By

James A. Fall and Judith M. Morris

Excerpted from Alaska Department of Fish and Game Technical Paper No. 158, November 1987.

RESOURCE HARVEST AND USE PATTERNS

SPECIES USED AND SEASONAL ROUND OF HARVESTING ACTIVITIES

The variety of wild resources harvested or used by Pilot Point, Ugashik, and Port Heiden residents during the 12 month study period from June 1986 to May 1987 includes 17 species of fish, four species of marine invertebrates, 14 species of land mammals and furbearers, three species of marine mammals, and 18 species of birds. On average, the 17 sampled households in Pilot Point used 19.2 different resources and harvested a mean of 16.7 kinds. At Ugashik, the five households used a mean of 18.0 resources and harvested an average of 17.4 types. Diet breadth was somewhat less diverse at Port Heiden, where the 37 households used a mean of 13.0 kinds of wild foods, and harvested a mean of 8.8 kinds.

In the 1980s, the residents of all three Alaska Peninsula communities followed a similar seasonal pattern of wild resource harvests(cf. Wright et al. 1985:66-69). The harvest year began with the break up of ice in the rivers and bays in March or April. Hunting of migratory waterfowl such as ducks, geese, and cranes occurred in April and May. Digging for clams and cockles was a popular activity during the low tides of spring. Also, households searched for the nests of gulls and terns to collect eggs. A few households hunted seals in spring, and some, especially at Port Heiden, combed the shore for beached marine mammals such as walrus. A few hunters took caribou before turning their attention to commercial salmon fishing. Fishing for Dolly Varden also occurred in spring.

In May, with the anticipated return of salmon to Bristol Bay drainages, including the Ugashik and Meshik river systems, households in all three communities focused on preparations for the approaching subsistence and commercial fishing seasons. King salmon were the first to arrive, usually in June. These were taken with set and drift gill nets by commercial fishermen and with subsistence set nets near all three communities. Commercial fishermen commonly retained some king salmon from their catches for home use. Commercial and subsistence fishing continued through July, concentrating on sockeyes with incidental harvests of king, chum, and pink salmon. Commercial fishermen from Port Heiden traveled north in their boats to fish for sockeyes in the Ugashik District. A few families from this community set subsistence nets in Bristol Bay to intercept the sockeye salmon which pass by the village towards spawning streams to the northeast.

Starting about late August, a smaller number of commercial fishermen took silver (coho) salmon in the Cinder River District or near Port Heiden. This activity continued into September, and was a major source of salmon for home use as well as for commercial sale. Silvers were also taken in subsistence set nets. Several resources were harvested incidentally during commercial salmon fishing, including Dolly Varden, flounder, cod, halibut, and harbor seal.

By mid July, households began to pick the first of the year's ripening berries. These were harvested in large quantities by whole families, by groups of women, or by individual women. In addition, waterfowl hunting and caribou hunting resumed in August. Caribou were desirable at this time of the year because they provided a change from a fish diet, the bulls were fat, and it was possible to use a skiff for transportation. A disadvantage was the difficulty of preserving the meat in warm weather. Therefore, sharing of caribou at this time of year was very common.

In September, caribou hunting continued along with fishing for silver salmon. A few men hunted moose during the "early" regulatory season in September. Waterfowl hunting was very popular at this time of year as ducks, geese, and cranes passed through the region. Porcupine and ptarmigan were also hunted in the fall. Several families fished from late September into October for spawning sockeye salmon, locally referred to as "fall" or "red" fish (and sometimes called "spawned-outs").

As the weather turned colder and lakes and rivers began to freeze, hunters again harvested caribou. Caribou hunting occurred throughout the winter and into spring, especially when the Northern Alaska Peninsula Herd passed by each community. Also during winter, households at Pilot Point and Ugashik jigged through the ice for smelt and landlocked salmon. Some hunters searched for moose during the December open season, while small game such as porcupine, hare, and ptarmigan were also taken. In addition, trapping of furbearers such as fox, land otter, beaver, lynx, and wolverine occurred, most commonly among households in Pilot Point and Ugashik. These winter activities continued until the warmer weather and lengthening days of spring brought a new round of resource harvesting activities to these Alaska Peninsula communities.

