Prince of Wales - Somerset - Booth

In 1974, numbers of caribou of Prince of Wales and Somerset Islands were estimated at more than 6,500. By the early 1990s, hunters from Resolute Bay stopped hunting on the islands as caribou numbers had fallen drastically. At one time, Peary Caribou calved on the west side of the Boothia peninsula on the mainland, and were seen in their hundreds moving between Prince of Wales and Somerset islands, and some smaller islands in the area. The most recent surveys have found little evidence of Peary caribou remaining in this region, and local people have also reported few sightings. There are concerns that the Peary caribou in this region may be locally extirpated.