Caribou and You
Caribou need large, intact ecosystems to survive. Canadians also rely on the services, including fresh air, clean water, and foods, that these ecosystems provide. By saving caribou’s remaining habitat in Canada’s Boreal forests and Northern tundra, we are protecting our health, as well as a way of life for Indigenous peoples. Healthy ecosystems can also slow the effects of climate change.
Caribou have been a fundamental part of our northern ecosystems for more than 2 million years. They have shaped and been shaped by the harsh climates and landscapes and are built for survival where few others can live. Predators like wolves, bears, wolverines, and even humans have relied on the regular appearance of caribou as a source of food for thousands of years, many adapting their hunting patterns to follow caribou migrations.
Threats
Canada’s caribou are a resilient species, having survived multiple ice ages, natural events like forest fires, and periods of overhunting. However, even a resilient species cannot adapt overnight to environmental changes that directly undermine their survival strategies.
Caribou are vulnerable to extensive fragmentation and destruction of their habitat, which exposes them to predators and decreases their access to food. As the climate changes, increasing natural pressures like fires and pests may also result in more young forests and other impacts to their habitat.
Various caribou herds are in trouble right now – having been diminished to the point where they are not able to increase or even maintain the size of their herds. Updated caribou management plans and investment in their conservation are needed to help prevent further loss of caribou in Canada.
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