Abstract
The estimate of 25 845 Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) on the Queen Elizabeth Islands (QEI) in the Canadian High Arctic in summer 1961 is the only nearly range-wide 'benchmark' for the past number of caribou. No variances or confidence intervals were calculated for this estimate and no estimates were calculated for Peary caribou on the three major islands of Ellesmere, Devon, and Axel Heiberg. We reexamined the 1961 raw data by grouping the QEI into five island-complexes ('eco-units') and calculating, for each unit, the estimated number of caribou and the standard error, and the 95% confidence interval of the estimate, using a 'bootstrap' technique with 100 000 replications. Our goal was to provide an ecological basis for evaluating subsequent changes in numbers rather than relying on single-island evaluations. Our bootstrap reanalysis produced an estimate of 28 288 ± 2205 SE with a 95% CI of 20 436—37 031 Peary caribou on the QEI in summer 1961. Substantial differences in density were apparent among the five eco-units, with about a 50-fold difference from 0.01 caribou • km-2 in the Eastern eco-unit to 0.5 caribou • km-2 in the Northwestern eco-unit. The 1961 findings, with our subsequent reexamination, are crucial to any evaluation of trends for the number of Peary caribou on the QEI and the relative importance of individual eco-units for these animals. These findings also allow a more accurate evaluation of the magnitude of the subsequent decline of Peary caribou on the QEI during the last four decades and may help predict future potential levels for caribou in each of the five eco-units.
Highlights
Tener (1963) estimated there were 25 845 Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) on the Queen Elizabeth Islands (QEI) in summer 1961
The 100 000 estimates of caribou numbers formed by randomly resampling transect counts within each eco-unit yielded 28 288 ± 2205 SE and a 95% CI of 20 436—37 031 Peary caribou on the QEI in summer 1961
The Peary caribou on QEI is a unique part of Canada's High Arctic natural heritage and is recog¬ nized as an 'Endangered' form of wildlife in Canada
Summary
Tener (1963) estimated there were 25 845 Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) on the Queen Elizabeth Islands (QEI) in summer 1961. This initial, range-wide, systematic aerial survey of Peary caribou has never been repeated. After Tener's 1961 survey, only three composite multi-island caribou surveys were conducted in WQEI with adequate temporal separation (Miller et al, 1977a; Miller, 1987a, 1987b, 1988, 1989; Gunn & Dragon, 2002). There have been no range-wide sys¬ tematic aerial surveys for Peary caribou on the EQEI or on any major portion of that region since 1961. Parts of Ellesmere Island were subsequently aerially surveyed (Riewe, 1973; Case & Ellsworth, 1991; Gauthier, 1996; Manseau et al, 2004)
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