Legal moose quarters hang after the hunt. Photo courtesy of Peter White
Rich Lowell, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Area Management Biologist, says that those seven did not comply with the existing antler restrictions. And he says it’s cause for concern.
Typically, illegal kills make up about 10 percent of the season harvest but the first week of this season saw twice that. If the trend continues, Lowell says the state might have to close portions of the hunt early.
The antler restrictions are in place to protect younger bulls of a breeding age.
Most of the kills in the first week were on the Stikine River. Twelve moose were taken there. Nine were killed on Mitkof Island, seven on Kupreanof Island, Five in the Thomas Bay area, one at Virginia Lake near Wrangell and one on Woewodski Island.
If the hunt does continue, it looks like it could be a high harvest year. Thirty-five moose in the first week matches the record year of 2009 when hunters totaled 109 bull moose.
Last year, hunters neared that record with 106 moose.
Wrangell hunters Dave Brown, James Leslie and Jeffry Davidson pose with the legal moose Davidson killed up the Stikine River this year. Photo courtesy of Peter White
The seven illegal moose were seized by the state when they were checked in Wrangell and Petersburg. They were distributed to local charities.
The season runs September 15 through October 15. It includes several units: the Unit 1-B mainland, the Unit 3 islands, and the extreme southern portion of Unit 1-C, also on the mainland.
