+ Who we are

Arrow Lakes Caribou Society (ALCS) was established in 2019 to provide a local voice in caribou recovery efforts in the Central Selkirk range in British Columbia (BC). Membership includes representation from community organizations, outdoor recreational groups, local industry and the local and regional governments. ALCS envisions a transparent, cooperative and collaborative approach to land-use decision-making, where caribou recovery decisions are evidence-based and integrate local values and needs.

To learn more about ALCS, visit arrowlakescaribousociety.com.

+ How ALCS is involved in caribou recovery

Through participation in public consultation and herd planning meetings, ALCS has developed a working relationship with the government of BC and the Provincial Caribou Recovery Program to give a local voice to caribou recovery efforts and help maintain an inclusive and transparent approach to caribou recovery. ALCS is championing a caribou maternity pen project for the Central Selkirk herd near Nakusp, BC. The project aims to increase calf recruitment by protecting cows and their calves from predation around the calving season.

ALCS is also developing a plan for habitat restoration within the Central Selkirk range. Habitat restoration (e.g. deactivating roads, planting trees and shrubs, transplanting lichen) helps regenerate disturbed sites and create the high-value habitat caribou need to thrive.

+ Why ALCS supports caribou conservation breeding

Ensuring the survival of caribou and restoring their habitat is crucial for both caribou and the many species that form the mountain ecosystems they live in. Conservation breeding, combined with other recovery strategies such as habitat restoration, maternity penning and predator control, can support the recovery of the most vulnerable caribou herds by building assurance populations and generating stock for herd reinforcement and reintroduction efforts.

ALCS, through the proposed maternity pen project, can directly support the caribou conservation breeding program by providing a pen for the soft release of animals to the Central Selkirk herd. Soft release, by temporarily holding the translocated animals in a predator-exclusion enclosure, allows the animals to acclimate to the release site prior to release and, ultimately, increases the likelihood of success of herd reinforcement and reintroduction efforts.