British Columbia’s timber management agency has shut down logging activities in the province. This ruling now ensures the protection of habitat crucial for the survival of the Southern Mountain Caribou. Citing the extreme and rapid population declines of the species, today’s decision brings good news after months of concern. It is currently designated as threatened under the federal Species at Risk Act. Southern Mountain Caribou populations have decreased 51 percent since 1991 and the need for immediate emergency conservation action is critical.
Over the decades, the B.C. government has struggled with this intricate balance between resource extraction and wildlife conservation. Since 2014, federal officials have advised the Southern Mountain Caribou be listed as endangered. This recommendation further demonstrates the Administration’s deep concern over the caribou’s rapidly declining population. Through relief efforts, our experts worked to protect the shrimper’s habitat and safeguard the future of this iconic species.
Declining Numbers and Habitat Loss
With the Southern Mountain Caribou herds on the brink of extinction, logging coupled with oil and gas exploration and extraction have decimated migratory survival to the point where the birds are now listed as endangered. Government data shows that ten of these herds are now locally extinct or functionally extirpated. This is, to put it mildly, phenomenal. The Columbia North Southern Mountain Caribou herd has increased from 147 in 2017 to 209 in 2023, but that is still just a tiny remnant of what was once a robust population.
This slow march of logging operations has provided corridors for predators, making a tough existence even tougher for these caribou. Specialized and terrestrial, Southern Mountain Caribou herds have been particularly impacted in British Columbia from 1985 to 2019. Their forested habitat was hit hard, with nearly 23 percent of their ranges disturbed during that period.
“The disturbance is at a level that exceeds what the population would need to be self-sustaining.” – Serrouya
Thankfully, in the face of these alarming trends, there have been concerted efforts to turn back the tide and bring declining populations back up. With continued support, the Klinse-Za maternal penning program has great potential to make recovery possible. It unites biologists, veterinarians, and the local First Nations in a common cause. She is proud of the program’s considerable impact, having saved more than 1,500 animals across the province. It did this largely through aggressive recovery actions like predator reduction and maternal penning.
Recovery Efforts and Predator Management
To further support the Southern Mountain Caribou recovery, the B.C. government launched a province-wide predator reduction program. From December 2023 until March 2024, government officials had to act to protect the at-risk caribou herds. They produced some 258 wolf culls to relieve predation pressures on these herds. This controversial, yet measured approach intends to provide a calmer, more predictable landscape where caribou can flourish.
A recent report suggests that these recovery efforts are paying off. In 2023, researchers documented 362 Southern Mountain Caribou calves. This figure represents the second highest number ever recorded since we began monitoring nearly 10 years ago. Though this arc of good news is heartening, scientists warn that frequent habitat disruptions make long-term success perilous.
“The baseline is still getting worse more than it’s getting better.” – Serrouya
Despite these advances and these efforts, many conservationists are still worried about what these new strategies are doing—or really, not doing. They claim that by only protecting areas that caribou occupy today, we are not doing enough to protect the species. Comprehensive habitat management strategies should work to avoid and minimize the effects of logging and other industrial-scale disturbances.
Future Challenges and Conservation Strategies
The logging stop by B.C. Timber Sales comes during an ongoing, independent review over habitat overlap with timber tenure. Over 112,000 hectares of BCTS tenure overlap with critical habitat for the endangered Columbia North Southern Mountain Caribou herd. The most recent provincial modelling indicates terrifying outcomes. It shows that logging roads and cut blocks have fragmented at least 37 percent of this sub-population’s core critical habitat.
This new strategy should focus on harmonizing economic development with ecological preservation. The Ministry of Forests stated the importance of refining knowledge and aligning shared priorities that support caribou while addressing other goals like wildfire risk mitigation and securing timber supply for economic stability.
“If you only protect where the caribou live, it’s not enough.” – Serrouya
B.C. is headed to a very complicated future in terms of conservation and resource development. In order to foster coexistence between wildlife and industry, stakeholders—government, nonprofit, and private industry—need to be on the same team. The use of the Southern Mountain Caribou’s current plight as a litmus test for new, far-reaching environmental policies is a different matter.
