Wolf hunting and trapping will close at midnight Saturday for the Prince of Wales Island-area Game Management Unit 2. According to an announcement Tuesday from the U.S. Forest Service, the harvest quota of 46 wolves is expected to be met by that day.
The Forest Service and Alaska Department of Fish and Game officials work together to manage the POW wolf hunt. The annual quota is the total number of wolves allowed to be hunted or trapped in the area through federal subsistence rules and state hunting licenses.
The quota is 20 percent of the estimated wolf population in the game management area, which was 231 as of last fall.
As of Monday, 34 wolves had been reported killed in Unit 2. Managers anticipate that by Saturday, hunters and trappers with gear still in the field will reach or surpass the quota.