2025-2026 Harvest Quota Announced for Winter Federal Subsistence Moose Hunt in a Portion of Unit 11

COPPER CENTER, ALASKA - The moose harvest quota for the winter federal subsistence hunt in a portion of Unit 11 was announced on September 30, 2025, by Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve Acting Superintendent Joshua Scott, the designated federal manager for the hunt. For the 2025-26 hunt, the quota is 5 bull moose and is based on the best available science on the size and health of the moose population.

NPS data collected on moose populations during fall-2023 from an adjacent area in Unit 11 shows the numbers of adult moose have declined roughly 40% while bull:cow ratios have declined roughly 30% since a survey in 2013. Due to conservation concerns, the harvest quota for bull moose will remain at 5 for the 2025-26 season. Moose harvest levels have been between zero and two per year for the last decade during this hunt.

The hunt will open on November 20 and close on January 20. The hunt may close earlier if the quota is reached sooner. Hunters must report successful hunts within three days of harvesting an animal or at the end of the season if unsuccessful. For recorded information about whether the hunt is open or closed, call (907) 822-7203.

Eligibility for the hunt is limited to rural residents of Units 11, 13A, 13B, 13C and 13D, and Chickaloon. To hunt in the national park, hunters must also live in one of the park's resident zone communities. The resident zone communities with customary and traditional use determination for moose in the hunt area are Chistochina, Chitina, Copper Center, Gakona, Gakona Junction, Glennallen, Gulkana, Kenny Lake, Lower Tonsina, McCarthy, Mentasta Lake, Slana, Tazlina, and Tonsina. The annual harvest limit for moose in Unit 11 is one, regardless of permit, hunt area, or hunt dates. Hunters who harvested a moose during the fall season are not eligible to harvest a moose during the winter season.

The hunt area is federal public lands in Unit 11 that lie south and east of a line running along the north bank of the Chitina River, the north and west banks of the Nizina River, and the west bank of West Fork of the Nizina River, continuing along the western edge of the West Fork Glacier to the summit of Regal Mountain. The permit is not valid on Native Corporation or other non-federal land within the hunt area. There is no direct road access to this area. Much of the hunt area is designated as national park, and the use of aircraft to access the national park for subsistence hunting is not allowed. Maps of the hunt area are available with each permit issued.

For more information, contact Amber Cohen, Cultural Anthropologist, at (907) 822-7284 or e-mail us.