2008 elections, according to the Anchorage Daily News:

"According to co-sponsor Joel Bennett of Juneau, a former member of the Board of Game, the initiative is basically the same one Alaska voters passed twice before in 1996 and 2000 banning land-and-shoot hunting of wolves.

Both times, the Alaska Legislature gave the game board authority to develop the programs after the two-year initiatives had expired."

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

State Must Pay Friends of Animals Legal Fees

In a bizarre decision, an Anchorage superior court judge has decided that the state of Alaska must pay $95,000 in attorney fees for a recent Friends of Animals wolf control lawsuit.

The Anchorage Daily News reported "The state must pay $95,000 in attorney fees to Connecticut-based Friends of Animals, according to a decision by Anchorage Superior Court Judge Sharon Gleason last week. Friends of Animals was entitled to a full reimbursement because it had no financial incentives in filing the suit, said Kevin Saxby with the Department of Law."

In case your playbook on this is missing, this is for the 2003 lawsuit filed by FOA. One wonders if the missing financial incentives could be located by a casual look at FOA's promotional materials.

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Answers for Poor GMU 16B Moose Survival Emerging

Alaska Department of Fish and Game studies are confirming earlier suspicions that predator numbers are limiting moose numbers in Game Management Unit 16B north of Anchorage.

Alaska Wildlife News put it this way: "Following the fate of all the calves born to radiocollared mothers is providing some answers. Studies so far indicate very few calves are surviving their first year in Unit 16B, most likely because they are being killed by bears and wolves.

Fewer than 10 percent of the calves are surviving to five months old, Crouse said. There are a lot of calves being born. They're just not surviving very long.

Recruitment is barely keeping up with the death rate of older animals, he noted. "“The low density population appears to be due to predation, Kavalok concluded. Habitat is not limiting at all in the area. Everything is pointing towards predators."

Read the entire story >>>

Alaska 2007 Wolf Control Starts Slow

Alaska's wolf management program designed to boost prey numbers in various parts of the state has started slowly, but ADF&G officials report that most wolves are taken in late winter, so consider the pace about right.

Wolves are being taken by air or land and shoot to reduce wolf populations in five areas of Southcentral Alaska. State wildlife managers use selective wolf reduction programs to reduce the pressure on depressed prey populations to provide benefits for Alaskans.

Read Wolf control starting slow in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Proposals for Hunting Regulation Changes Available

Proposals for changes to the 2007/2008 Alaska Hunting Regulations to be considered at the Board of Game's March 2007 meeting are now available online from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

View the proposals (PDF file) >>>

Supreme Court Rejects Subsistence Lawsuit

The United States Supreme Court has rejected a lawsuit that claimed the federal government has favored rural residents of Alaska in an unconstitutional manner. The Anchorage Daily News reported, "The lawsuit was brought by a group of urban Alaska residents and several non-Alaska hunters and fishermen who objected to federal regulations stemming from the 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. The group lost in federal district and appeals courts and the Supreme Court rejected the appeal on Monday without comment."

Read the entire story in the Anchorage Daily News >>>

Idaho Also Wants to Manage Wolves

Alaska's state and federal governments have suppressed wolf populations in certain areas of the state for decades to improve prey species survival rates and benefits for hunters and the economy. The programs have been controversial since the 1970's, but have continued in fits and starts depending on Alaska's governors and their willingness to take the political heat.

Now, a northern tier US state with a recently burgeoning wolf population wants to do the same. Idaho's governor has announced plans to remove up to 550 wolves from the state, as soon as the wolf is delisted as an endangered species.

The Associated Press wrote the following (as reported in SignOnSanDiego.com) "Idaho's governor said Thursday he will support public hunts to kill all but 100 of the state's gray wolves after the federal government strips them of protection under the Endangered Species Act.

Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter told The Associated Press that he wants hunters to kill about 550 gray wolves. That would leave about 100 wolves, or 10 packs, according to a population estimate by state wildlife officials."

Read the entire story >>>