Using Traditional Ecological Knowledge to Facilitate Non-Invasive Polar Bear Monitoring

• Main Author: Arlidge, Scott
• Other Authors: Whitelaw, Graham, Van Coeverden De Groot, Peter, Environmental Studies
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: Wildlife Management; Polar Bears; Arctic; TEK; Community Based Monitoring; Inuit; Canada; Coral Harbour; Gjoa Haven; Nunavut; inuit; Ursus maritimus
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1974/30052

This manuscript-based thesis explores the documentation and application of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) to population monitoring and management in the Canadian Arctic. The thesis is divided into four chapters; an introduction, two standalone research papers, and an overarching conclusion. Chapter II focuses on the collection of TEK through semi-directed interviews with knowledgeable polar bear hunters and Elders in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut. Extensive polar bear data is presented through GIS mapping and discussed. The application of these customizable maps is two-fold: i) They serve as a historical record of polar bear knowledge for the community of Gjoa Haven; and ii) The maps can act as a guide to areas of high polar bear activity for future targeted polar bear monitoring efforts. Chapter III is a pilot study which focuses on the field work associated with locating and collecting non-invasively sourced polar bear genetic samples using TEK from hunters in Coral Harbour, Nunavut. The effort to collect these samples is characterized using GPS data recorded during the thirteen sampling trips conducted by local team members in Coral Harbour. Over the two years of this study, hunters travelled 3247km, 40 polar bear fecal samples and snow samples from 99 footprints belonging to the tracks of 26 individual bears were collected, 8 polar bear dens were located, and 10 polar bears were observed. The results of these two chapters have the potential to inform the progression of polar bear monitoring towards less invasive approaches, more cost-effective field work and most importantly increased Inuit involvement in polar bear monitoring and management in Canada. M.E.S.