Excerpted From Alaska Department of Fish and Game Technical Paper No. 163, 1989

TRADITIONAL HUNTING SEASONS

Brown bear hunting in northwestern Alaska occurs predominantly in spring and fall with minor variation among study communities and among individual hunters. For instance, spring bear hunting begins earlier in inland areas than on coastal areas where winter conditions persist later into the year. Some Buckland hunters do not hunt bears in fall because the animals feed on sea mammal carcasses along the coast at this time. Other Buckland men, however, hunt bears in fall, but only in upriver areas.

For most northwestern Alaska residents, the fat is the most prized brown bear product. Therefore, local hunters, time their bear harvests to correspond with periods when bears are fat, and their meat is high quality. One Kiana elder, Jenny Jackson, said (NANA Region Elders' Conference 1983) "[Bears] are caught for the oil, especially for the people upriver -- even around here -- who do not have seals." Local subsistence hunters also consider the quality of the bear hide in timing their hunts, but usually the hide is in good condition at the same time a bear is fat.

Northwestern Alaska hunters harvest brown bears as soon as the animals emerge from their dens in spring. Bears are still fat at this time before gradually becoming lean. Most interviewed hunters said subsistence brown bear harvests occurred from the time the bears emerged from their dens until snowmobile travel was no longer possible. One Kotzebue Sound camp resident said brown bears are sometimes shot in June by seal hunters camped along the coast who desire fresh meat. In a previous Division research project (Thomas 1980) a Golovin resident said, "The season should open by April 1 as the bears are best when they first come out. The big ones way inland even come out in March sometimes."

Local residents also harvest brown bears in fall that have been feeding on berries, roots, fish, or caribou. These give the meat a good flavor. Many hunters prefer to take bears in late fall just before hibernation because the animals are fat at this time.

Northwestern Alaskans today rarely hunt brown bears in winter (November to early March) or summer (late June to mid-August). Hunters said summer bears are lean, and their hides are in poor shape. In addition, local people said bears are often dangerous this time of year because they are hungry so people avoid hunting them.

In the past, the northwestern Iñupiaq hunted denning bears in winter. Hunters knew from experience that bears in dens did not fight. Before firearms were available, a sleepy bear in a den was probably easier to kill with a spear than an alert bear roaming in search of food in summer or fall. Denning bears were probably also a good source of winter meat in years when other game was not available. Although some elders have hunted denning bears in past years, this practice is rare in northwestern Alaska today. . . .

SHARING

Sharing has always been integral part of hunting by northwestern Alaskans, valued by the Iñupiaq for survival reasons and out of respect for other community members. All interviewed hunters in this study shared their brown bear harvests in the same way that all wild foods are shared among the region's residents.

When a bear is killed, the carcass is usually divided among the hunting group. A hunter commonly keeps only a small amount of the bear meat and fat for his family's personal use. The rest is given to elders, widows, sick people, and neighbors in the community.

Brown bear is shared in many ways. A Shungnak man said, if a hunter camped along the river kills a bear, it is customary to give other campers along the river a piece of meat and fat. A Kotzebue hunter similarly said that when a bear is killed along the Noatak River, a piece of bear meat with fat is given to any boat that stops by. Another Kotzebue hunter, who does not care for bear meat, kills bears as opportunity allows giving it to sick people and to others who like the meat. In spring camps at Sisualik, hunters announce bear kills over CB radio, inviting everyone to come get fresh meat.

Brown bear meat and fat are also shared among villages with other regions of the state. For example, an elderly Norvik man received brown bear fat from a Shungnak woman. A Selawik woman brought bear fat to her sister in Anchorage who longed for Eskimo food.

Brown bear hides are not divided among the hunting group in the same way as the meat. Instead, hunters usually give the entire hide to the eldest hunter in the group, or to the person who shot the bear, or decide among themselves who should keep it. . . .