In March 2023 the Alaska Board of Game approved and directed the department to implement a revised Intensive Management Program to increase abundance of the Mulchatna caribou herd (MCH), which has been closed to hunting since fall 2021.
This herd peaked at approximately 200,000 animals in 1997 and by 2019 it declined to just over 13,000 animals (~94% decline). It remains at this lower level of abundance today.
During the peak, this herd provided up to 4,770 caribou for local communities, and resident and nonresident hunters. Recognizing that there are 48 communities within the traditional range of this once expansive herd, the public requested that the department and board work to rebuild the herd and restore this source of food.
Caribou survival can be affected by disease, predation, harvest, and food availability and quality. The Board of Game reasoned that addressing predation is something that can be addressed. Wolf control by the public, using aerial methods authorized by the Board of Game, has been active during winter since 2012.
While approved areas for wolf control have expanded, the herd size decreased to its current low level and calf summer survival has been poor. Both bears and wolves have been identified by research as important factors causing low calf survival and potentially limiting the ability of the herd to increase.
The board revised the existing wolf control program to include bears and wolves specifically on the caribou calving grounds. Reducing the number of bears and wolves was a logical step in adaptive management to determine if summer calf survival can be improved. While there are other factors to consider with the herds’ decline (e.g., habitat capability, disease), predator control is an immediate tool the department can use to attempt to reverse the herds’ decline.
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