BC’s Mountain Caribou: Last Chance for Conservation?

All mountain caribou in Canada are nationally designated as ‘threatened’. Threatened status means that action is required to improve caribou survival in order to avoid extinction . In 1996, British Columbia signed the National Accord for Protection of Species at Risk. That agreement obliged the province to act to protect species at risk and their habitats, and to develop recovery plans for nationally designated species.

Nevertheless, the number of mountain caribou in the province declined by 17 percent between the years 1996 and 2002. Experts anticipate further declines and local extinctions over time. Clearly, the survival of mountain caribou in BC is an issue of significant public interest.