14 caribou from 2 endangered herds in B.C. Interior transported to maternity pen near Nakusp
Global News
Of the 14 new members, 10 are adult females, with the remaining four being yearling calves. Of the 10 females, nine are pregnant and will start calving in late May.
Thirteen members of an endangered caribou herd, plus the last survivor of a now-extinct one, were safely captured and moved to a maternity pen near Nakusp Hot Springs late last month.
The Arrow Lakes Caribou Society successfully captured 13 caribou from the Central Selkirk herd and the lone survivor of the Columbia South herd on March 28 from five locations northeast of Nakusp.
Ten of the caribou are adult females, while crews also captured four yearling calves.
“Some of these adults were captured during 2022 operations, and some are new to the pen,” said a news release from the Arrow Lakes Caribou Society, which operates the maternity pen. “The caribou are now in the maternity pen and adapting nicely.”
Most of the caribou were captured in the highlands surrounding Nakusp and transported by helicopter to the landing zone near the maternity pen.
From there, they were transferred onto a snowmobile skimmer with an attendant, then carefully transported to the maternity pen.
At the pen, wildlife veterinarians checked the animals and collected baseline health samples and data. We will know more from these samples in the following weeks, including how many of the cows are pregnant.
There was one particularly poignant capture: the last remaining female member of the Columbia South herd, which lived in the Mount Revelstoke-Glacier National Parks area.
