Frequently Asked Caribou Questions
Discover almost everything you could want to know about barren-ground caribou here on our FAQ page. If you still have questions, don’t hesitate to send them our way by e-mail.
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General Facts About the Caribou
Caribou provide a secure and reliable source of healthy and nutritious food for many people across the caribou ranges. Additional economic values are derived from the use of skins for clothing and bedding, and bones and antlers for handicrafts. However, harvesting caribou is not simply a means of providing food or income. The true value of caribou for Aboriginal people is reflected in the strong traditional, cultural and spiritual relationship that exists between the people and animals. Harvesting caribou and other activities associated with use of caribou (e.g., for ceremonies and community feasts) continue to have enormous social and cultural values for maintaining traditional cultures for both present and future generations.
A 2008 study (revised in 2013) commissioned by the BQCMB estimated that the net annual economic value of caribou harvested from the Beverly and Qamanirjuaq herds was about $20 million, including about $5 million for Beverly caribou and about $15 million for Qamanirjuaq animals, based on harvest estimates for 2005-2006.
They are slightly larger than white-tailed deer. In winter, adult females weigh an average of 80 – 90 kg (176 – 198 lbs.), depending on environmental conditions. Adult males average 109 kg (240 lbs.) in winter. However, just before the rut in October, adult males averaged 147 kg (323 lbs.) because of large stores of fat that are lost during the rut.
Although usually silent, caribou do vocalize at certain times. During the rut, bulls frequently pant and bellow, and for several months after calving, mothers and calves grunt back and forth to each other. Click here to listen to the sounds that calves make. Caribou often snort for a variety of reasons, but the most common sound associated with them is the clicking of their feet while walking – a noise produced by a tendon slipping over the sesamoid bone in the foot.
Females live as long as 16 years and males about 13 years.
Reindeer and caribou belong to the same genus and species and share the same scientific name, Rangifer tarandus. Five subspecies are recognized in Canada and a third word is added to denote their differences. E.g. reindeer is Rangifer tarandus tarandus, woodland caribou is Rangifer tarandus caribou, and barren-ground caribou is Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus. With respect to common names, it is customary nowadays to use “caribou” when referring to the entire species or any of the North American subspecies, while “reindeer” and “wild reindeer” are reserved for the European and Asian subspecies.
They occur in arctic, sub-arctic, and some temperate regions around the globe. Caribou, the oldest species of the deer family, are known as reindeer elsewhere. Their Latin name is Rangifer tarandus. In northern Canada, Alaska and Scandinavia, reindeer are domesticated animals. In Siberia, they are both wild and domesticated. They are smaller than caribou and have shorter legs.
Peary caribou (R. pearyi) occur on arctic islands in Canada and similar small, light-colored forms occur in Norway and Siberia. Barren-ground caribou live in northern Canada and Alaska. Woodland caribou are found further south in Canada. There is an endangered population of woodland caribou in northern Idaho and northwest Montana.
Antlers fall off old bulls in November and December after the breeding (known as “rutting”) period in October. Bulls up to three years old keep their antlers until March or April. Cows keep theirs until after they have calved in early June. Cows that are not pregnant drop their antlers in April and May.
There is evidence from other species that females prefer to breed with males with large antlers. Large antlers indicate a strong and fit individual with good genes. They also allow individuals to recognize each other and know who they can beat in a fight, and who to avoid. Fights are avoided unless two caribou are evenly matched. Fighting takes up a lot of energy and the animals could get hurt or killed. Antlers are used for defense only when a caribou is caught by a predator.
Caribou and moose are both members of the deer family. The moose is the largest member of the deer family and, according to the Canadian Wildlife Service, can weigh up to 800 kilograms (almost 1,800 pounds). You can learn more about moose at the web site of the Canadian Wildlife Service’s Hinterland Who’s Who.
The following information comes from the book, People and Caribou in the Northwest Territories, published by the Department of Renewable Resources, Government of the Northwest Territories, 1989, Yellowknife. Pages 68-69.
“Antler development is three to six months out of phase between the sexes. For example, in barren-ground caribou the male’s antlers begin developing in March, grow rapidly from May to July, and are completely hardened and out of velvet by mid-September. Following the rut, antlers are shed in early November by older males but may be kept until April by some of the younger ones. Female antlers develop from June to September and are out of velvet by late September. The antlers are retained throughout the winter, and are used to defend feeding craters in the snow from the larger but antlerless males. This provides a survival advantage not only for the female but also for her calf who shares such craters. Pregnant females drop their antlers within days of calving. Barren cows shed their antlers before the spring.”
Meaning of the Names
The word “caribou” is believed to come from a Mi’kmaq word, “xalibou,” which means one that paws, or shovels. That’s a reference to the caribou’s wide concave hooves. They work like snowshoes, keeping the animals from sinking into deep snow. They’re also ideal for scooping out snow so that caribou can find their food. Denesųłiné people call caribou “etthén” and Inuit call the animal “tuktu.”
