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Blue Lake, Medvejie Lake, and the Southern Half of the Katlian River Watersheds on Baranof Island in Unit 4 are Closed to the Harvest of Mountain Goat
The Sitka District Ranger, under authority delegated by the Federal Subsistence Board, is taking action to close the watersheds of Blue Lake, Medvejie Lake and the southern half of the Katlian River to the harvest of mountain goats. The closure will be effective at 12:01 a.m., Thursday, August 1, 2013 and will remain in effect through Sunday, September 29, 2013. A public meeting will be held in Sitka in September, date and location to be determined, to discuss the possibility of extending the closure through the end of the season. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) has issued a closure in the same watersheds, effective August 1, 2013 to the close of the season on December 31, 2013.
An overall decline in the goat population has occurred since the extreme winter weather of 2006-07. Survey data from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) has indicated a 21% decline in the multi-year average and a 42% decline since the high census in 2004. The population estimate in October 2012 was 23% lower than 2011. In addition, the proportion of kids in the population declined from 18% in 2011 to 10% in 2012. From 1976-2000 the average age of nannies harvested was 3 years old. In 2001, it was 4.88 years old and in 2010 it was 6.10 years old. The trend indicates that too many nannies that comprise the reproductive component of the population are being harvested. Hunt effort and success has been concentrated in the principal watersheds of Blue Lake –Medvejie Lake, Katlian River, and Nakwasina River. Furthermore, approximately 66% of Baranof Island’s goat population occurs from the Green Lake watershed northward, which concentrates hunters in a smaller geographical area. ADF&G has made an effort to inform hunters about the effects of harvesting nannies that precedes 1992, and a concerted effort was undertaken in 2008 to persuade hunters to forego nanny harvest. The 2006-2010 seasons have produced an average nanny harvest of 41.56% with a low of 30% in 2007 and a high of 61% in the 2009 season. In the 2011 season, the nanny harvest slightly declined to 39% and in 2012, dramatically dropped to 11%. Recent surveys by ADF&G confirmed three over-winter mortalities of collared goats as well as only one kid per 8-9 adult goats which is lower than expected.
A public hearing to discuss the 2012 Baranof Mountain Goat Management Plan was held on July 16, 2012 in Sitka, Alaska. The ability to teleconference was provided so residents of other affected communities in Unit 4 could participate. Members of the public who attended this hearing expressed support for conservation of mountain goats in the Sitka area through closures guided by the 2012 management plan. The 2013 management plan is similar to 2012 with distinct male and female goat harvest caps on Baranof Island. As harvest caps in each of the sub-management areas are reached, those areas would be closed to mountain goat harvest.
The remainder of Baranof Island will remain open for goat hunting with the exception of the temporary closure of the Blue Lake, Medvejie Lake, and the South Fork Katlian River watersheds. As in prior seasons, nanny harvest will be more restrictive than billy harvest when applied to the point total. If and when point totals are met, special actions will be issued to close additional watersheds and zones to prevent over harvest of mountain goats.
A map and description of the closed areas are available from the Sitka Ranger District Office and the Sitka area office of ADF&G. Information on Federal subsistence management special actions for the Tongass National Forest can be found at http://www.fs.usda.gov/news/tongass/news-events. For additional information, contact Sitka Ranger District Subsistence Biologist Justin Koller at 907-747-4297, Perry Edwards at 907-747-4220 or by email at jpkoller@xxxxxxxxx or pedwards@xxxxxxxxx.
Information on the Federal Subsistence Management Program can be found at http://alaska.fws.gov/asm/home.html
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