Jason Unrau
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Nov 18/05) - It's called the Muskomb and it could be a windfall for Inuvialuit looking to cash in on the ever increasing demand for qiviuq, the valuable undercoat muskox shed each spring.

"I think it's a great idea as long as the wool goes into the hands of the hunters and trappers committees (in Sachs Harbour and Holman) to help them in further developing their economic opportunities," said Murray Arsenault, managing director of Muskox Product Company, of researcher Sharon Katz's idea.

Now working on several projects - including the Muskomb - at the Aurora Research Institute in Inuvik, Katz says she came up with the idea after observing muskox in captivity scratch themselves on old street cleaning brushes to aid in the removal of qiviuq, the thick undercoat that insulates the animal in subzero temperatures.

"What we are banking on is the animals will want to scratch," explained Katz of her hopes that muskox in the wild will actually use her Muskombs. "We did an experiment at the (Assiniboine) zoo and the muskox did use them and that gave us encouragement."

While the original idea was to fix the Muskombs to barrels, Katz says the latest plan is to attach the boards, complete with a grid of plastic-coated screws, to boulders. Katz says exactly where these will be fixed on both Banks Island and Victoria Island will depend on hunters and trappers committees in those communities.

"That where be where the traditional knowledge part of the pilot project will come in," added Katz.

Despite the high prices clothing fashioned from qiviuq commands - sweaters sell for between $650 and $1,000 in southern markets - Arsenault said that with the current collection methods, supply just doesn't meet demand.

"It's absolutely the finest natural fibre in the world and the demand is such that the harvest along with passive collection can't meet it," he said.

According to Katz, the reason the wool is so coveted is due to its light weight, fineness and warmth.

"It's different from sheep's wool because it doesn't have scales so it won't itch," said Katz.