The Wrangell Ranger District will close the federal subsistence Chinook or king salmon fishery in the Stikine River between May 15 and June 30. It’s the ninth year in a row that the fishery has been closed.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the preseason forecast for king salmon in the Stikine is low, at 10,000 large kings – salmon greater than 28 inches in length.
For a subsistence harvest, the fishery needs between 14,000 and 28,000 large kings.
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game will also monitor the region to reduce the harvest of the species.
Though the king fishery overlaps with other federal subsistence fisheries, the king closure will not affect the others that begin on June 21.
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