Click on a herd to learn more
Adapted from: Government of NWT (2018)
Caribou have long been vital to the survival of Indigenous peoples in the north; the First Nations, Inuit, and Metis.
Read moreThreats
Reasons for the drop in caribou populations are complicated. There is still some disagreement among scientific and Indigenous experts as to which factors are most important.
Management
It is often said that forms of wildlife management are mostly not about managing the animals, but about managing people. Some Indigenous peoples find it disrespectful to even talk about managing caribou. In that spirit, this section is largely about managing human interventions that affect caribou.
News and resources
Recently added resources
Collaborative Research and Monitoring of Migratory Eastern Cape Churchill Caribou: Linking Wapusk National Park and an Indigenous Conservation Protected Area
A recorded presentation by several people (41:40 to end of presentation, 57:43 to end of questions) about the Cape Churchill herd and plans for its further conservation. The presentation description says, "The summer range of the Cape Churchill herd is almost completely protected by Wapusk National Park, however the winter range is largely unprotected, existing outside of the park boundaries. The development of a proposed Indigenous Protected Conservation Area (IPCA), led by the Manitoba Métis Federation is a priority goal of our group, with caribou being its focal species." The part of the presentation focused on caribou conservation starts at about 07:00.
(2022)
Estimating lichen biomass in forests and peatlands of northwestern Canada in a changing climate
This academic paper focuses on predicting the mass of lichen (an important food for caribou) under changing climate conditions. The papr finds that over ten years, the amount of lichen in areas sampled in the NWT's Mackenzie Valley has decreased, perhaps due to an increase in other kinds of plants as the region warms.
(2022)
Usage: Non-commercial with attribution Format: web
Climate change