One year prior, public testimony in Huslia convinced the federal advisory body, the Western Interior Regional Advisory Council, that a March federal hunt opportunity was needed because of the absence of a state-sanctioned season. As a result, the Federal Subsistence Board let the Refuge Manager decide whether to have a hunt. With the availability of recent moose survey data, Refuge staff consulted with the Council and with the appropriate State advisory committees for the Koyukuk River and Middle Yukon River areas. Refuge staff also held lengthy discussions with Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game staff. Koyukuk NWR and Bureau of Land Management decided together to allow the hunt.

This is the first time that in-season authority for federal subsistence wildlife regulations was delegated to a Refuge Manager by the Federal Subsistence Board. Agency personnel and advisory committee chairs agreed that the written record of decision process worked in the public's best interest.

For further information please contact Geoff Beyersdorf, the Refuge's Subsistence Coordinator, at 907-656-1231.