More wolves killed since new government incentives in northwest Canada

Last year, 59 wolves were culled under a new incentive program designed to support the recovery of caribou herds in steep decline. (Submitted by ENR)
Dozens of wolves were killed by hunters under a new incentive program last year. But a biologist with the territorial government says it’s too soon to say if the program is helping caribou.

The territorial government launched the Enhanced North Slave Wolf Harvest Incentive Program last winter. It was designed to support the recovery of barren-ground caribou herds that have been in rapid decline by culling a key predator — wolves.

The program drew criticism in the past from biologists who questioned its efficacy.

The territorial government said hunters harvested 59 wolves in the new harvest area last year. Seven others were harvested outside the new area.

That’s an increase from 40 wolves in 2017/18, according to Robert Mulders, a carnivore biologist with the territorial government.

“There’s a lot of concern about the role of predators — in particular, wolves,” said Mulders. “The objective is to put more harvest pressure on the wolves.”

“There’s a fair bit of interest with more tags being sold,” he said.

Demand for tags nearly tripled in 2018/19, with 1,057 tags awarded, according to a recent North Slave operational report.

Wolf pelts harvested in the N.W.T. at auction. The incentive program paid hunters up to $900 per pelt harvested in a specific zone. (Submitted by ENR)

Under the program, the territorial government paid hunters $900 per wolf pelt harvested in the incentive harvest zone, and up to $1,650 per animal, depending on the quality of the pelt.

Many of the wolves harvested were in “reasonably good shape” and taken within ten to 20 kilometres of the winter road, said Mulders.

Necropsies confirmed 95 per cent of those wolves had eaten caribou. Previous versions of the incentive program saw many hunters trapping wolves near dumps and communities.

Mulders said at least now they know trappers are harvesting in areas where there’s lots of caribou.

“Definitely a step in the right direction here,” said Mulders, who noted launching the program in February could account for the moderate increase in animals harvested.

“The literature and other jurisdictions that have done this have suggested you do have to remove 60 to 80 percent of the wolf population and keep that pressure up for a number of years to be effective,” he said, “so that’s definitely something we’re striving for.”

Inuvialuit trapper, Nathan Kogiak, stands in his skinning shack in Yellowknife where he prepares pelts such as wolf, lynx and fox. (Kate Kyle/CBC)

For Inuvialuit trapper Nathan Kogiak, each wolf pelt counts.

“I was raised on caribou,” said Kogiak, who lives in Yellowknife and regularly traps lynx.

He jumped at the chance to take part in a program that could help caribou herds recover.

“If this is the one thing we can do right now, then of course I’m going to participate,” he said.

Kogiak says a cull of 59 wolves is “pretty good” considering how vast their range is.

And the incentive makes it easier to get way out on the land.

“Going for a wolf inside the zone to me is worth it. That’s 900 bucks,” he said, per pelt. With the expense of gas, he said, “it made a difference.”

A map showing the areas where wolves were harvested last year. (Submitted by ENR)
‘Hundreds of wolves’ could be harvested

The territorial government did not have any firm targets for last year’s wolf incentive harvest program, though management plans for the Bathurst herd suggest harvesting 80 and 120 wolves, said Mulders.

He says the territorial government, and other jurisdictions in Canada, don’t have a good handle on how many wolves there are.

“It’s a vast area, a huge chunk of real estate,” he said, referring to their range.

“The challenge is that not having reliable measures of wolf abundance makes it difficult to set those target levels,” he said. There’s also variability in the number of caribou herds in the winter range.

“We do think significantly more wolves could be taken, particularly on the barrens. People get out on their snow machine and move away from the winter road,” he said.

If those areas were harvested, “we could be into the hundreds of wolves,” he said.

The territory is going even further this year to get hunters involved.

Wolf tags cost $22 last year, but this year, they’ll be free. Wolf pelt preparation and harvesting workshops will be held in North Slave communities.

“It’s very urgent,” said Mulders. “The Bathurst and Bluenose-East herds are in significant decline…. It’s just finding an approach that the co-management partners will support.”

Related stories from around the North:

Canada: Northern Canadians want caribou calving grounds protected, WWF says, Radio Canada International

Finland: Finland’s wolf population up 10 percent, Yle News

Norway: Polar bear shot dead after attacking person on Svalbard, The Independent Barents Observer

Russia: Walruses attack, sink small navy craft in Arctic Russia, The Independent Barents Observer

Sweden: Sweden’s wolf numbers slide, illegal hunting blamed, Radio Sweden

United States: Trump admin pushes for looser rules on predator hunting in Alaska, Alaska Public Media

Kate Kyle, CBC News

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