We do not believe the Mulchatna predator control decision was underpinned by the best available science, nor was it adequately vetted with the public prior to implementation.
Published: August 14, 2023We are retired wildlife scientists and managers living in Alaska, with varied backgrounds in state, federal and university organizations. We value Alaska’s hunting heritage and the importance of wildlife in providing a sustainable source of food and cultural values. We, and many Alaskans, also enjoy wildlife viewing and photography.
In the mid-1970s, the Mulchatna caribou herd numbered about 14,000, comparable to today’s herd, and was thought to have been low throughout the previous century. Beginning in the 1980s, the herd grew steadily to 200,000 animals by 1996, then rapidly declined to its current size, about 12,000. We know that caribou herds naturally go through significant fluctuations over time and that it can take many decades for forage resources to recover from overuse during population peaks.
Alaska’s 1994 “Intensive Management” law established the harvesting of meat from Alaska’s big game species as the management priority in most of the state. This law required the Board of Game to consider techniques for increasing game populations important for human consumption before adopting regulations that would reduce the harvest of these animals.
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