Wildlife
RSSAlaska News covers wildlife issues including marine mammal entanglements, bear safety, hunting regulations, and federal management of fish and game.
Alaska Zoo female bear moved to solitary enclosure after June attack; ADF&G release came 32 days later
A female brown bear at the Alaska Zoo was moved to solitary housing after a June 14 fight with a male bear; both animals recovered, but the state did not announce it publicly until July 16.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Brown bear injures hiker on Bear Valley trail above south Anchorage
A brown bear injured a hiker on a social trail above Bear Valley in south Anchorage on Saturday, prompting Fish and Game to post warning signs and urge hikers to travel in groups and carry bear spray.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago2 min read
North Slope bearded seal hunters asked to save jaws for 2026 study
North Slope Borough is asking bearded seal hunters to save jaws and heads from their catch this year for a state study on seal population genetics.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Alaska Zoo black bear feedings run daily through September 1
Alaska Zoo offers daily black bear feedings at 2:30 p.m. through September 1 for $30 per person, capped at 10 participants, though state wildlife officials warn against feeding bears in the wild.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Glacier Bay cuts eastern Lower Bay speed limit to 13 knots to protect feeding humpbacks
Glacier Bay National Park cut the speed limit to 13 knots on the eastern Lower Bay starting Friday to protect humpback whales actively feeding there.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Alaska Zoo female brown bear transferred to solitary enclosure after June attack
Alaska Zoo moved a female brown bear to solitary housing after a June 14 fight with a male bear, sparking a petition for an independent review of the zoo's animal integration practices.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
As federal wetland protections recede, Anchorage rewrites its own rules
After the Supreme Court pulled federal protection off more than half the nation's wetlands, their fate now falls to states and cities — and no state has more wetlands than Alaska.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
A NOAA crew cut a tangled humpback free at Endicott Arm
A juvenile humpback got tangled at the mouth of Endicott Arm. A NOAA crew freed it from a small boat with knives on poles — work only 94 people nationwide are cleared to do.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
How Kodiak lives safely among the world's biggest bears
Kodiak shares its island with the biggest bears on Earth — up to 1,300 pounds — and a free Saturday Q&A teaches the skills that keep maulings remarkably rare.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A new cruise terminal could rise in a humpback whale feeding ground near Juneau
The feds want comment on a Douglas Island cruise terminal whose two years of pile driving could "harass" 10 marine mammal species in a humpback feeding ground.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Strangers on the Water Free a Tangled Humpback
A young humpback got snared in crab-pot lines near Juneau — and a relay of passing boat crews kept watch until rescuers could cut it loose.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Pebble Mine's challenge to EPA reaches an Anchorage court Thursday.
Pebble vs. EPA hits Anchorage federal court Thursday. The salmon, the State of Alaska, and a major mineral deposit all want a say.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
Katmai bear cams return as Brooks River season begins
Katmai's bear cams go live Tuesday at 11 a.m. Alaska time, streaming brown bears fishing at Brooks Falls as salmon season begins.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Federal regulators renew HEX authorization for Cook Inlet marine-mammal harassment
Federal regulators renewed HEX Operating's permit to incidentally harass marine mammals during natural gas work in Cook Inlet through September 2027.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Federal rule renames Alaska subsistence bird-harvest region as Ahtna Territory
Federal wildlife officials renamed the Upper Copper River subsistence bird-harvest region as Ahtna Territory and aligned spring and summer harvest dates to match local Indigenous Knowledge.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
NOAA says dead fin whale brought to Seward showed trauma consistent with vessel strike
A pregnant fin whale found dead on a cruise ship's bow in Seward showed injuries consistent with a vessel strike, NOAA said, though the responsible ship remains unclear.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
NOAA says dead pregnant fin whale arrived in Seward on cruise ship bow
NOAA confirmed the Seward whale was a 61-foot pregnant fin whale found on a cruise ship's bow. A necropsy is underway, and federal law enforcement is investigating.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Alaska Board of Game proposes hunting, trapping rules for Ambler Road
Alaska Board of Game is proposing hunting and trapping restrictions in Game Management Units 23 and 24 if the 211-mile Ambler Road is built across the Brooks Range. Public hearings are July 22-23 in Fairbanks.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A federal expansion of hunting and fishing access on national wildlife refuges would land most heavily in Alaska
They're making changes to national wildlife refuges? We got a lot of them.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min read
Fish and Wildlife lost quarter of staff, faces questions on refuge management
Fish and Wildlife Service lost a quarter of its staff, including 530 biologists. Nine percent of refuges now lack on-ground management. Alaska holds 16 refuges covering three-quarters of the system's acreage, but the agency has not disclosed which Alaska refuges are shuttered or how many Alaska staff were cut.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min read
Don't eat the clams: ADF&G can't tell Juneau harvesters which beaches are safe — because nobody's regularly testing
Don't clam up
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min read
Fish and Wildlife Service seeks $5M to cut energy permit times in half
Fish and Wildlife Service is asking Congress for $5.1 million to cut endangered species review times from 30 to 14 days, a change that could speed up Alaska energy and mineral projects that have faced years of federal delays.
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min read
Anchorage Assembly to consider letting licensed wildlife operators use air guns in city limits
Anchorage may let licensed wildlife operators use air guns in city limits — sorry, attic squirrels.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Begich bill to expand commerce in Alaska sea otter handicrafts gets first congressional hearing
A new bill in Congress that asks, what otter we do?
by Alaska News3mo ago2 min read
ADF&G warns moose attacks peak as calving season continues through June
Alaska Department of Fish and Game warns moose attacks peak through June as cows defend newborn calves, injuring more Alaskans annually than bears do.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Tick found after Flattop hike shows Alaska's changing tick reality
A tick found on a pet after a Flattop hike near Anchorage has prompted veterinarians to remind residents that non-native ticks are arriving in Alaska and pet owners should check for them after outdoor activity.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read
Kenai River king salmon fishery closed through mid-August 2026
Kenai River king salmon fishing closed May 1 through August 15, 2026 under emergency order. Third consecutive year of full closure due to conservation concerns. Other species fishing allowed with single-hook lures only. Nearby Kasilof River open to limited hatchery king salmon fishing.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Eagle River king salmon fishery closed for 2026 season
Alaska closed all king salmon sport fishing in Eagle River through July 13, 2026 due to weak fish populations and unmet escapement goals.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
House Finance adds feral cat spay-neuter provisions to invasive species bill
The Alaska House Finance Committee voted 9-2 to amend an invasive species management bill to include provisions allowing spaying and neutering of feral and community cats without landowner permission, despite objections that the additions were unrelated to the bill's original purpose.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Alaska News Roundup: Gas pipeline tax fight, Point Thomson trade-off, and McNeil River access debate
This episode covers the week's major Alaska stories: a gas pipeline tax bill that added oil tax increases, the Point Thomson condensate trade-off for pipeline gas, Mount Edgecumbe enrollment crisis, and McNeil River bear sanctuary access proposals.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago3 min read
Alaska Opens First Mountain Lion Hunting Season in Southeast
Alaska has approved its first mountain lion hunting season in Southeast Alaska, effective August 1, as the species expands north from British Columbia.
by Alaska News4mo ago1 min readAlaska residents share bear and moose encounters as spring wildlife season begins
by Alaska News5mo ago2 min readWildlife refuge bill faces pushback over jet ski ban, firearm restrictions
House Resources Committee heard testimony on HB 321, which would redesignate state wildlife areas and ban personal watercraft in Kachemak Bay.
by Alaska Newsadded 5mo ago3 min read
