Woodland caribou conservation in Canada’s mountain parks

The Calgary Zoo, in partnership with Parks Canada and the British Columbia Government have announced an initiative to begin a woodland caribou captive breeding program with the aim of bolstering herds in Canada’s mountain national parks.

Over two decades ago, Canada’s mountain parks were home to over 800 caribou. The population has now been reduced to less than 250 individuals. These herds belong to the Southern Mountain population of woodland caribou and are listed as Threatened under Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA). Threats such as increased predator access and fragmentation of alpine habitat have driven some herds to number as low as five or six individuals. This can leave them extremely vulnerable to events such as avalanches, which can lead to local extirpation.

The project will begin by sourcing animals from large wild populations in British Columbia which will be brought to the Calgary Zoo’s Devonian Wildlife Conservation Centre to establish a captive breeding population. The first year will begin with a group of 20 caribou with 20 more added in the second year. In the third year, the first translocations will begin with yearlings moved from the captive herd to the wild. The goal will be to supplement caribou from four to six sub populations over one or two decades and re-establish a population in Banff.

This breed and release program is one component of the Parks Canada Conservation Strategy for Southern Mountain Caribou in Canada’s National Parks. Further work will go towards restoring the balance of predator-prey dynamics, limiting direct disturbances, preventing further habitat loss, reducing predator access and mitigating small population effects of the caribou herds.