Federal board gives subsistence hunters 10 more days to hunt moose in the Tetlin refuge area

Subsistence hunters in the Upper Tanana region get 10 more days to hunt moose in and around Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge, after the Federal Subsistence Board reopened the hunt at the request of the Northway Village Council. The extra season runs from Friday, Sept. 25, through Oct. 4.

The hunt, FM1203, is open only to federally qualified subsistence users, meaning rural residents who are eligible to hunt under federal subsistence rules. It covers the part of Game Management Unit 12 inside the Tetlin refuge, plus lands in Wrangell-St. Elias National Preserve north and east of the Pickerel Lake Winter Trail, from the Canadian border to Pickerel Lake.

The board said hunters in the area have struggled in recent years to get the moose they need, as falls have grown warmer and the moose breeding season, or rut, has started later. It said the extension raises no conservation concern, pointing to low harvest rates and enough bulls for the number of cows.

The village council had asked for more time in late September. Because the season was already closing, the board approved the request by email, and federal staff set the 10 days to begin once the board had acted.

The board has made other short-notice moose decisions this month. It added two days to a hunt in Unit 11 on Sept. 14, fewer than the 10 requested, and rejected a Unit 13 request on Sept. 16.

Hunters with questions can call the federal Office of Subsistence Management at 907-786-3888 or email [email protected].