The Alaska Department of Fish & Game has a new management strategy for mountain goat hunting. The season begins on August 1st.
Baranof Island will now be divided into 34 small hunt zones. ADF&G says this will allow them to manage at the subpopulation level and reduce the risk of overharvest.
Prior to this change, Baranof Island was divided into nine hunt zones. Since the zones were larger in size, quotas were being met after several goats were taken from a smaller area. In dividing Baranof Island into smaller zones, ADF&G said in a press release issued Friday (7-21-17) they hope to give hunters more opportunities “by allowing more remote zones to stay open, after zones with easier access close.”
ADF&G also issued an emergency order to close hunting in 13 of the 34 new zones on Monday, July 31st at 11:59 p.m, requiring hunters to hike further into the island to catch goats. They determined there were not enough goats to support a sustainable harvest as determined by surveys in 2015 and 2016.
For zone maps and more information, contact the Sitka area office at 747-5449.
ADF&G’s new zoning of game management unit 4. Thirteen of the thirty-four zones will be closed when the season opens on August 1st. (Map courtesy of ADF&G)
