DEH CHO - Moose in the Deh Cho will have an eye in the sky watching them next week.

A moose, top, and a boreal caribou were spotted 5 km south of Willowlake River during last year's moose monitoring survey conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. - photo courtesy of Danny Allaire- ENR

Beginning on Nov. 15 the Department of Environment and Natural Resources will be conducting its annual moose monitoring survey. The survey, which will cover traditional areas around Wrigley, Fort Simpson, Jean Marie River, Nahanni Butte and Fort Liard, is expected to last a week depending on weather conditions, said Nic Larter the regional biologist with the department.

The survey was first held in November 2003 and February 2004 in response to input from communities, which identified moose as an area of interest. Employing moose survey technique new to the territory the Deh Cho was broken into 16-square-kilometre blocks.

Residents were asked to identify which blocks they thought moose could be found in. The first survey, which covered 180 blocks, proved residents were right about moose locations and established a density of 4.5 to five moose per 100 square kilometres as a baseline, said Larter.

Every November since then the department has conducted a smaller scale survey, because of cost considerations, to monitor the population. The small surveys alone cost between $20,000 to $25,000, Larter said.

This year Danny Allaire, a Wildlife Technician 2, and residents from each community will be flying over 70 blocks. Whether the counting is easy or difficult is primarily dependent on the weather, Allaire said.

Fresh snow, bright sunlight and low tree cover makes it easier to spot moose. If the light is flat and the bush is thicker it takes more passes to properly cover an area, said Allaire.

The count is held in November because the moose are more active and they still have their antlers, which makes it easier to classify them by sex. The timing also places the survey after the big fall hunt, said Allaire.

This year both Larter and Allaire expect to see a strong number of moose. Hunters have been reporting they've been finding moose and that they're in good shape and fat, said Larter. Also, each year the survey finds cows with twin calves.

"The twins indicate things are good out in the habitat," he said.

The six smaller surveys between 2004 and 2009 found densities ranging from two to nine moose per 100 square kilometres. The variation is because the surveys are smaller and freeze-up conditions alter where moose are found and, therefore, the survey results, said Larter.

The baseline will be fully checked again next year. At the Deh Cho Regional Wildlife Workshop that was held in Fort Simpson in October, delegates from Dehcho First Nations' communities asked for another wide scale survey to be held.

While the smaller surveys would alert the department if numbers dropped or rose dramatically the large surveys are needed every five to six years to assess the bigger picture and produce more statistically reliable data, said Larter.

Peter Marcellais is one Deh Cho resident who sees the moose monitoring survey as being beneficial.

"It's good. It gives you more information," Marcellais said.

Last year Marcellais, who's from Nahanni Butte, helped count the moose in his area during the survey.

"We had quite a bit," he said.

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