DEH CHO - The Deh Cho isn't immune to the declining caribou numbers occurring across the majority of the Northwest Territories.

According to conservative estimates the woodland boreal caribou population in the Deh Cho is in a slight decline, said Nic Larter, the regional biologist with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Recently, caribou have drawn a lot of attention because of the no-hunting zone the territorial government imposed in the North Slave region at the beginning of the year to protect the Bathurst herd.

However, the caribou situation in the Deh Cho is different for a number of reasons, Larter said.

The Bathurst herd is composed of barren-ground caribou. Although barren-ground caribou sometimes come near Wrigley they aren't the primary caribou type in the region.

The Deh Cho is home to two types of woodland caribou, the northern mountain caribou that live in the Mackenzie Mountains and the boreal caribou.

Boreal caribou are larger and have darker coats than barren-ground caribou. Unlike barren-ground caribou, which live in the barrens in large migratory herds, boreal caribou live in the forest in small groups.

"They're very secretive and elusive," said Larter.

"You wouldn't know they were there. If you see one and take a second look they're gone."

Another way the boreal caribou population differs from the barren-ground is they aren't a main subsistence food source. Moose is the favoured game in the Deh Cho.

"You couldn't go out and live off of (boreal caribou) because you couldn't find them," said Larter.

As a result of their habits the types of formal surveys used on barren ground caribou to determine herd populations don't work on boreal caribou making it impossible to get an exact number, Larter said.

Using a density estimate of two to three caribou per 100 square kilometres there are an estimated 3,000 boreal caribou in the Deh Cho. Based on conservative conclusions from data collected between 2005 to 2009, the population is in a slight decline, he said.

"These are all estimates," Larter added.

The numbers come from studies the department has been conducting since 2004. First Nations in the Deh Cho instigated studies to document seasonal range use and movements.

Following extensive consultation with the Sambaa K'e Dene Band, 10 female caribou were collared in the Celibeta Lake area in 2004 as part of an ecology, fact finding program. At approximately the same time, using direction from the Ka'a'gee Tu First Nation in Kakisa, staff in the South Slave region collared caribou near Kakisa.

Since 2004 a total of 64 female caribou have been collared in the department's Deh Cho region, which doesn't include Kakisa or Fort Providence. Currently, 15 dependable collars are being actively monitored by satellite. The department will be conducting its next classification survey and deploying more collars at the end of the month.

The boreal caribou in the territory have advantages over the populations located in the rest of Canada, said Larter. Nationally, boreal caribou are listed as threatened under the Species at Risk Act because of habitat loss and reduced distribution.

Presently, boreal caribou in the territory are not considered to be at risk.

"We're very fortunate up here. We have large areas of boreal forests that haven't been impacted by linear development," Larter said.

In September 2009, the territorial government released an action plan for woodland boreal caribou conservation from 2010-2015. The plan provides general goals and directions for conservation of the population.

Many of the recommended measures, including monitoring, are already in place in the Deh Cho. With the work that's been done key areas for the caribou can be plotted on maps and land use decisions can be made accordingly, he said.

Dehcho First Nations' Grand Chief Samuel Gargan said the organization is not concerned about boreal caribou in the region. Dehcho First Nations has asked to be part of a working group on the boreal caribou strategy the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is forming.

In Fort Simpson, Liidlii Kue First Nation Chief Jim Antoine said harvesters haven't reported any decrease in boreal caribou numbers to him.

Hunters occasionally find herds and try to take one or two animals from the group, said Antoine. Boreal caribou numbers are declining across the rest of Canada, especially in areas where there's been seismic exploration. Antoine said that more caribou studies have to be conducted before the Mackenzie Gas Project begins.