A judge on Wednesday allowed Alaska wildlife authorities to resume shooting black and brown bears — including from helicopters — as part of a state plan intended to help recover the Mulchatna caribou herd. Superior Court Judge Adolf Zeman denied a temporary halt sought by two conservation groups, finding they did not show the state lacked a reasonable basis for the program.
The timing is significant: calving season for the Mulchatna herd in southwest Alaska is about to begin, and newborn calves are particularly vulnerable to predation by bears and wolves. State officials say removing bears during calving is a key tool to boost calf survival and support herd recovery. The Mulchatna herd once numbered as many as 190,000 animals and historically supplied up to roughly 4,770 caribou annually for subsistence hunters across dozens of communities. It declined starting in the late 1990s and early 2000s, was estimated at about 13,000 animals in 2019 and roughly 16,280 last year. Hunting has been closed since 2021.
Conservation groups — the Alaska Wildlife Alliance and the Center for Biological Diversity — challenged the program in court and sought to pause it while their lawsuit proceeds. They contend the Board of Game reauthorized aerial removal without sufficient data on bear population size or sustainability. The groups say the state killed 180 bears between 2023 and 2024, mostly brown bears, and reported another 11 the following year. The Alaska Wildlife Alliance has also reported incidents in 2023 when nearly 100 bears, including about 20 cubs, were shot from the air in a short period.
Cooper Freeman, Alaska director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said the organizations want the Mulchatna herd to recover but questioned whether broad, unrestrained killing of bears is the right approach and urged wildlife management based on rigorous science.
State attorneys and agencies defended the plan, saying officials evaluated bear numbers and other evidence before adopting the program. Alaska estimates about 100,000 black bears and 30,000 brown bears statewide. In court filings the state said the herd “has persisted at low numbers but started showing a positive response since 2023, when bear removal during calving seasons began.” The Alaska Department of Law, which represents the Board of Game and the Department of Fish and Game, said allowing the program to continue through calving “makes sense in light of the scientific record,” according to department spokesperson Sam Curtis.
The program has faced ongoing legal and administrative challenges. A judge last year criticized how emergency regulations were adopted and found the state lacked data on bear sustainability; those emergency rules were later struck down. The Board of Game reauthorized the program in July following a renewed public process. State biologists’ 2020 assessment pointed to disease and limited food as the main drivers of the Mulchatna decline and did not list bear predation among the top three causes. Critics warn that big-game management can be swayed by public demand rather than habitat capacity, risking unsustainable policies.
Attorneys for the conservation groups say they are reviewing the judge’s decision and will consider all available options for appeal or further action.