Nikiski man cited after troopers say moose antlers were sub-legal

A Nikiski man is facing a misdemeanor summons after Alaska Wildlife Troopers, a division of the Alaska Department of Public Safety, said he shot a bull moose that did not meet the legal antler requirements for Game Management Unit 15A on the central Kenai Peninsula. Nathan Rogers, 26, of Nikiski, was contacted by troopers after someone reported him, according to a trooper dispatch posted by the Department of Public Safety.

Troopers seized Rogers' rifle and the moose antlers as evidence, and the meat was donated to a charity, the dispatch said, standard practice when an animal tied to an alleged violation is taken into custody so the meat does not go to waste.

Troopers say they received a report on Sept. 23, 2025, from a person who saw a hunter salvaging what appeared to be a sub-legal bull moose near Lower Salamatof Road in Nikiski. The moose Rogers had harvested measured 45 3/8 inches across the antlers and had two brow tines on each side, troopers said.

Rogers was issued a misdemeanor summons for violating hunting seasons and bag limits for moose in Unit 15. The dispatch, numbered AK25097018, was posted by the Department of Public Safety on Nov. 4, 2025, more than six weeks after the incident, and does not explain the delay or detail the specific antler-restriction regulation for Unit 15A.

Nikiski is a Kenai Peninsula Borough community of about 4,662 people, according to the State of Alaska DCRA Community Database Online. The broader Kenai Peninsula Borough had roughly 61,327 residents in its most recent certified count, a population that includes many subsistence and sport hunters who depend on the fall moose season.

It is not clear from the dispatch whether Rogers has entered a plea or whether a court has set a date for proceedings. The dispatch does not list a fine amount or any additional charges beyond the hunting seasons and bag limits violation.