The hunting season for Kenai Peninsula brown bear in Units 7 and 15 (when combined, they both make up the entire Kenai Peninsula) closed by Emergency Order on Friday, September 30 for both residents and non-residents.
Brown bear hunting on the Kenai Peninsula is managed under a registration permit with a maximum of 50–60 total human-caused brown bear mortalities per calendar year, of which 8–12 may be adult females on a consecutive 3-year average, including the current calendar year. This management strategy matches the Game Board’s recommendations adopted in 2015. Over the past three calendar years, there were 80, 40, and 52 reported total human-caused mortalities of brown bears of which 17, 8, and 13 were identified as adult females. The 3-year average surpassed 12 adult female brown bears during a calendar year in 2022, and the 3-year average for total mortality is currently 58 bears. This is the first time that the season has closed by Emergency Order since the current management strategy has been in place.
“Based on historical trends, brown bear harvest typically continues throughout October. Closing the season at this point may allow additional reproductive aged female bears to remain in the population for future years,” said Regional Supervisor Cynthia Wardlow. “Providing hunting opportunities and managing a sustainable brown bear population are both important on the Kenai Peninsula.”
Registration permits for Kenai Peninsula brown bear season are issued by regulatory year, with planned season dates of September 1- May 31. This emergency order closes the brown bear season only for the remainder of the 2022 calendar year and will expire on December 31, 2022, reopening the season on January 1, 2023. Permit holders for the 2022-2023 regulatory year planning to hunt for brown bears on the Kenai Peninsula in the spring should keep their current permit.
NOTE: A 2023 locking tag will be required for both residents and non-residents when the season re-opens.
