Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) barren-ground population COSEWIC assessment and status report 2016: appendices

Appendix A. Place names mentioned in this report. Active mines/ports and projects in advanced exploration phase are in black font, Projects in early design to small-scale exploration phases are in grey font. Active roads and railways are depicted in complete lines. The locations of proposed road projects mentioned in the report are approximate and are not meant to represent project specifications.

Appendix A. Place names mentioned in this report. Active mines/ports and projects in advanced exploration phase are in black font, Projects in early design to small-scale exploration phases are in grey font. Active roads and railways are depicted in complete lines. The locations of proposed road projects mentioned in the report are approximate and are not meant to represent project specifications.
Place names mentioned in this report.
Long description for Appendix A

Map containing place names mentioned in this report.

Appendix B. Subpopulations on the Northeast Mainland.

By the mid-1990s on the northeast mainland, four additional subpopulations (Ahiak, Melville Peninsula, Lorillard and Wager Bay) were recognized based on pre-calving and calving aerial surveys and identifying the calving locations of cows fitted with VHF radio-collars (Heard et al. 1983; Heard and Stenhouse 1992; Buckland et al. 2000; Gunn et al. 2000a). Subsequently, using aerial surveys of calving distribution and satellite telemetry, Campbell (2005) combined the South Melville Peninsula into the Wager Bay subpopulation based on the movements of the satellite-collared cows.

The increase in the number of subpopulations continued when Gunn et al. (2000a) tentatively identified three subpopulations (Keith Bay, Simpson Peninsula, Boothia Peninsula) based on aerial surveys of calving areas (1974-1993) and satellite-collared cows (Gunn et al. 2000a; Gunn and Fournier 2000) (Figure A-1). Gunn and Fournier (2000) identified two other calving areas, but the aerial coverage was insufficient to define boundaries (Simpson Lake and Arrowsmith Lowlands) and whether the areas represented separate subpopulations.

Figure A-1. Schematic drawing to show subpopulations (green) calving areas and calving areas (blue) on Boothia Isthmus area based on aerial surveys and limited satellite telemetry, 1991-93.
Schematic drawing to show subpopulations (green) calving areas and calving areas (blue) on Boothia Isthmus area
Photo: © from Gunn and Fournier 2000
Long description for Figure A-1

Schematic showing subpopulation calving areas on the Boothia Isthmus area based on aerial surveys and limited satellite telemetry, from 1991 to 1993.

The annual movements of satellite-collared females were aggregated as statistically defined clusters which were equated as subpopulations (Nagy et al. 2011). While the cluster analysis identified similar subpopulations as based on fidelity to calving grounds for most of the previously described subpopulations, it differed for the northeast mainland. The annual distribution of satellite-collared cows was used to designate three clusters for the northeast mainland which are Lorillard, Wager Bay and Queen Maud Gulf (Nagy et al. 2011; Campbell et al. 2014; Nagy and Campbell 2012).

The Wager Bay and Queen Maud Gulf clusters each included several previously described calving areas. Including several calving areas in two clusters may be an artefact of the technique to map calving areas (kernel analysis of small numbers of satellite-collared Caribou), the effect of overlapping winter distribution on subsequent subpopulation structure, and/or it may represent a change in calving distribution (see Abundance and Trends).

The Wager Bay cluster included the previously identified ranges used by Keith Bay and Simpson Peninsula subpopulations (Nagy and Campbell 2012). However, the within-cluster overlap of the range used by individual cows was lowest for the Wager Bay cluster compared to the other clusters and while this may reflect different calving dispersion behaviour (Nagy and Campbell 2012), it may also be that low sample size limited resolution of the cluster. Nagy and Campbell (Fig. 2.6 in 2012) mapped calving of the Wager Bay cluster and found similar areas of calving previously observed in the 1990s on eastern Boothia Peninsula, Melville Peninsula, Arrowsmith Lowlands and south of Boothia Isthmus. Both the Wager Bay and Queen Maud Gulf clusters included Boothia Peninsula (Figure A-2). However, in this COSEWIC report, Boothia Peninsula is included as a separate subpopulation as it is surveyed during calving and post-calving as a recognizable geographical unit (the peninsula).

Figure A-2 Individual movement trajectories for the Queen Maud Gulf cluster tracked during 1999-2010, and B) the Wager Bay cluster tracked during 2002-2011.
Individual movement trajectories for the Queen Maud Gulf cluster
Photo: © Figs. 2-50 and 2-52 from Nagy and Campbell 2012
Long description for Figure A-2

Two map panels showing individual movement trajectories for the Queen Maud Gulf cluster of satellite-collared females tracked during 1999 to 2010 (left panel) and the Wager Bay cluster tracked during 2002 to 2011 (right panel).