Qamanirjuaq” is Inuktitut, and it means “big lake.” Caribou from the Qamanirjuaq herd return to the Qamanirjuaq Lake area in Nunavut every June to have their calves.
In Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit, the word-initial “q” as in Qamanirjuaq indicates a voiceless uvular stop. That’s a consonant which is pronounced in the rear part of the mouth, at the level of the uvula. For your purposes it will suffice if you substitute a “k” for the “q.”
Both herds are named after a body of water near their traditional calving grounds. The Beverly herd is named after Beverly Lake, about 150 kilometres northwest of the community of Baker Lake in the Northwest Territories. The Qamanirjuaq herd is named after Qamanirjuaq Lake (Kaminuriak on maps), about 200 kilometres west of Rankin Inlet in the Northwest Territories. In Inuktitut, the language of Inuit, Qamanirjuaq means “huge lake adjoining a river at both ends.”
The Beverly and Qamanirjuaq herds are barren-ground caribou. Barren ground caribou are found in the Arctic and sub-arctic. Woodland caribou are found in boreal areas of Canada and limited parts of the United States. They are larger and darker than caribou in Canada’s north. Woodland caribou’s antlers also differ somewhat but most people would not be able to tell one from the other.
The Herds and Habitat
Both herds are in decline.
Beverly Herd
The Government of Nunavut Department of Environment (GN-DOE) conducted a caribou survey of the Beverly calving ground in June 2018. It found the estimated herd size has decreased significantly from about 136,600 to about 103,400 animals since the last population estimate was developed in 2011, This represents a slow decline in herd size of 4-5% per year over seven years. As a result of some overlap in the areas used for calving by the Beverly and Ahiak herds, a re-analysis of the 2011 survey results was conducted. The latest estimates include Adelaide Peninsula animals, which were not included in the original Beverly herd estimate for 2011. The 2018 survey also showed a decrease in the number of adult females on the calving ground from 81,000 in 2011 to about 61,000.
Qamanirjuaq Herd
The GN-DOE, with support from Manitoba Sustainable Development (MB-SD) and the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board (NWMB), conducted Qamanirjuaq calving ground surveys, including a photo survey, in June 2017. Previous surveys of the Qamanirjuaq herd showed a decline from about 344,000 animals in 2008 to less than 265,000 in 2014. While the 2017 population estimate is slightly higher than the 2014 estimate at about 288,000, it still indicates a continued slow decline of about 2% per year since 2008.
The BQCMB wrote a letter of support to the GN-DOE for a Qamanirjuaq population survey in June 2021 and a Beverly population survey in June 2022, noting the BQCMB vulnerability assessments indicate serious concerns about the vulnerability levels for both herds.
Theories to explain migration involve food, predation, insects, and weather. Migration opens up a larger and more variable food supply. It allows caribou to calve and raise their young away from most wolves that den near the forest-tundra border. It allows them to avoid some of the biting insects and parasites that have an insect stage in their cycle. Finally, it permits them to summer in a relatively cool location and to secure abundant lichens under snow in forested areas in winter.
Their summer and winter ranges typically are 500 – 1000 km (313 – 625 miles) apart but caribou travel much farther than twice those distances each year. As well as spring and autumn migrations, the herds have a mid-summer migration to near tree line. Furthermore, travel is often in zigzag and back-and-forth patterns. Thus, caribou may travel 2000 – 4000 km (1250 – 2500 miles) or more in a year.
Check out our caribou migration animation to see how far the caribou travel!
Caribou travel to find a good supply of food. Since lichens (their winter diet) grow very, very slowly after fire — it can take between 50 and 100 years — caribou move on to another area once they have completely grazed a section of the range. If fire has destroyed lichens and other plant growth, this will also force caribou to another part of their range.
Females with young calves are sensitive to any activity on the ground. At other times, the degree of disturbance depends on the human activity. In 2004, the BQCMB made many recommendations to governments and regulatory agencies for protecting the herds and their habitats from the effects of increasing mineral exploration and other human-caused activity in its position paper, Protecting Calving Grounds, Post-Calving Areas and Other Important Habitats for Beverly and Qamanirjuaq Caribou.
Behavior
After calving the caribou mass into groups of up to 30,000 caribou. The sight of such groups rivals that of the great herds of wildebeest in Africa. Those dense clumps are believed to provide some relief from blood-sucking mosquitoes.
Health and Diet
They eat lichens, especially in winter when other plants are not available. They also feed on the branches of dwarf willow and birch, and on grasses and sedges. In autumn, they eat fungi (mushrooms) as well.
Caribou remain warm in extremely cold temperatures thanks to their hair. Each caribou hair has a network of large, honeycomb-like cells that trap air, acting as an excellent insulator. This is why caribou fur has long been favoured by Inuit hunters as a source of clothing. Air is also trapped between the densely packed hairs. Other winter survival traits include the caribou’s short ears and tail — this allows them to tolerate extreme cold. The large rounded hooves of caribou are used to remove up to one metre of snow over lichens, their main source of food, and to travel on soft wet ground. The Beverly and Qamanirjuaq barren-ground caribou herds migrate south in winter, south of the treeline, to more sheltered climes — another trait favouring their survival.
