Lac Joseph caribou herd


The Lac Joseph caribou herd is struggling to survive. Once over 5000 strong, it is now one-fifth that size. Its biggest problem has been the loss of habitat.

In the late 1960s, the Upper Churchill Hydroelectric project flooded an area the size of New Brunswick, destroying the range of the herd. Calving grounds disappeared and the ecological balance between caribou and wolves was altered. Does were forced to calve in a much smaller area making predation by wolves easier.

Flooding and wolves weren’t the only problem. Snow machines replaced dog teams and gave people fast, easy access to the herd. Harvesting increased and animals were disturbed on their wintering grounds. Hunting was banned in 1977, but still, by the mid-80s, the herd had declined to about 500 animals.

This herd is a different kind of caribou from the barren ground type of northern Labrador and elsewhere in Canada's subarctic. These are woodland caribou like those of the Mealey and Red Wine Mountains of Labrador. In other parts of Canada, woodland caribou are listed as threatened. If the Lac Joseph caribou are going to survive, it is essential that they lose no more critical range.

Woodland caribou, Lac Joseph herd
  (Photo: Institute for Environmental Monitoring and Research)

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Mid subarctic forest–Michekemau ecoregion

The most significant physical features of this landscape are the ground-moraine lakes studded with islands. These are among the largest lakes of this kind in the province.

On higher ground, widely-spaced black spruce are separated by carpets of pale green lichen the favoured winter food of the caribou. Scattered here and there are little copses of dwarf birch and thickets of Labrador tea. Trembling aspen, which can be a noble tree further south, reaches its northerly limit here and rarely exceeds a few metres in height.

In flat areas, extensive wetlands develop including string bogs and ribbed fens. These wetlands, lakes and rivers provide homes for the largest concentrations of breeding waterfowl in the region. Among these is the endangered harlequin duck that has been found around Panchia Lake.

Besides the caribou, other mammals that typify the area are moose, wolves, lynx, porcupine, flying squirrel, woodchuck, marten, bog lemming and others. Unlike most other natural regions of the province, this area has four species of amphibians: American toad, wood frog, blue-spotted salamander and lined salamander.

Taken together, the physical features, vegetation and wildlife comprise a natural region found nowhere else in the world.

Ribbed fens and string bogs
 (Photo: Dennis Minty)

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Recreational use and eco-tourism

We also need to protect Lac Joseph - Atikonak for people. It has been used for generations by first nations. Explorers and missionaries found their way here. Yet isolation has allowed the region to escape the footprint of major industrial development.

The region Lac Joseph - Atikonak comes to our generation as a wilderness show-piece. Declared by National Geographic as one of finest wild places in North America, it should be passed on to future generations as pristine as we found it.

Waterways like the Upper and Lower Atikonak River, Riviere aux Poisson and the headland lakes offer world-class canoeing. Fishing is great. Local residents and several outfitters already enjoy fishing for world-class brook trout, lake trout and ounaniche.

Tourism is the world's largest growth sector and, within the sector, eco-tourism leads that trend. Clearly places like Lac Joseph - Atikonak, if it is properly protected, will help position the province to reap the benefits of eco-tourism. In fact, world travelers already come here to experience the mystery and magic of wild Labrador.

Mid Subarctic Forest–Michekemau ecoregion

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