The lynx trapping season in Game Management Units 7 and 15 on the Kenai Peninsula will remain closed for the 2017-2018 trapping year according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

A hunting season is scheduled to open in Units 7 and 16 from January 1 to February 1, 2018, Fish and Game said in a release. In Unit 14C, hunting and trapping seasons will remain closed for lynx.

“When snowshoe hare populations (the major food source for lynx) are low, trapping seasons are closed,” the release said. “As snowshoe hare populations increase, so do lynx numbers and trapping is allowed to resume.”

The snowshoe hare population peaks and declines, with the lynx population following a similiar pattern with a few years delay since their main food source becomes scarce.

“Currently, the cycle is at a point where snowshoe hares remain well below peak numbers following the most recent decline,” the release said. “This emergency order applies to all lands (state, federal, and private) currently open to trapping on the Kenai Peninsula and Unit 14C.”

According to the release, the emergency order meets the lynx management needs for 2017-2018.