Unit 08Z, Alaska

Highly varied: coastal tidal mudflats and saltmarsh (Susitna Flats), extensive boreal spruce-birch forest interspersed with black spruce muskeg and willow-alder drainages across the lowland flats, transitioning to subalpine birch scrub and ultimately high alpine tundra and glaciated peaks in the upper Chulitna and Tokositna watersheds near Denali State Park. The Susitna River corridor is braided glacial channels flanked by dense willow and cottonwood riparian thickets. Elevation ranges from sea level tidal flats to peaks exceeding 9,000 ft on the eastern Alaska Range foothills. The Susitna Flats coastal zone is notably flat and wet — hunting in fall requires rubber boots or waders and tolerance for saturated ground.

Access is split by geography. The coastal Susitna Flats and Trading Bay areas (Unit 16B south) are accessed by floatplane to one of numerous lakes on the flats, or by boat across Cook Inlet from Anchorage, Kenai, or Homer — roughly 30–50 miles of open water. A rough 4WD trail from the Parks Highway reaches the Little Susitna River corridor near Point MacKenzie, but interior flats require float. The Yentna and Skwentna river drainages (Unit 16B north and 16A) are reached by floatplane or jet boat up the Susitna from Willow; a winter road on the Iditarod Trail provides snow machine access Nov–Mar. The upper Chulitna and Tokositna drainages (Dall sheep country) are accessible by floatplane to gravel bars or by foot from the Parks Highway (Denali State Park trailheads) — these areas are physically adjacent to the road system but require significant backcountry travel. No significant road access exists to the western 16B flats. Public lands: Susitna Flats State Game Refuge (~300,000 ac), Trading Bay State Game Refuge (~165,000 ac), Redoubt Bay Critical Habitat Area (~171,500 ac / 268 sq mi), Denali State Park (eastern 16A border), and large blocks of undesignated state land. Approximately 90–95% of the unit is state or federal public land.

Three primary habitat zones: (1) Coastal tidal flats — Carex sedge meadows, Sphagnum sphagnum marsh, Salicornia tidal marsh, and extensive mudflat exposed at low tide on the Susitna and Trading Bay deltas. Critical staging habitat for 100,000+ waterfowl and sandhill cranes in spring. (2) Lowland boreal — closed-canopy white spruce and paper birch interspersed with black spruce muskegs, extensive willow-alder riparian thickets along Yentna, Skwentna, and Kichatna rivers — prime moose thermal and feeding habitat. (3) Alpine — subalpine meadows and talus above ~3,000 ft in the Chulitna and Tokositna headwaters, with high-relief terrain supporting Dall sheep. The unit lies within the Cook Inlet lowland physiographic region; soils are predominantly poorly-drained silt-loam derived from glaciofluvial deposition.

Moose in 16B follow a classic lowland–highland migration: summer in upland willows and birch, dropping to coastal flats and river bottomlands for fall rut (Sept–Oct) and winter. The 2022 population survey estimated approximately 6,789 ±1,178 total moose in Unit 16B, down roughly 30% from a 2018 peak of 10,000 ±1,665 — primarily attributed to a string of severe winters (2019–2022) and elevated predation on calves. The Intensive Management program (authorized 2004, reauthorized 2022 for 9 years) targets wolf and bear predation: 78 wolves were removed via same-day-airborne during RY 2023; brown bear baiting in a 960 sq mi southern 16B area was reauthorized in 2022 but bear removal has not yet reached reduction goals. RY 2024 reported 110 bulls harvested (estimated 143 total with unreported), well below the 310–600 harvest objective, indicating the population remains in recovery. Bull:cow ratio was 25:100 in 2022, down from 60:100 in 2018; calf:cow ratio was 10:100 in 2022. Dall sheep inhabit the upper Chulitna and Tokositna alpine zones in moderate numbers. Caribou (Rainy Pass resident herd) are present in the high country near the Unit 16/19 border but at low huntable densities following a population crash — treat as incidental opportunity only. Wolves are actively controlled but still present throughout; wolverine numbers are stable.

Nonresident moose hunters must complete a Nonresident Moose Hunter Orientation course before hunting; proof must be carried afield. Nonresident brown bear and sheep hunters must be accompanied by a licensed guide. The Unit 16 Predation Control Area covers all non-federal lands in mainland 16B and western 16A (11,105 sq mi total); same-day-airborne hunting of wolves was reopened in January 2024 across the entire predation control area. Same-day-airborne hunting of black bears is permitted Oct 1 – Aug 9. Susitna Flats State Game Refuge: ORVs prohibited except ATVs/snow machines <1,000 lbs GVW on refuge Nov 9 – Mar 31 with 12 inches snow cover; aircraft landing prohibited Apr 1 – May 15 in the High Density Spring Waterfowl Staging Area. Trading Bay State Game Refuge and Redoubt Bay Critical Habitat Area have identical ORV restrictions. The Intensive Management Plan (5 AAC 92.122) was reauthorized by the Board of Game in 2022 for 9 years. RY 2026–2027 regulations: Unit 16A moose — one qualifying bull (spike-fork or 50-inch or 3+ brow tines) Aug 10–Sept 25 (HT); Unit 16B moose — one qualifying bull Aug 20–Sept 25 (HT, residents and nonresidents), with Tier II resident drawing permits (TM565/567/569) Dec 15 – Feb 28. Brown bear 16A and remainder 16B: two bears every regulatory year, no closed season. Unit 16 is within Southcentral Region; managing office is Palmer (907) 746-6300.