News Release

Federal Seasons for Subsistence Dall’s Sheep Hunts to Remain Closed in Portions of GMUs 23 and in 26

A ram works its way across steep terrain

NPS Photo / Claire Abendroth

News Release Date: July 1, 2024

Contact: Raime  Fronstin, 907-412-0480

Kotzebue, Alaska –The Superintendent of Western Arctic National Parklands announces that the seasons for the Federal Subsistence Dall’s Sheep hunts within portions of Game Management Units (GMUs) 23 and 26A will remain closed for the regulatory year beginning July 1, 2024 and ending on June 30, 2025. The specific hunt areas affected by this closure are the DeLong Mountains hunt area of Game Management Units 23 and 26A, the Baird Mountains hunt area of Game Management Unit 23, and Unit 23 Remainder (Schwatka Mountains) except for that portion within Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve (GAAR). Continuation of the Federal sheep seasons closure is necessary to minimize further threat to the viability of the population as mandated under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.

Sheep populations in the areas affected by this closure declined by up to 70 percent between 2011 and 2014 with a continued decline in adult sheep during 2015 and 2016. Lamb ratios in 2016 were higher than in 2014 and 2015, but recruitment was low. Results from the July 2019 survey indicate no change in population size since the decline and no indication of increase has been seen since. The sheep populations in these areas continue to remain too low for sustainable harvest. The Dall’s sheep in the Baird Mountains of Unit 23 are at the northwestern margin of their range in Alaska and because of this, extreme weather events affect their populations more than sheep populations in areas with more abundant habitat and stable range conditions.

The State and Federal sheep hunts were closed in 2014 by Emergency Order and Special Action in response to the conservation concerns. The State adopted regulations in 2015 closing all resident and nonresident sheep hunting under their regulations in GMUs 23 and 26A west of the Etivluk River drainage until such time as the sheep population has sufficiently recovered and new regulations are adopted. The Federal hunts in these areas were again closed by Special Action in 2015.

The Federal Subsistence Board adopted new regulations in April 2016 permitting more flexibility in the Federal hunt management by allowing for an unscheduled season in these areas when the sheep population recovers, at the discretion of the Parkland’s Superintendent. The NPS will continue to conduct regular sheep surveys in the western Baird Mountains (until the population recovers) and the DeLong Mountains but expects that it will take several more years for the sheep population to recover to the point in which harvest can resume. We are currently planning for our next survey to occur in July 2024, weather and funding dependent. In addition, we have recently secured funding to enhance NPS sheep survey accuracy for estimating such small populations. Furthermore, the State is doing further studies on the possible reasons for decline.

For more information you can email Dr. Raime Fronstin @ [e-mail] or call the Kotzebue Park Service Office at (907)-442-3890.