Large carnivores under assault in Alaska

In Alaska, gray wolves (Canis lupis), brown bears (Ursus arctos), and black bears (U. americanus) are managed in most of the state in ways intended to significantly reduce their abundance in the expectation of increasing hunter harvests of ungulates. To our knowledge, Alaska is unique in the world b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PLOS Biology
Main Authors: Ripple, William J., Miller, Sterling D., Schoen, John W., Rabinowitch, Sanford P.
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science 2019
Subjects:
Perspective
Ursus arctos
Alaska
Online Access:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6333325/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30645586
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000090
Description
Summary:In Alaska, gray wolves (Canis lupis), brown bears (Ursus arctos), and black bears (U. americanus) are managed in most of the state in ways intended to significantly reduce their abundance in the expectation of increasing hunter harvests of ungulates. To our knowledge, Alaska is unique in the world because this management priority is both widespread and mandated by state law. Large carnivore management in Alaska is a reversion to outdated management concepts and occurs without effective monitoring programs designed to scientifically evaluate impacts on predator populations. Large carnivore management in Alaska should be based on rigorous science including the status and trends of carnivore populations.

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