OPINION: Mulchatna predator control is worth a try

Since March, two commentaries and a letter to the editor in the Anchorage Daily News have criticized the Department of Fish and Game’s bear reduction project in Southwest Alaska: Bill Sherwonit’s commentary in March, Bryan Reiley’s commentary in August, and Rick Steiner’s letter, also in August.

Reiley was a biologist for eight months with the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game and only spent May–September of 2022 in Dillingham. His education focused on birds, and he had no prior wildlife management experience in Alaska. He participated in 2022 fieldwork, but there was no bear removal program then. This brief engagement with the area, people and culture of GMU 17/18 makes Reiley’s claim as a former area biologist little more than a technicality.

In light of the aforementioned opinions, the following points need to be made:

Since 2017, salmon runs to the Nushagak and Wood rivers and adjacent drainages have reached their highest levels in history. Escapement numbers have been up to a million more fish than required to sustain the runs. These huge runs fed the large and vigorously reproducing brown bear population in the GMU 17 uplands. It’s been obvious to local residents that bear populations increased quickly. Sows often bring three and even four cubs through the winter — an uncommon phenomenon in normal conditions.

The Mulchatna caribou herd, once numbering over 200,000, has sunk to fewer than 12,000 animals scattered over a huge area. Despite extensive restrictions and closures on hunting and vigorous wolf control, the herd numbers remain low. The goal is a herd of 30,000-80,000 animals. To do bear population estimates and range condition studies takes years, and with increasing bear abundance, the small number of caribou could dwindle further in that time. The bears prey heavily on calving caribou in May and June before the salmon arrive and can have a significant impact in those short weeks of calving. The removal occurs only on the active calving areas, a tiny portion of the herd’s range.

Many residents of Bristol Bay and the Kuskokwim support bear removal and have made requests to greatly expand the control area. Some have wanted more predator control since the mid-1990s. The Nushagak ADFG Advisory Committee , the Bristol Bay Federal Subsistence Regional Advisory Council (BBRAC), and at least one Native organization wrote letters to continue the program. More support came when all 10 Federal RACs in the state met in March.

The mandate to, “protect and conserve the area’s fish and wildlife populations and breeding systems” does include controlling excess predators that threaten subsistence food sources, particularly when the prey population is severely depleted.

Consider the human aspects of subsistence and the cost of living in this area. With very low salmon prices in 2023 hurting our economy, greatly increased costs of living, and modest moose populations, protecting the struggling caribou herds is essential. Folks are feeling even more desperate in the Kuskokwim region, where salmon fisheries have been closed.

None of us like to have so many bears killed. But this is an indicator that there are more bears than ever imagined. Predator control is a necessary tool to be carefully conducted in dire times. This project is unlikely to do long-term harm to the bears. I believe continuing the predator reduction for at least one more year is justified. A surgical removal program at key calving times and areas could give the Mulchatna caribou the little boost they need to begin a natural unaided recovery.

Dan Dunaway is a 70-year Alaskan, 1977 University of Alaska graduate, and 36-year resident of Dillingham who has served on the Nushagak ADFG Advisory Committee and for many years on the Bristol Bay Federal Subsistence Regional Advisory Council. He retired in 2002 from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game after 22 years service as a shellfish and sport fish biologist.

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