The boreal population of woodland caribou are considered Threatened, under SARA Schedule 1, due to habitat destruction, hunting, disturbance by humans (including construction of roads and pipelines), and predation (by wolves, coyotes, and bears). In support of the Government of British Columbia’s management and monitoring objectives for boreal caribou, Caslys is currently responsible for the data management of boreal caribou and wolf GPS-collar data in northeastern BC.

This project involves the ongoing management of telemetry data, including the management of incoming weekly data from GPS collars, generation of maps and reports on animal locations and movements, and analysis of predator-prey relationships. Additional analyses include the investigation of caribou walk-lines, using in-house custom software, proximity analysis, and movement trends over time.

This project currently generates quantitative analyses of local caribou and wolf population trends and distributions – both of which are vital to tracking the recovery progress and providing the basis for defining and initiating both provincial and national recovery actions. Management guidelines around hunting, as well as oil and gas operations in key boreal caribou habitat, are currently informed by the project’s monitoring, mapping, and analysis results.