Caribou herds mix, especially during the fall and winter. The Central Arctic isn't the only Alaska herd in trouble. Arctic caribou are generally smaller in body size than caribou of the interior and Alaska Peninsula. FAIRBANKS — Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game will recommend cutting hunting opportunities for the Central Arctic Caribou Herd this year because of the herd’s rapid decrease in size. In 2008, the Teshekpuk Lake caribou herd had 64,107 animals and the Central Arctic caribou herd had 67,000.. By 2017, the Teshekpuk herd's numbers, whose calving grounds are in the region of the shallow Teshekpuk Lake, had declined to 41,000 animals. It was estimated that the initial count of the Central Herd of 70,000 animals contained about 5000 Porcupine caribou. The population objective for CAH is 28,000-32,000. The Western Arctic Caribou Herd Working Group (WG) includes subsistence users, other Alaskan hunters, reindeer herders, hunting guides, transporters and conservationists. An estimate will be available by the end of the year. It's not unusual for there to be rises and falls in the numbers of caribou in herds, but one biologist described the change for the Central Arctic herd as 'definitely a steep decline.' The Central Arctic population is estimated around 30,000. (Fairbanks) — A drop in the Central Arctic caribou herd from 50,000 animals three years ago to around 22,000 in 2016 may lead to shorter hunting seasons and smaller bag limits in 2017. (22,630 caribou). In July 2013, the Central Arctic Herd was estimated at 50,000 caribou. Agency staff, biologists and natural resource managers are advisory to the WG and provided information and support when needed or requested by the group. The size of another Alaska caribou herd has plummeted, leaving biologists with Alaska Department of Fish and Game concerned — and a bit flummoxed. study which will provide more insight into herd population dynamics in 2018. The Porcupine herd is estimated around 100,000 in population. Resident hunter success rate tends to be lower (44%) than nonresident In 2008, the Teshekpuk Lake caribou herd had 64,107 animals and the Central Arctic caribou herd had 67,000.. By 2017, the Teshekpuk herd's numbers, whose calving grounds are in the region of the shallow Teshekpuk Lake, had declined to 41,000 animals. Whether infrastructure has affected the herd’s population is unclear. In northern Alaska, the Central Arctic herd (CAH) of barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti) is known to migrate over large distances, but the herd’s seasonal distributions and migratory movements are not well documented. Hunting the Central Arctic caribou herd. Since it peaked in 2010 at 70,000 animals, the size of the Central Arctic herd has fallen 69 percent — to 50,000 in 2013 and 22,000 this year.