Caribou LEH

The public is invited to comment on the proposed hunting regulation described below.

Status: Proposed

Region: 6 and 7A

Management unit (MU): 6-17 to 6-26, 7-37, 7-39 to 7-41

Regulation type: Limited Entry Hunting

Species: Caribou

Closing date: 16:30, March 22, 2024

Decision statement: Pending

Current regulation

General open seasons

Skeena:

CARIBOU

*6-17 to *6-20, *6-22 to 6-26▲

★5 point Bulls

Aug 15 - Oct 15

Compulsory Inspection required. ★ See Definitions section: Caribou. The antlers must accompany the species licence. ▲ Parts of MUs 6-18, 6-25 and 6-26 closed to Caribou hunting, see Map F25 and Map F39. * Parts of MUs 6-19, 6-20, 6-25, and 6-26 are open by LEH authorization only., see Maps F27 and F36

Omineca:

CARIBOU

*▲7-37, 7-39 to 7-41

★5 Point Bulls

Aug 15 - Oct 15

* Part of MU 7-39 is LEH only, see Map G22 ▲ MU 7-38 was closed to Caribou hunting. Parts of MUs 7-39 and 7-40 are closed to Caribou hunting, see Map G25

★ See Definitions section: Caribou. Compulsory Inspection required

Proposed regulation

Convert all caribou GOS seasons in Region 6 (Skeena) and Region 7A (Omineca) to LEH hunts. Existing LEH zones (Spatsizi, Atlin, and Edozadelly) would maintain the same season dates, but the boundaries of the zones would amended to accommodate newly created LEH zones, and a 5 point antler restriction applied. Areas currently closed to caribou hunting would remain closed.

Table 1. Proposed changes to hunting regulations for caribou in the Omineca and Skeena

LEH Zone	Class of animal	Season Dates
Atlin	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Spatsizi	5 point	4 LEH seasons
Swan Lake	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Little Rancheria	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Horseranch	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Tseneglode	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Level	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Kawdy	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
North Stikine	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
Upper Skeena	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
MU 7-37	5 point	Aug 15 - Oct 15
MU 7-39 E	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
MU 7-40 A	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15
MU 7-41	5 point	Aug15 - Oct15

Rationale

Kaska Dena, Tahltan Central Government, 3 Nations Society, and the Government of British Columbia (BC) developed this proposal due to concerns related to woodland caribou numbers, sustenance and food security concerns, peaceful enjoyment of the land concerns, and importance of sharing indigenous, local, and scientific knowledge on the shared management of wildlife. It also allows consistency with changes in the Wildlife Act, DRIPA, and existing agreements between governments.

Detailed information on the stewardship principles, community knowledge, Nation led monitoring, and rationales by each Nation were shared with BC information to jointly design the proposal.

Northern Mountain Caribou are listed as a species of special concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Current estimates indicate that over 60% of all caribou that exist in BC are in the northern portion of the Skeena Region. Historically many more caribou existed across BC where they are now threatened, endangered, or extirpated, and in the northern mountain ranges Indigenous knowledge indicates there were far more caribou prior to European colonization than there are now. Traditional and local knowledge indicate caribou in north Skeena have declined from historic numbers and behaviour and landscape use has recently been observed that is different from the past. All the herds identified in this proposal are important to the respective First Nations for traditional uses and sustenance needs. Each Nation has traditionally managed these herds through the respective knowledge and understanding of the historic seasonal ranges, movements, and changes in range use over time. However, Indigenous citizens are expressing concern on the apparent changes to seasonal range and movements by caribou herds and lower numbers over the last 10 years. Members have observed climate change impacts on the territory for years and are expressing concerns regarding how these changes will affect the wildlife, traditional uses, and sustenance harvesting.

Licensed hunting by BC resident hunters and non-resident hunters has occurred since European settlement in the area and has been managed under various regulations since at least 1929. Currently there is a mix of general open seasons (GOS), limited entry hunts, and closed areas across the Skeena and Omineca Regions. Generally, non-resident harvest has been greater than resident hunter harvest, and harvest trends have varied through time. Since 2006 there has been an increase in the catch per unit effort as measured by days/kill for resident hunters from the Hunter Sample Survey; this suggest that it’s getting harder to find and harvest caribou.

Draft management plans for the herds in the proposal predominantly indicate information gaps, and make recommendations which identify the need to:

• Develop a consistent monitoring program to track population size and trend;

• Manage harvest for sustainable use; and

• Identify limiting factors contributing to suspected population decline.

The relative distribution of caribou in BC including the Northern Mountain ecotype in the Skeena and Omineca Regions.

Additional information

Proposed caribou LEH areas