While the Ahiak subpopulation’s calving overlapped the eastern portion of the previously described coastal calving ground (Gunn et al. 2013a), the cluster extended east of Chantrey Inlet and included the Arrowsmith Lowlands and Simpson Lake calving areas. Pathways of satellite-collared Caribou tracked in 1999-2010 (the cluster analysis did not use the earlier 1990s satellite telemetry data) did not include the Keith Bay or Simpson Peninsula areas (Figure A-2), suggesting a change in calving distribution, loss of the previously identified subpopulations or an effect of low sample size (aerial surveys and collared Caribou). The coalescence of the calving areas may also be an artefact of the technique to map calving areas (kernel analysis of small numbers of satellite-collared Caribou), or it may represent a change in calving distribution.

Table A-1 summarizes survey information for northeast mainland calving areas.

Table A-1. Summary of Barren-ground Caribou calving areas with six or fewer years with aerial calving surveys and limited telemetry (summarized in Gunn and Fournier 2000; Campbell 2005; Campbell et al. 2012; Nagy and Campbell 2012).
Subpopulation Calving area Aerial surveys calving Incidental aerial sightings calving Satellite collars
(n, mean ± SE)
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Tuktoyaktuk Peninsula, 2007, 2008, 2009 blank 2006-2012 (12 ± 2.05)
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Arrowsmith Lowlands, 1975, 1985, 1986, 2010, 2011 1989,91 blank
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Keith Bay, 2010; 2011 1991 1991-92 (1)
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Boothia Peninsula East, 1975, 1985, 2006, 2010; 2011 blank 1991-93 (3)
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Simpson Lake, 1975, 1985 1989, 2010; 2011 blank 1991-93 (1)
Ahiak cluster (Campbell et al. 2012) Simpson Peninsula 1989; 2010; 2011 blank 1991-93 (1)
Wager Bay cluster (Nagy et al. 2011) Wager Bay 1974, 1976; 1977, 2000, 2002, 2004 1986, 1987,1988 2000-06 (5.5 ± 1.28)
Wager Bay cluster (Nagy et al. 2011) Lorillard 1976, 1977; 1999, 2001, 2003 1986, 1987,1988 2000-2006 (8.6 ± 1.23)
Wager Bay cluster (Nagy et al. 2011) South Melville Peninsula 1974, 1976 blank 1991 (1)
2000-2006(5.5 ± 1.28)
Appendix C. Population estimates from surveys conducted since 1986 for seven Barren-ground subpopulations used to estimate trends and pre-2011 estimates for Beverly and Ahiak subpopulations.
Subpopulation Year Month Estimate Precision Precision type Survey design a Estimate type Age class. Report type References
Porcupine 1987 July 165,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 1989 July 178,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 1992 July 160,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 1994 July 152,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 1998 July 129,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 2001 July 123,000 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Incl. calves Summary Caikoski 2009
Porcupine 2010 July 169,000 153,493–184,403 95% CI Post-calving photo Rivest Incl. calves Detailed Caikoski 2013
Porcupine 2013 July 197,228 13,772; 168,667–225,789 SE; 95% CI Post-calving photo Rivest Incl. calves Detailed Caikoski 2015
Tuktoyaktuk 2005 Sept 2,700b blank blank Strip transect Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Incl. calves Summary Branigan 2005
Tuktoyaktuk 2006 July 3,078 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Nagy and Johnson 2006
Tuktoyaktuk 2009 July 2,753 276 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Davison et al. 2014
Tuktoyaktuk 2012 July 2,192 178 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf None Davison 2016
Tuktoyaktuk 2015 July 1,701 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf None Davison 2016
blank blank blank blank blank blank blank blank Non-calf blank blank
Cape Bathurst 1986 July 13,476c blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Nagy 2009a
Cape Bathurst 1987 July 12,516c 3,504 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Cape Bathurst 1992 July 19,278 5,397 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Cape Bathurst 2000 July 11,089 1,756 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Cape Bathurst 2005 July 2,434 257 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Cape Bathurst 2006 July 1,821 149 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Nagy and Johnson 2006
Cape Bathurst 2009 July 1,934 350 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Davison et al. 2014
Cape Bathurst 2012 July 2,427 blank blank Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Cape Bathurst 2015 July 2,259 84 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2016
blank blank blank blank blank blank blank blank Non-calf blank blank
Bluenose-West 1986 July 88,369[4] 6,899 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Nagy 2009a
Bluenose-West 1987 July 106,887 4,655 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-West 1992 July 112,360 25,566 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-West 2000 July 76,376 14,347 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-West 2005 July 20,800 2,040 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-West 2006 July 18,050 527 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Nagy and Johnson 2006
Bluenose-West 2009 July 17,897 1,310 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Davison et al. 2014
