Alaska Fish & Wildlife News
December 2020

Rats in Alaska – Keeping Anchorage Rat Free
Invasive Rats & Native Critters

By Riley Woodford

Anchorage may be the largest rat-free port in the Northern Hemisphere. The city is a gateway into Alaska, so when Fish and Game received a picture from Anchorage of a dead rodent in a snap trap, biologists took note.

Wildlife biologist Joe Meehan wanted the body, but the homeowner had tossed it. The picture provided enough clues that Meehan and his colleagues judged it to be a House Mouse (Mus musculus) a non-native mouse originally from Eurasia.

A population of rats has ...   Rats in Alaska Article Continued

ADF&G: $1.5 Million in Federal Grants to Support
New Hunter Access Projects Across Alaska

By Jared Keeling

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s (ADF&G) Hunter Access Grant Program is excited to announce the results of our 2020 application period – three new projects distributed throughout Alaska have been selected to receive $1.5 million in federal funds. Project partners will contribute just over a half-million dollars in non-federal funds as match toward these projects located in Fairbanks, Chugach State Park, and Oliver Inlet State Marine Park near Juneau.

The ...   New Hunter Access Article Continued

Tracking in Snow
Taking pictures of Tracks in Snow

By Mike Taras, Jen Curl and Riley Woodford

Signs of wildlife abound in Alaska and tracks are one of the best indications of our wild and sometimes secretive neighbors. Snow can provide outstanding tracking. Getting a good picture of a set of tracks in snow is immensely helpful later when you want to consult a guidebook or knowledgeable source regarding the track-maker and what it was doing.

For many folks, Fish and Game wildlife education specialist Mike Taras is the go-to guy for track advice. A recent Zoom presentation on tracking ...   Tracking in Snow Article Continued