The number of animals in the Western Arctic Caribou Herd (WACH) is down by 20 percent. The calving parturition average was also significantly lower than recent years, with 2020 at 67%.

The Government of Nunavut is restricting harvest due to what it calls “a recent steep decline in the population” of the herd. That decline has led to a “conservation concern” about the western Nunavut herd’s numbers.

The Kootenay populations, a fixture on the landscape for thousands of years, succumbed to industrial disturbances and other human activity in their critical habitat.

The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope

The George River caribou herd, which straddles Labrador and Quebec, is in a critical state, according to biologists.

Restrictions on bag limits and season length will start July 1 for both the Western Arctic and Teshekpuk herds, whose numbers are dropping. Restrictions will affect both resident and nonresident hunters.

Across the Far North, populations of caribou — an indispensable source of food and clothing for indigenous people — are in steep decline. Scientists point to rising temperatures and a resource-development boom as the prime culprits.