AB-2025-06798 - Caribou Aerial Relocation Flights

Woodland Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) are listed as a Threatened species in Alberta under the Wildlife Act, and in Canada under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). Habitat alteration and predation linked to industrial footprint have been identified as the main ultimate causes of caribou population decline in Alberta. All management efforts require information concerning caribou population composition and trend. The status of woodland caribou populations in Alberta is determined by modeling the relationship between adult female survival rates, as shown through GPS collar data and telemetry (relocation surveys), and numbers of calves being recruited into the various populations in late winter, as seen during late winter population composition surveys. The modeling of recruitment of calves in relation to adult female survival determines the rate of growth for individual caribou populations, i.e. lambda. Proper classification of the telemetry signal (i.e., alive or mortality signals from the radio collars) on mortality flights is critical to assess if they are on mortality mode or alive.