LEVELS OF PARTICIPATION IN THE USE AND HARVEST OF WILD RESOURCES

The use of wild fish and game resources was universal among households in all three study communities, with 100 percent of the 69 sampled households in Pilot Point, Ugashik, and Port Heiden using at least one kind of wild food during the 12 month study period in 1986-1987. Participation in hunting, fishing, and gathering activities was also very common. All of the sampled households in the three communities had members who attempted to harvest wild foods in 1986-1987. Furthermore, 100 percent of the 17 interviewed households in Pilot Point harvested a least one kind of wild fish, game, or plant resource during the study year, as did 100 percent of the five households in Ugashik, and 97.3 percent of the 37 Port Heiden households.

In Pilot Point, the most commonly used resource categories during the study period were salmon and land mammals, both used by 100 percent of the sampled households. In addition, 94.1 percent used at least one species of bird, 94.1 percent used fish other than salmon, 82.4 percent used furbearers, 76.5 percent used plants, 64.7 percent used marine invertebrates, and 52.9 percent used marine mammal products. The ten most commonly used wild resources at Pilot Point were silver (coho) salmon (100 percent used), king salmon (94.1 percent), caribou (94.1 percent), sockeye salmon (88.2 percent), smelt (76.5 percent), berries (76.5 percent), red fox (70.6 percent), landlocked salmon (70.6 percent), ptarmigan (70.6 percent), and mallards (64.7 percent)

All of the five sampled households at Ugashik used at least one species of salmon, non-salmon fish, land mammal, and bird during the 1986-1987 study year. In addition, 80 percent used furbearers, and 40 percent used plants. None of the Ugashik households used marine mammal products or marine invertebrates during this 12 month period. In terms of specific resources, all of the households used king salmon, silver salmon, and pintails, while 80 percent used sockeye salmon, caribou, red fox, ptarmigan, gull eggs, and duck eggs.

Like the households at Pilot Point, all five Ugashik households hunted, fished, or gathered wild foods during the study year. Members of households from the entire sample fished for salmon and for non-salmon fish. Also, 80 percent of the households hunted land mammals, attempted to harvest furbearers, and hunted birds, while 40 percent sought wild plants. No Ugashik households attempted to procure marine mammals or marine invertebrates in 1986-1987. All of the households contained members who fished for king salmon and silver salmon during the study year. Also, 80 percent of the households attempted to harvest sockeye salmon, caribou, red fox, ptarmigan, cranes, pintails, gull eggs, and duck eggs.

For the 37 households sampled at Port Heiden, land mammals was the most commonly used resource category. All 37 households used at least one kind of land mammal in the 12 month study period in 1986-1987. Salmon, along with fish other than salmon, were the next most widely used resource categories, with 91.9 percent of the households using at least one species from these groups, followed by marine invertebrates (86.5 percent), birds (86.5 percent), plants (75.7 percent), marine mammals (32.4 percent), and furbearers (24.3 percent). Caribou was the wild resource most widely used by Port Heiden households in 1986-1987. All 37 households used caribou meat during this 12 month study period. Other commonly used resources included cockles (used by 86.5 percent of the sample), silver salmon (83.8 percent), Dolly Varden (75.7 percent), berries (75.7 percent), sockeye salmon (73 percent), ptarmigan (73 percent), gull eggs (59.5 percent), smelt (48.6 percent), and mallards (48.6 percent).

More households in Port Heiden attempted to harvest marine invertebrates (83.8 percent) than any other resource category. Fishing for salmon was the next most popular harvesting activity from June 1986 through May 1987, with 81.1 percent of the sample attempting to harvest at least one salmon species for home use. In addition, 75.7 percent of the households hunted birds, 70.3 percent searched for wild plants, 70.3 percent hunted land mammals, 62.2 percent fished for species other than salmon, 29.7 percent tried to harvest furbearers, and 13.5 percent attempted to harvest marine mammals. The most commonly sought resource was cockles, with 83.8 percent of the households attempting to harvest this marine invertebrate. Other resources which many Port Heiden households attempted to harvest during the study period included silver salmon (73.0 percent), caribou (70.3 percent), berries (70.3 percent), gull eggs (62.2 percent), ptarmigan (59.5 percent), king salmon (51.4 percent), Dolly Varden (51.4 percent), sockeye salmon (35.1 percent), and tern eggs (29.7 percent).

