Groups seek emergency closure to lynx trapping season in Chugach State Park
** Correction:
We previously stated that in the early 1980s on the Kenai Peninsula, trappers removed 65% of the lynx population in one year. This was incorrect, Parker et. al 1983 was referring to 65% of the lynx in his study population on Cape Breton Island, Canada, not lynx on the Kenai Peninsula. However, lynx susceptibility to trapping is still a concern. “in the intensively trapped Kenai National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, Bailey et al. (1986) found that trapping accounted for 44-86% of annual mortality and estimated that trappers may have removed as much as 80% of the lynx population in their study area.” Scientific Basis for Conserving Forest Carnivores by Keith Aubry, page 82.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 25, 2020
Contacts:
Nicole Schmitt, Director, Alaska Wildlife Alliance, nicole@akwildlife.org, 907-917-9453
Kneeland Taylor, attorney, kneelandtaylor@ak.net, 907-276-6219
ANCHORAGE, AK – On September 21st Alaska Wildlife Alliance, Friends of Chugach State Park, and Anchorage attorney Kneeland Taylor filed a petition to close the upcoming lynx hunting and trapping season in Chugach State Park.
The lynx hunting and trapping seasons have been closed in Chugach State Park since 2014 due to the low lynx population. Earlier this summer, however, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) issued an emergency order to open lynx hunting and trapping in the third largest state park in the country, stating only that “observations suggest that the lynx population has increased to a level that could support hunting and trapping.”
ADF&G’s order opens a trapping season in the popular state park from January 1 through February 15, 2021 and open a hunting season from November 10, 2020- February 28, 2021. There will be no limit on the numbers of lynx a single trapper may take, and there will be a hunting bag limit of two.
Organizations opposed to the hunting and trapping season cite the unilateral process ADF&G employed to open the season. The order opening the season was not issued by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), as is mandated in Chugach State Park statutes, and copies of the emergency opening order were not provided to the Department of Natural Resources, the Division of Park, the Superintendent of Chugach State Park, or the Chugach State Park Citizens Advisory Committee. ADF&G acted unilaterally, and illegally, to open a lynx trapping season without the consultation and approval of the Department of Natural Resources.
Having Chugach State Park and DNR involved in this decision is paramount to ensuring that the widely used Park maintains its founding purposes. One of the Park purposes is to promote the display of wildlife, and while recreation is also listed as a Park purpose, trapping is not mentioned as a purpose for which the Park was established.
Quotes from petitioners:
“From the public process, wildlife management, and public safety perspectives, there are many factors that need attention before this season could be authorized,” says Nicole Schmitt, Director of Alaska Wildlife Alliance. “We’ve seen multiple scientific publications confirming that lynx are highly susceptible to trapping, and that lynx populations in Alaska are prone to overexploitation. Lynx and snowshoe hare populations are closely tied. If lynx populations are rising because there are a lot of hares to eat, and we kill an unlimited number of lynx, what is the impact to hare populations and vegetation in the park? How will agencies ensure that there isn’t an overharvest, and what defines an overharvest? As a Park user myself, I also have questions about how this season impacts the safety for people and dogs who ski, snow machine, and snowshoe during the proposed opening. These are all questions that need to at least be vetted by DNR, and hopefully Parks staff and the public before a season is opened.”
“The lynx that inhabit the Park belong to all Alaskans and the exploitation of this public resource for the benefit of a handful of trappers and hunters is not in the public interest,” says Anchorage attorney Kneeland Taylor, a petitioner on the closure. “Thousands of local residents and visitors have enjoyed the opportunity to see these rarely seen animals.”
If you care about this issue, email your concerns to:
Parks Director Ricky Gease : ricky.gease@alaska.gov
ADF&G Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang: douglas.vincent-lang@alaska.gov
Commissioner of DNR Corri Feige: corri.feige@alaska.gov
Chugach Park Superintendent Kurt Hensel :kurt.hensel@alaska.gov
