Wrangell to get new trooper, moose season begins

Wrangell will be getting a new Alaska Wildlife Trooper (AWT) shortly, the Department of Public Safety confirmed last week.

Residents may recognize Trooper Scott Bjork, who was transferred to Juneau in January. AWT said Bjork will be posted here temporarily, both for the moose season and for transitioning in a new trooper. The office did not have details on who will be assigned to Wrangell but said the change could be expected within the next few weeks.

During the Legislature’s budget battles in the spring, the Department of of Public Safety planned to cut the Wrangell position as a cost-saving measure. Public support for maintaining the position followed that announcement, and in May the department reversed its decision.

The moose season opened on Sept. 15 and has so far progressed slowly. In the first three days, 13 moose were taken in Unit 3. Week-one figures were unavailable by Tuesday’s press time, as Alaska Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologist Rich Lowell explained numbers were still coming in. A mild winter has contributed to a healthy population, which should make for happy hunters.

“That typically bodes well for overwinter survival for deer as well as moose,” Lowell explained.

Conducting alpine aerial observation last year, population numbers appear to have doubled, though Lowell added that may just be due to the new methodology. Previously, populations were measured using pellet group transects, which were indirect reckonings and can be weather-sensitive.

“It’s a good kind of a long-term measure of deer population trends,,” Lowell said of the latter. However, it is not very accurate for making year-to-year estimations.

A definite increase in deer population has been noted on Kupreanof and Zarembo islands, however, and last year’s moose harvest was the second-best on record, with 104 taken in the Wrangell-Petersburg area.

As with last year, some hunters have fallen afoul of ADFG brow tine regulations, which specify a bull moose must have a spike or forked antler, a 50-inch-or-greater antler spread, three or more brow tines on one antler; or two or more brow tines on both antlers. Two of the first three moose taken on the Stikine River did not comply with local antler regulations.

All hunting permit holders are reminded to complete and submit a report, even if they did not participate in hunting. Reports can be filed at the nearest ADFG department offices in Wrangell, Petersburg, Douglas, Kake or Sitka, or online at http://hunt.alaska.gov. Failure to do so can result in ineligibility for permits next year.