Mechanisms underlying the decline of mountain caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in British Columbia ...

• Main Author: Wittmer, Heiko Uwe
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2009
• Subjects: Rangifer tarandus
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0091732; https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0091732

The distribution and abundance of mountain caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) in British Columbia has declined. High predation rates as a consequence of forest management and associated changes to the relative abundances of alternate ungulate prey species have been proposed to cause the population declines. A direct link between changes in the forest age structure and declining caribou population trends, however, is lacking. Understanding the underlying mechanism of the population decline is necessary to develop recovery strategies aimed at maintaining a viable mountain caribou population. I synthesized demographic and radiotelemetry data from separate studies initiated over the entire distribution of mountain caribou between 1984 and 2002. My primary goal was to use a comparative approach among identified subpopulations to distinguish between three potential repercussions of forest management (food regulation, predation-sensitive foraging, and predation) that might explain the observed declining population ...