Historically low numbers of adult razor clams have prompted the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to close the personal and sport use clam fishery on eastside Cook Inlet beaches through the end of 2017.
Fish and Game issued an emergency order on Dec. 29 closing the clam fishery in Cook Inlet from the mouth of the Kenai River to the southernmost tip of the Homer Spit.
Carol Kerkvliet is a biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in Homer. She says the decision to close the fishery comes after a steady reduction in the number of mature razor clams.
"What we’ve seen since 2011 is a progressive decline in adult sized razor clams on these beaches," said Kerkvliet.
Biologists aren’t sure why razor clam populations are declining in Cook Inlet. Kerkvliet says it’s likely due to a combination of poor spawning success and high mortality of adult clams.
Eastside Cook Inlet beaches have been closed to clamming since 2015. Based on Fish and Game surveys conducted last year, there are signs the population may be rebounding.
"This past year, we are detecting increased numbers of juvenile razor clams. So that’s an encouraging sign," she said.
Above average numbers of immature razor clams were recorded on Cook Inlet beaches in 2016, including 850,000 juveniles in Ninilchik and 2.5 million juveniles in north Clam Gulch.
Despite this increase, Kerkvliet says it’s important to give the populations time to recover.
"We want to protect these juveniles so they can grow and spawn to sustain these razor clam populations," she said.
Fish and Game biologists have tracked clam population sizes on Cook Inlet beaches since 1969. They plan to resurvey razor clam abundance in Ninilchik and Clam Gulch this spring.