Range, movements, population, and food habits of the Steese-Fortymile caribou herd

• Main Author: Skoog, Ronald O.
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 1956
• Subjects: Fairbanks; Yukon; Alaska
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11122/7430

Thesis (M.S.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 1956 The Steese-Fortymile caribou (Rangifer arcticus stonei Allen) form one of the most economically important herds in Alaska. This study of the herd took place from September, 1952, to December, 1955, under the auspices of the Alaska Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Alaska and of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration branch of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Project W3R. The Steese-Fortymile range occupies about 35,000 square miles of east-central Alaska and the Yukon Territory, lying mainly between the Tanana and Yukon Rivers. The terrain is mountainous, but not rugged; roads and towns are scarce, and a maximum of 60,000 people live on the fringes. Seven major plant communities comprise the range vegetation, three of them covering 60 to 70 per cent of the area and furnishing the bulk of the food for caribou. The carrying capacity is computed to be 70,000 to 90,000 caribou. The erratic and continual movements of caribou characterize this game species. Their movements vary from day to day and season to season. Most of the traveling takes place during the early morning and late afternoon; major seasonal movements take place in the spring and fall. Past and present data provide a general picture of the movement pattern of this herd throughout the year. The Steese-Fortymile herd dwindled from a peak of about 500,000 animals in the late 1920's to a low of 10,000 to 20,000 in the early 1940's. The decline is attributed to a population shift. The present population contains at least 50,000 animals and is increasing steadily. Reproduction was high during the years 1950 to 1955. The rut takes place during the first two weeks of October; most of the calves are born during the latter half of May, following a gestation period of about 33 weeks. Valuable information on caribou behavior during the calving period is presented. Counts taken in May show that at least 50 per cent of the calves survive the first year. Wolf and man are the most ...