scholarly journals Can woodland caribou and the forest industry coexist: The Ontario scene

Rangifer ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerald D. Racey ◽  
K. Abraham ◽  
W. R. Darby ◽  
H. R. Timmermann ◽  
Q. Day
Keyword(s):  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Forest Industry ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Timber Management ◽  
Winter Habitat ◽  
Management Guidelines

Ontario is in the process of developing a strategy to improve the likelihood of woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) and the forest industry coexisting in the province. This strategy is described within a set of proposed Timber Management Guidelines for the Provision of Woodland Caribou Habitat. The proposed guidelines advocate managing for large blocks of suitable winter habitat across caribou range, large cutovers to regenerate caribou winter habitat and the protection of traditional calving areas and travel routes. Summer habitat will be provided by the resulting mosaic. The forest industry can provide a sustainable supply of woodland caribou habitat that was traditionally maintained by wildfire.

scholarly journals Examining the role of terrestrial lichen transplants in restoring woodland caribou winter habitat

2017 ◽  
Vol 93 (03) ◽  
pp. 204-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean B. Rapai ◽  
Duncan McColl ◽  
Richard Troy McMullin
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Restoration ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Winter Habitat ◽  
Transplant Program ◽  
Restoration Techniques ◽  
Terrestrial Lichen

The development of habitat restoration techniques for restoring critical woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) winter habitat will play an important role in meeting the management thresholds in woodland caribou recovery plans. The goal is to restore disturbed environments within critical winter habitat for the declining woodland caribou. Woodland caribou are diet specialists, utilizing lichen-rich habitat for forage during winter months. Cladonia sub-genus Cladina is the most frequently eaten species during this time. Herein, we provide: 1) A review of previously used methods for transplanting Cladonia sub-genus Cladina and their feasibility in restoring woodland caribou winter habitat; 2) A stepby- step protocol on how to carry out a terrestrial lichen transplant program (using Cladonia sub-genus Cladina and C. uncialis); and, 3) An evaluation of our protocol through the establishment of a case study in northern British Columbia. Our results indicate that transplanting C. sub-genus Cladina fragments is the most efficient technique for transplanting terrestrial lichen communities, but transplanting lichen ‘patches’ or ‘mats’ may also be effective.

Scale-dependent microhabitat selection by threatened mountain caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in cedar–hemlock forests during winter

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 1082-1092 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Serrouya ◽  
Bruce N. McLellan ◽  
John P. Flaa
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Radio Telemetry ◽  
Coniferous Forests ◽  
Microhabitat Selection ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Forest Stands ◽  
Winter Habitat ◽  
Conservation Measures

Mountain caribou, an endangered ecotype of woodland caribou ( Rangifer tarandus caribou Gmelin, 1788), live in late-successional coniferous forests where they depend largely on arboreal lichens as winter forage. While radio-telemetry has been used to understand caribou habitat selection patterns at broad scales among and within populations, here we use snow-trailing in old cedar–hemlock forests between 1992 and 2003 to study three finer scales of habitat selection: (1) forest stands used for foraging from available forest stands (among-stand selection), (2) foraging paths within selected stands relative to random paths within those same stands (within-stand selection), and (3) feeding items along foraging paths. Relative to stands that were available on the landscape, caribou selected stands with more windthrown trees and standing snags. Within stands, caribou selected paths that had more live trees, snags with branches and bark, and trees with larger diameters. All of these habitat attributes facilitate access to arboreal lichen. Of the potential forage items encountered along foraging paths, caribou preferred to feed on windthrown trees, lichen litterfall and falsebox ( Paxistima myrsinites (Pursh.) Raf.). Our results go beyond telemetry studies by revealing that not all old forests are of equal value to mountain caribou. Prioritization among old stands will help refine conservation measures, as will silvicultural systems that incorporate key habitat attributes to maintain winter habitat in low-elevation cedar–hemlock ecosystems.

Fascioloides magna (Trematoda) in woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) of the George River herd, Labrador

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 475-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Murray W. Lankester ◽  
Stu Luttich
Keyword(s):  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Liver Weight ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Intensity Of Infection ◽  
Fascioloides Magna ◽  
The Mean ◽  
George River ◽  
Liver Flukes

Fifty-eight percent of woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) of the George River herd, Labrador, were infected with up to 110 giant American liver flukes (Fascioloides magna). The prevalence and intensity of infection did not differ between 2 sampling years or between sexes. Prevalence tended to increase with age while intensity did not differ among age groups. Liver weight increased with intensity of infection but condition, as measured by the mean depth of back fat, did not differ between infected and uninfected animals. Caribou must be considered a suitable host of F. magna since the growth and maturation of the parasite and lesions produced in Rangifer resemble those in deer and wapiti.

