Lynx trapping remains closed

Lynx trapping will stay closed this year on the Kenai Peninsula as the wild cats and the prey they depend on move through a low phase of the population cycle. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced the closure July 1 in management units 15 and 7, which encompass the peninsula, as well as unit 14c, which covers the region east of Turnagain and Knik Arms. Despite the trapping closure, a lynx hunting season will open in units 15 and 7 from Jan. 1, 2019 to Feb. 15, 2019.

Snowshoe hare are such a staple of the lynx diet that lynx populations grow and shrink based on their abundance, with Fish and Wildlife biologists opening and closing trapping seasons accordingly. Presently hare are in the end of a low phase after probably reaching a peak in the winter of 2011-2012, according to Fish and Game’s emergency order.

“The cycles always vary and they vary in intensity, depending on a lot of vegetative and climate conditions,” said Fish and Game Kenai Area Biologist Jeff Selinger. “But generally speaking they’re 10 to 12 years, somewhere in there.”

Like moose, hare favor young, low-growing shrubs and fresh shoots of aspen, birch, and willow — the sort of vegetation that grows after a forest fire has cleared away dense older trees such as black spruce. In the previous cycle of lynx population, a lot of this “habitat turnover” occurred in the central peninsula, driven by fires including the 2007 Caribou Hills fire, Selinger said.

Lynx harvest on the Kenai Peninsula began climbing in the hunting seasons after 2007, according to charts presented to the Alaska Board of Game in their March 2015 meeting, reaching a record 456 in the 2011-2012 season and sustaining that level with 433 taken the next. However, the reported lynx harvest dropped to 118 in 2013-2014, and Fish and Game began the present closure the following year.

Selinger speculated that hare may grow abundant around areas burnt by the 2014 Funny River fire, and the lynx will likely follow.

“We’re starting to see more hares now,” Selinger said. “Usually you want to wait a year or two after the hares start coming back — not necessarily peaking, but they’re well established and on the upswing. Once they start climbing up, you give the lynx a year or two to start litter production and the survival of kits — that’ll go with the hare increase — and that will allow for the trapping season to open up.”

Reach Ben Boettger at bboettger@peninsulaclarion.com

More in News

The Homer Spit and the Kenai Mountains are photographed of Monday, May 17, 2021, as seen from West Hill in Homer, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Magnitude 5.4 earthquake strikes west of Homer

The earthquake occurred just after 7 a.m.

Homer Police Lt. Ryan Browning provides ‘youth and technology’ presentation Saturday Feb. 4 at Homer High School in Homer, Alaska. Photo provided by Christopher Kincaid.
Social media harms targeted in community meetings

Homer police visiting Central Peninsula to open dialogue about “Parenting in the Digital Age”

The intersection of the Kenai Spur and Sterling highways is seen on Saturday, May 7, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Peninsula Clarion file photo)
Borough to use federal funds for street safety

The funds were made available through the Safe Streets and Roads for All program

The cover of the March 20 State of Alaska Epidemiology Bulletin, “AKVDRS Homicide Victims Update — Alaska, 2011-2020” (Screenshot)
Department of Health: Homicides increased last decade

Homicides accounted for 19% of the violent deaths in Alaska from 2011-2020

Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion file
Kenai Animal Control Chief Jessica “JJ” Hendrickson plays with Torch the cat at the Kenai Animal Shelter on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022, in Kenai.
More than $11,000 in grants, donations given to Kenai animal shelter, senior center

The Kenai Animal Shelter received about $6,600 across multiple donations

Ninilchik fans celebrate the team's second straight Class 2A boys state basketball championship Saturday, March 18, 2023, at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo courtesy of Robin Moore)
Ninilchik boys win 2nd straight Class 2A state title

The Ninilchik boys basketball team defended their Class 2A state title with… Continue reading

Beams rust at the Kenai Multi-Purpose Facility on Monday, March 21, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai ice rink to close for summer

The condensation generated by use of the rink in the summer has caused the building’s steel beams to rust

Sidewalk chalk drawings cover the outside of corroding insulation at Soldotna Elementary School on Friday, Sept. 30, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Sidewalk chalk drawings cover the outside of corroding insulation at Soldotna Elementary School on Friday, Sept. 30, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Assembly accepts $50.4M for borough bond projects

$40 million will be used to complete a first round of school maintenance projects

U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan speaks before the Board of Game during their Southcentral meeting on Friday, March 17, 2023 at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Board of Game hears testimony on trapping setbacks

Public testimony on the proposals being considered will be accepted through Saturday

Most Read