GIVING AND RECEIVING WILD RESOURCES

The sharing of wild resources was very common in all three communities during the study period. At Pilot Point, 94.1 percent of the sample of 17 households received fish, game, or wild plants from harvesters in other households, while 88.2 percent of these households shared their harvests with others. Pilot Point households received a mean of 4.2 kinds of wild foods, and gave away a mean of 4.5 kinds. Land mammals was the resource category received by the most households in Pilot Point, 76.5 percent. The next two most widely received resource categories in this community were fish other than salmon and marine mammal products, with 35.3 percent of the sample obtaining at least one resource from each of these categories from other households. In addition, 29.4 received marine invertebrates, 23.5 percent received birds, 17.6 percent received salmon, 11.8 percent received furbearers, and 11.8 percent received plants. The most commonly received resource was caribou (58.8 percent), followed by moose (47.1 percent), harbor seal (35.3 percent), and smelt (23.5 percent). More households gave away salmon (64.7 percent of the sample) than any other resource category at Pilot Point. This was followed by fish other than salmon (58.8 percent), game (58.8 percent), birds (35.3 percent), marine invertebrates (29.4 percent), plants (23.5 percent), and furbearers (5.9 percent). In 1986-1987, 52.9 percent of the sampled households in Pilot Point gave away caribou, more than any other resource. Other frequently shared resources were smelt (47.1 percent giving to other households), king salmon (41.2 percent), and sockeye salmon (29.4 percent).

At Ugashik, 60.0 percent of the small sample of year-round households received wild foods from other households during the study year. The mean number of resources received was .8, probably reflecting the finding that all five households were high harvesters and therefore more frequently gave their own harvests to others, usually in other communities such as Pilot Point, than were given wild foods. This explanation is consistent with the finding that 100 percent of the Ugashik sample gave away portions of their wild resource harvests to other households. These five households gave away a mean of 5.8 kinds of wild foods, the most of the three study communities. The only two resource categories received by Ugashik households were land mammals (40.0 percent) and birds (40.0 percent), with moose the only specific resource received by more than one household (40.0 percent). On the other hand, 80.0 percent of the Ugashik sample gave away salmon and land mammals, and 40.0 percent gave away non-salmon fish and birds. One household (20.0 percent) gave away a furbearer product. The most commonly shared resource was caribou, with 80.0 percent of the sample (all the successful harvesters) giving away caribou meat, followed by silver salmon (60.0 percent).

Receiving and sharing wild foods was also very common in Port Heiden during the study period. Of the sample of 37 households, 91.9 percent received at least one type of wild food in 1986-1987, while 78.4 percent gave away fish, game, or wild plants to other households. Port Heiden households received a mean of 6.3 types of wild resources, more than the other two study communities, and gave away 5.0 kinds. The most widely received resource category at Port Heiden was non-salmon fish (70.3 percent receiving), followed by land mammals (67.6 percent), salmon (64.9 percent), birds (56.8 percent), marine invertebrates (37.8 percent), marine mammals (29.1 percent), plants (24.3 percent), and furbearers (2.7 percent). More households received gifts of caribou meat (62.2 percent) than any other resource. Other commonly received wild resources were sockeye salmon (48.6 percent), smelt (45.9 percent), cockles (37.8 percent), Dolly Varden (35.1 percent), and mallards (35.1 percent). Within this group, the receiving of smelt is particularly noteworthy as these were not available locally and few Port Heiden households harvested this resource (only 2.7 percent). Port Heiden households received smelt from harvesters living further north on the Alaska Peninsula, most frequently Pilot Point, Egegik, Naknek, and South Naknek. The most frequently shared resource category at Port Heiden during the study period was salmon (56.8 percent), followed by land mammals (51.4 percent), marine invertebrates (51.4 percent), fish other than salmon (45.9 percent), birds (45.9 percent), plants (40.5 percent), and marine mammals (8.1 percent). No Port Heiden households gave away furbearers in 1986-1987. Over half the households (51.4 percent) gave away caribou meat and harvests of cockles, more than any other resource. Other commonly shared wild foods were silver salmon (45.9 percent giving away), berries (40.5 percent), ptarmigan (32.4 percent), and gull eggs (32.4 percent).