As publishedAug 1-May 15 (Units 1-6); Aug 10-Mar 31 (Units 7,11,12,13,14A,14B,15,16,20 remainder,25); Aug 10-Apr 30 (Units 9,17-19,21-24,26); Sept 1-Mar 31 (Unit 14C); Aug 25-Mar 31 (Unit 20D, falconry-only Aug 10-24); no open season (Units 8,10)
Bundled with ruffed, sharp-tailed, and sooty grouse under the same statewide 'Grouse' table; no species-specific sub-limit for spruce grouse (sub-limits in the table apply only to ruffed/sharp-tailed). Units 8 and 10 have no open season. Full by-unit table: ADF&G 2026-2027 smgame.pdf p.141.
Governed by ADF&G Small Game Program's annual "Alaska Small Game Summary" (covers all 7 native grouse/ptarmigan species — ruffed, sharp-tailed, sooty, spruce grouse; rock, white-tailed, willow ptarmigan — in one hybrid document combining spring breeding-survey and summer brood-survey results with harvest expectations). Confirmed not yet published for 2026 as of a 2026-08-19 fresh check (the year-specific URL pattern small_game_status_2026_summary_report.pdf still returns 404, matching the Tier A registry's 2026-08-18 capture). No fixed calendar publish date exists, but both the 2024 and 2025 editions went live only after the early-August brood-survey fieldwork window closed, so publication is expected sometime in the coming weeks.