Hunters in Prince William Sound Game Management Unit 6D are reminded to avoid shooting collared black bears, which are part of an Alaska Department of Fish and Game and Chugach National Forest cooperative study.
ADF&G said in an alert issued on Sept. 7 that the study is tracking the bears to learn more about home ranges, bear movement and habitat use.
Biologists placed radio telemetry collars on 20 black bears captured and released this summer in Prince William Sound. The collars are programmed to detach from the bears after three seasons of data collection. The bears were also fitted with ear tags that may be visible to hunters and wildlife viewers.
Declining black bear harvests in Prince William Sound have led to conservative measures, including shorter hunting seasons, a maximum allowable harvest of 200 ears, and managing the hunt by registration permit.
Black bear harvests in Unit 6D, which encompasses coastal areas surrounding Whittier, Valdez and Cordova, nearly tripled from the late 1990s to 2007, and have steadily declined since. Records show that harvests in regulatory years 2012 and 2013 fell 25 percent and 47 percent, respectively, below the previous regulatory year. Harvests in 2014 and 2015 continued to decline, although not as rapidly.
Cordova Area wildlife biologist Charlotte Westing said the cooperative project is the first step to improve understanding of the black bear population in Prince William Sound, and to make sense of what the harvest data is revealing.
While it is not illegal to harvest collared bears, the loss of research animals could impede biologists’ efforts to learn more about Unit 6D black bear populations. Hunters who do take a collared bear are asked to bring the collar to a department office within 30 days of the kill, at the time the hide and skull are presented for sealing.
The project is ongoing and expected to continue next summer.
Hunters are reminded that black bears may be hunting in Prince William Sound Game Management Unit 6D by registration permit only. Permits can be obtained online at http://hunt.alaska.gov or in person at an ADF&G office.
Successful hunters must report harvests within five days of taking a black bear.
Reports may be filed online at http://hunt.alaska.gov, in person at a department office, or by phone at 1-907-424-3215. The black bear hunting season in Unit 6D will close by emergency order if the department’s maximum allowable harvest of 200 bears is reached, or once 50 sows are taken.
For more information contact Westing at
1-907-424-3215, or charlotte.westing@alaska.gov
