Woodland caribou hunting is a unique experience. In fact, Newfoundland is the only place in the world where this magnificent species can be legally harvested. Add a superb location to the fact that the herd does not have a large migration pattern and you have the right conditions for a successful hunt! These conditions have helped to preserve our 90% success rate. Our area also has its share of caribou in both the Boone and Crockett and Pope and Young record books.
While the rifle hunting season does not start until the second week of September, archery hunting precedes it by two weeks and continues through the regular season, allowing for prime hunting and excellent stalking.
*ATTENTION HUNTERS: Caribou hunting in Newfoundland is very limited at the time due to the provincial government’s five-year Caribou Strategy to address declining populations. See Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Environment and Conservation news release dated February 7, 2008 below.
Caribou populations have been in a state of decline since approximately the mid to late 1990s. From an estimated peak of over 90,000 caribou in 1996, the present population is estimated at 37,000, a decrease of approximately 60 per cent. Predators are seen as a major reason for this decline. Studies on calf annual survival rates show some herds at less than 10 per cent. High calf mortality, coupled with an adult mortality rate estimated at approximately 12 per cent, means populations will continue to decline independently of any other pressures such as hunting. Recent and ongoing studies clearly implicate black bear, coyote and, in some cases, lynx as the key predators of caribou calves. Calf annual survival rates must increase to at least 15 per cent even to stabilize populations at current levels.
"We understand the iconic value of caribou and its place in the cultural fabric of our province. Equally so, we recognize the recreational and economic role it plays in many of our rural regions," said Charlene Johnson, Minister of Environment and Conservation. "This strategy will be a major additional effort to assist in better understanding and mitigating the caribou decline."
|