Caribou often rest during the middle of the day. While caribou may feed among the trees in forested parts of their ranges, they still move out into open spaces, like onto frozen lakes, rivers, meadows or bare ridges, to rest. Moving into the open is a strategy against wolves. The caribou’s only defence is to run away so they want to be able to see the predator coming in order to escape. They lie in compact groups, facing in all directions.
Their hollow hair and short ears and tail allow them to tolerate extreme cold. Their large rounded hooves are used to remove up to one metre of snow over lichens and to travel on soft wet ground. These are just two examples of many.
Source: People and Caribou in the Northwest Territories. Published by the Department of Renewable Resources, Government of the Northwest Territories, 1989, Yellowknife. Page 70.
“Mosquitoes, blackflies and bulldog flies plague the mainland herds in summer, reducing their feeding time by forcing them either to keep on the move or to seek refuge on snow patches. Extreme fly harassment may cause caribou to dash wildly back and forth across the tundra with such recklessness that sometimes animals are badly injured and occasionally die.
Other flies, like the warble and nostril flies, parasitize caribou throughout the winter. During summer, warble flies lay eggs in caribou hair and the larvae which hatch in about a week penetrate the hide and migrate to the animal’s back. There they cut breathing holes through the skin and continue developing all winter in fibrous sacs beneath the hide. In spring they exit through the breathing hole and drop to the ground where they pupate and a month later emerge as flies. Small oval scars on the hide show where the exit holes have healed over.
Nostril flies deposit larvae in the nostrils of caribou and these maggots crawl through the nasal passage until they reach the entrance to the throat where they remain all winter. In May, the fully grown larvae are coughed onto the ground where they spend two weeks to a month as pupae before emerging as flies. As many as 156 nostril fly larvae have been found in one caribou. In such concentrations they make breathing difficult for the caribou, especially when it has to run hard.”
Calving and Reproduction
Only one. Herded reindeer occasionally have two calves.
The rutting season in October is accompanied by displays of fighting among bulls competing for cows. The book Caribou and the Barren-Lands by George Calef includes a detailed description of the rutting season. Check to see if your local library carries this book.
Besides providing nourishment in the form of milk rich in fat, the mothers lead their calf away from any danger. The mothers will defend their calf from small predators but cannot do much if a wolf is the attacker. In winter, the mothers paw away snow with their large round hoofs and allow the calf to feed on exposed lichens and other vegetation in the resulting feeding ‘crater.’ The calf learns how to survive by following the behavior of the mother.
Caribou Harvesting
Current harvest estimates are not available. The most recent estimates of harvest available, for 2005-06, were approximately 14,000 in total from both herds, including about 3,800 Beverly caribou and 10,300 Qamanirjuaq caribou.
Total numbers and relative proportions harvested by each jurisdiction from the two caribou herds may differ substantially from year to year. Based on estimates for 2005-2006, the largest portion of the harvest from the Beverly and Qamanirjuaq herds was taken in Nunavut, the Saskatchewan portion was second largest and the Manitoba portion was third. Nunavut hunters accounted for approximately 60% of the Qamanirjuaq caribou harvest, and Saskatchewan hunters for about 75% of the Beverly caribou harvest.
Caribou meat is no longer available in stores.
Like venison. It’s also a very lean meat, which makes it a good nutritional choice. It’s also far more affordable than imported foods. The value of the resident caribou harvest is estimated as the total edible food weight multiplied by the cost of an appropriate store-bought food like beef. According to statistics compiled in 2001, the total harvest for domestic and commercial use, including outfitting, was approximately 18,500 animals. This total represents over 850,000 kg of meat. Using a value of $20 per kg of beef sold in Kivalliq stores, the replacement value of caribou is considered to be approximately $17 million for the harvest from both herds in 2001.
Lean caribou meat is often more nutritious than imported foods. Nutritionists call caribou a nutrient-dense food. Eating all edible parts of caribou provides a majority of nutrients which, in a southern diet, would have to be obtained from a variety of foods. The only essential nutrient that caribou meat lacks is vitamin D. Caribou meat is low in fat: 1 g fat per 100 g portion (cooked). The equivalent value for beef is 23, for veal 12, for chicken 13, for pork 45, and for lamb, 28. In terms of protein, the equivalencies per 100 g are: caribou 38, beef 17, veal 19, chicken 20, pork 12, and lamb, 16.
It’s because of the hair. Each caribou hair has a network of large, honeycomb-like cells that trap air, acting as an excellent insulator. Air is also trapped between the densely-packed hairs.
Predators, Hunting and Safety
Not at all. Caribou are very docile creatures and are afraid of humans.
Wolves in the range of the herds depend on the caribou for their main food supply. Grizzly bears kill some caribou but their main food supply is vegetation. Wolverine and lynx also are known to attack caribou.