Bluenose-West 2012 July 20,465 3,490 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-West 2015 July 15,268 1,369 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2016
Bluenose-East 2000 July 104,000 84 412 - 126 100 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Patterson et al. 2004
Bluenose-East 2005 July 70,081 8,120 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Summary Davison 2015
Bluenose-East 2006 July 65,119 3,504 95% CI Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Nagy and Tracz 2006
Bluenose-East 2010 July 98,481 7,125 SE Post-calving photo Lincoln-Peterson estimate Non-calf Detailed Adamczewski et al. 2013
Bluenose-East 2010 June 114,472 6,908 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Adamczewski et al. 2013
Bluenose-East 2013 June 68,295 7,610 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Boulanger et al. 2014
Bluenose-East 2015 June 38,592 33,859 - 43,325 95% CI Calving photo/ double counting Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Boulanger 2015
Bathurst 1986 June 472,000 72,900 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Heard and Williams 1991
Bathurst 1990 June 351,683 77,800 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Heard and Williams 1991
Bathurst 1996 June 349,046 94,900 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Gunn et al. 1997
Bathurst 2003 June 186 005 40 146 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Gunn et al. 2005
Bathurst 2006 June 128,047 27,300 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Nishi et al. 2007
Bathurst 2009 June 31,982 5,306 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Nishi et al. 2014
Bathurst 2012 June 34,690 4,691 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Boulanger et al. 2014
Bathurst 2015 June 19,769 12,349-27,189 95% CI Calving photo/ double counting Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Boulanger et al. 2015
Ahiak (< 2011) 1986 June 30,000 blank blank Systematic strip survey Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Gunn et al. 2000
Ahiak (< 2011) 1996 June 200,000 blank blank Systematic strip survey Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Gunn et al. 2000
Ahiak (< 2011) 2007 June 235,000 blank blank Systematic strip survey Extrapolation from density Non-calf Summary Johnson et al. 2008
Beverly (< 2011) 1984 June 263,691 80,652 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Summary Heard and Jackson 1990
Beverly (< 2011) 1988 June 189,561 70,961 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Heard and Jackson 1990
Beverly (< 2011) 1994 June 276,000 106,600 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Williams 1995
Beverly (< 2011) 2002 June Too low to estimate blank blank Systematic strip survey blank Non-calf Detailed Johnson and Mulders 2009
Beverly (< 2011) 2007 June Too low to estimate blank blank Systematic strip survey blank Non-calf Detailed Johnson et al. 2009
Qamanirjuaq 1985 June 272,032 142,199 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Summary Heard and Jackson 1990
Qamanirjuaq 1988 June 220,999 72,459 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Heard and Jackson 1990
Qamanirjuaq 1994 June 495,665 105,426 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Summary Campbell et al. 2010
Qamanirjuaq 2008 June 348,661 44,861 SE Calving photo Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Campbell et al. 2010
Qamanirjuaq 2014 June 264,718 44,084 95% CI Calving photo/ double counting Extrapolation from density & sex age composition Non-calf Detailed Campbell et al. 2015
Southampton 1987 June 4,033 659 SE Stratified random bloc (helicopter) Extrapolation from density Non-calf Summary Heard and Ouellet 1994
Southampton 1990 March 9,319 3,325 SE Stratified transects Extrapolation from density Incl. calves Summary Heard and Ouellet 1994
Southampton 1991 June 13,676 1,584 SE Stratified random bloc Extrapolation from density Non-calf Summary Ouellet et al. 1996
Southampton 1995 June 18,275 1,390 SE blank blank blank Summary Campbell 2006
Southampton 1997 June 30,381 3,982 SE Stratified random transect Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell 2006
Southampton 2003 June 17,981 2,127 CI=3,982 SE Stratified random transect Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell 2006
Southampton 2005 June 20,582 3, 065 CI=3,065 SE Stratified random transect Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell 2006
Southampton 2007 June 15,452 1,858 CI=1,858 SE Stratified random transect Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell and Boulanger 2016
Southampton 2009 June 13,956 1,790 95% CI Stratified random transect Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell and Boulanger 2016
Southampton 2011 June 7,903 1,261 95% CI Stratified random transect/ double counting Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell and Boulanger 2016
Southampton 2013 May 7,287 1,045 95% CI Stratified random transect/ double counting Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell and Boulanger 2016
Southampton 2015 May 12,297 1,844 95% CI Stratified random transect/ double counting Extrapolation from density Non-calf Detailed Campbell and Boulanger 2016

a Fixed-wing unless otherwise specified.

b Total number of Rangifer in the area estimated at 3,890; 30% assumed to be reindeer, as assessed in independent helicopter survey.

c Recalculated retroactively by Nagy (2009a)

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