(Alaska) - Anglers who purchased an Alaska sport fishing license in 2020 may soon receive a copy of the 2020 Alaska Sport Fishing Survey — an annual mail survey conducted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) to assess where sport fishing occurs and how many fish are caught and kept by anglers in Alaska.

This week, ADF&G Division of Sport Fish will begin mailing the first wave of 2020 Alaska Sport Fishing Surveys. The survey is sent to approximately 47,000 randomly selected Alaska resident and nonresident households having a person who purchased a sport fishing license or who holds a permanent form of license in 2020. Conducted every year since 1977, the Alaska Sport Fishing Survey is a scientific survey that asks anglers to recall basic information on the number of days fished by members of their household and to report the number of fish caught and harvested by location fished in 2020.

Selected angler households receive a detailed survey booklet and a full-color fish identification index. Postage-paid envelopes are provided for returning the survey to ADF&G.

The information collected by the Alaska Sport Fishing Survey is used to produce detailed estimates of the total sport fishing days and the total number fish caught and kept by species and location. This information, combined with other “on-the ground” creel surveys and data gathering efforts are an essential part of the division’s mission to protect and improve Alaska’s sport fisheries.

Anglers who have questions about the survey or information requested, may contact 907-267-2280 or by e-mail at: dfg.dsf.publications@alaska.gov . Results of the 2020 Alaska Sport Fishing Survey will be available by fall 2021. Results from previous survey years can be found on the Alaska Sport Fishing Survey website: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/sf/sportfishingsurvey/.