Here is some interesting, scary and promising news on the Caribou populations of NE Canada, a place that has become dear to my heart after working up in NW Labrador Fall 2012.
Jaime
It was once our largest
caribou herd, and one of the biggest herds of large migratory mammals anywhere
in the world. The George River caribou of northern Quebec and Labrador
were surpassed in numbers perhaps only by Africa’s wildebeest. But now their
population is perilously small—about 4 percent of its peak. Although migratory
caribou, also called reindeer, are known for wide swings in population size,
encroachment of industrial development into their habitat puts these animals at
increasing risk.In the late 1940s, the
George River caribou herd may have declined to as few as 3,500 animals, and in
1958, a careful census estimated its numbers at 15,000. Historically, when the
herd reached these low points, many of the Innu, Cree, and Inuit people, who
lived in what is now northern Quebec and Labrador, died from starvation. But the
George River caribou herd rebounded with amazing vitality, reaching an
astonishing 775,000 animals by 1993, ranging over an area larger than
France.Today it is one of a
handful of large terrestrial mammal populations around the world that continues
the long-distance migration its ancestors carried out for millennia. In a single
year, some of these animals will travel thousands of kilometers across Canada’s
boreal forest between their wintering and calving
grounds.Member of the George River
caribou herd. Photo courtesy of Valerie Courtois, Canadian Boreal
Initiative.The current decline of the
herd is due in part to overgrazing of its summer range, resulting in higher
mortality from poor nutrition. By 2001, the herd was at 385,000 animals and
continuing to decrease, totaling 75,000 animals in 2010. The most recent survey
puts the herd size at fewer than 28,000.This steep drop forces us
to consider whether and how to address the low numbers. The populations tend to
rebound after the number of animals foraging in certain areas decreases and the
preferred foods grow back. But small numbers create a vulnerability to
conditions that could push the population over the edge. As mining and other
interests propose development of the same lands that the caribou use for calving
and other phases of their life cycle, the animals have fewer places to go. These
types of spatial limitations make them more vulnerable to predators. The
incursions also make it harder to find areas that are good for foraging and free
of mosquitoes and skin-burrowing warble flies that weaken calves and older
animals. Add to that the challenges caused by climate change, and a herd at low
population size could be at risk of endangerment.There is some good news for
the George River caribou herd, however. The government of Nunatsiavut in
northern Labrador recently endorsed a proposal to put a 14,000-square-kilometer
(3.5 million-acre) area of George River calving grounds off limits to mineral
exploration and other industrial development. Additional sections of the herd’s
calving grounds are already protected within the Torngat Mountains National Park
and within the George River and Pyramid Mountains interim protected areas. In
addition, the Inuit government territories of Nunavik and Nunatsiavut, where the
calving grounds are located, are pressing for even more land
protections.Participants of the
Innu-led George River summit. Photo courtesy of Valerie Courtois, Canadian
Boreal Initiative.The Innu of Quebec and
Labrador have maintained an intimate relationship with the George River caribou
for millennia. This summer, an Innu-led organization hosted a gathering of Innu
leaders, scientists, and advocates working in partnership with the Pew
Environment Group’s boreal protection efforts. They met in an ancient encampment
along the George River known as Mushuau-Nipi to discuss ways to blend modern
conservation and aboriginal knowledge to achieve healthy caribou
populations. Participants agreed that to ensure recovery of the herd, a
90,000-square-kilometer area in far northeastern Quebec and northwestern
Labrador must be protected, including the Nunatsiavut government’s proposed
no-development zone.Let us hope that the
leaders of the governments of Quebec and of Newfoundland and Labrador will
follow suit and make this region a model of balance between ecological needs and
industrial opportunities. The world will be watching to see whether the George
River caribou can rebound and continue on their timeless treks across the
wide-open spaces of Canada’s north.Jeff Wells is a science adviser for the
Pew Environment Group’s International Boreal
Conservation Campaign. He received a doctorate in ecology and
evolutionary biology from Cornell University, where he is a visiting
fellow.
