Wildlife Management & Research
Marine Mammals

The department's Marine Mammal Program has research programs to evaluate status, trend and health of certain marine mammals. The information is shared and sometimes collected jointly with the federal agencies that are responsible for managing marine mammals in Alaska. Over the past few decades, ADF&G biologists have worked on Steller sea lions to evaluate their abundance, targeted prey, nutrition and physiology. They also work on high profile species like beluga whales, bowhead whales, harbor seals, and ‘ice’ (i.e., bearded, ribbon, spotted, and ringed) seals. Some of these species are important for subsistence use by residents of Alaska’s coastal villages.