With one weekend to go in the 2017 moose hunting season, numbers were approaching 100 as of Tuesday.
Ninety-five bull moose had been reported by hunters in the Petersburg-Wrangell management area, only seven of which have been confiscated due to noncompliance with local antler restrictions.
“It seems like a nice, lower number of illegals,” Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologist Rich Lowell said of the year.
Typically about 10 percent of the total harvest is deemed illegal by management officials, making this year’s slightly better than average.
“As we approach the end of the season, hunters should take into consideration that there are now almost 90 fewer moose out there with legal antler configurations. Examine the antlers closely,” Lowell advised, “before you pull the trigger.”
Bulls with two-by-two brow tines have made up a higher proportion of harvested specimens this year than is typically seen, which Lowell admitted was a bit surprising.
Otherwise, the season is already better than the average since 2009, which is at 92 bulls per year. Hunting along the Stikine River has improved since last year, which had seen only 16 taken by area hunters. Twenty-one have so far been harvested upriver.
The majority of moose have been taken on Kupreanof Island, with hunters reporting 41 so far. After the Stikine, Mitkof Island has seen the next-most success with 11. Hunters at Farragut and Thomas bays have reported six and four moose taken, respectively, with another four on Kuiu Island, three on Zarembo Island, two apiece on Wrangell Island and the nearby mainland and one on Woewodski Island.
The final day of the month-long season will be Sunday, October 15. All hunting permit holders are required to complete and submit a report, even if they did not participate in hunting. Failure to do so can result in ineligibility for permits next year. Reports can be filed with the nearest ADFG department offices in Wrangell, Petersburg, Douglas, Kake or Sitka, or online at http://hunt.alaska.gov.
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