IN VITRO ISOLATION AND CULTIVATION OF A BABESIA FROM AN AMERICAN WOODLAND CARIBOU (RANGIFER TARANDUS CARIBOU)

1994 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia J. Holman ◽  
Kris Petrini ◽  
Jack Rhyan ◽  
Q. G. Wagner
Keyword(s):  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Woodland Caribou

Managing wolves (Canis lupus) to recover threatened woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in Alberta

2014 ◽  
Vol 92 (12) ◽  
pp. 1029-1037 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dave Hervieux ◽  
Mark Hebblewhite ◽  
Dave Stepnisky ◽  
Michelle Bacon ◽  
Stan Boutin
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Apparent Competition ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Population Increase ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Wolf Population ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Population Reduction ◽  
Reduction Program

Across Canada, woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou (Gmelin, 1788)) populations are declining because of human-induced changes to food webs that are resulting in apparent competition-induced increases in predator-caused caribou mortality. We tested the hypothesis that wolf (Canis lupus L., 1758) population reduction could reverse declines in a woodland caribou population following a BACI (before-after-control-impact) design conducted over a 12-year period in west-central Alberta, Canada. We monitored annual survival for 172 adult female caribou and calf recruitment from 2000 through 2012 and conducted a provincial government delivered wolf population reduction program annually during the winters of 2005–2006 to 2012 (inclusive) in an area centered on the Little Smoky range. Wolf removal translated to a 4.6% increase in mean population growth rate of the Little Smoky population mostly through improvements in calf recruitment. In contrast, the Red Rock Prairie Creek control population exhibited a 4.7% decline. Although the wolf population reduction program appeared to stabilize the Little Smoky population, it did not lead to population increase, however, with λ remaining approximately equal to 1. Therefore, we recommend, if required, predation management be combined with effective habitat conservation and long-term planning to effect the recovery of species, such as woodland caribou, which are declining as a result of habitat-mediated apparent competition.

scholarly journals Movement pathways and habitat selection by woodland caribou during spring migration

Rangifer ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 143 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Joanne Saher ◽  
Fiona K.A. Schmiegelow
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Selection ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Resource Selection ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Winter Habitat ◽  
System Data ◽  
Primary Focus ◽  
Migratory Movements

Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) are a threatened species throughout Canada. Special management is therefore required to ensure habitat needs are met, particularly because much of their current distribution is heavily influenced by resource extraction activities. Although winter habitat is thought to be limiting and is the primary focus of conservation efforts, maintaining connectivity between summer and winter ranges has received little attention. We used global positioning system data from an interprovincial, woodland caribou herd to define migratory movements on a relatively pristine range. Non-linear models indicated that caribou movement during migration was punctuated; caribou traveled for some distance (movement phase) followed by a pause (resting/foraging phase). We then developed resource selection functions (RSFs), using case-controlled logistic regression, to describe resting/foraging sites and movement sites, at the landscape scale. The RSFs indicated that caribou traveled through areas that were less rugged and closer to water than random and that resting/foraging sites were associated with older forests that have a greater component of pine, and are further from water than were random available locations. This approach to analyzing animal location data allowed us to identify two patterns of habitat selection (travel and foraging/resting) for caribou during the migratory period. Resultant models are important tools for land use planning to ensure that connectivity between caribou summer and winter ranges is maintained.

scholarly journals Seasonal distribution and population parameters of woodland caribou in central Manitoba: implications for forestry practices

Rangifer ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberley G. Brown ◽  
Campbell Elliott ◽  
Francois Messier
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus ◽  
Seasonal Distribution ◽  
Rate Of Change ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Rangifer Tarandus Caribou ◽  
Population Parameters ◽  
Woodland Caribou ◽  
Forestry Practices ◽  
Resource Exploration

Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in the boreal forest are believed threatened by human encroachment and associated disturbances such as resource exploration and extraction. We radiocollared and monitored fifteen female woodland caribou in central Manitoba, from 1995 to 1997, to obtain information on their population range, seasonal distribution and movements in relation to forestry concerns. The population ranged over 4600 km2 within a large peatland system and concentrated their activities in two areas for both the summer and winter seasons. Females were relatively more solitary during the summer and exhibited fidelity to specific calving and summering areas averaging 83.4 km2. Individual wintering locations varied between years and among individuals. Post-rut and pre-calving mixed-sex aggregations occurred on the southern portion of the herds range. Caribou from the northern part of the range utilized a traditional travel corridor moving as far as 65 km to access the aggregation areas and their summer or winter ranges. Adult survival during the study period averaged 0.90 (95% CI, 0.80-1.00). Survival of the 1995 cohort appeared to be high as indicated by the 0.65:1 calf-cow ratio, and 30 ± 7% calf composition of observed caribou in the autumn of 1995. The annual rate of change (A,) of 1.19 (95% CI, 1.02-1.36) from January to November of 1995 indicated rhat the population was increasing at that time.

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