Baffin Island caribou hunt halted

Total allowable harvest for the season has been reached

This year’s Baffin Island caribou harvest is closed effective immediately, the Department of Environment has announced. (File photo)

By Dustin Patar

Caribou hunting on Baffin Island is closed for the season, says Nunavut’s Department of Environment.

The total allowable harvest of 250 caribou has been reached, the department said in a news release issued on Tuesday, Feb. 25.

The Nunavut Wildlife Management Board established the total allowable harvest to support the recovery of Baffin Island’s caribou populations.

Any remaining hunting tags should be returned to a local wildlife office or hunters and trappers organization, the news release states.

The Department of Environment warns that further harvesting of Baffin Island caribou during the 2019-20 season is in violation of the Nunavut Wildlife Act and will be investigated.

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(6) Comments:

  1. Posted by Consistency on

    Any community that will have to return tags can thank Iqaluit for this. They WAY over harvested what they should have been allowed but they are not the ones that are held responsible.
    QWB since you divide the tags between communities i think you should not give any to Iqaluit next year.

  2. Posted by NBaffin on

    Caribou farming should be implemented and be an option for every community due to the continuing situation.

  3. Posted by concerned on

    Back in 1967, the gov’t put 15 musk ox to old chimo in Nunavik, now they’re over 5000. Nuisance. Anyways, I think Nunavik should put some of our caribou which are abundant of about 1/4 million to Nunavut. Where it is most needed at this time. We have good caribou of Leaf River Herd and I think they can grow i Nunavut.

    • Posted by Hunter on

      Not that simple. The George and Leaf River herds are Borreal Woodland tuktu, not Barrenland tuktu. Unlikely they could survive the open tundra with no tree cover for shelter or food. Don’t believe they’d survive on moss alone.

      There Ummiak up near Pond Inlet, but not in South Baffin. I’m sure the Qikiqtani HTAs would like to see an Ummiak program to populate all their regions.

      Populating Baffin Island with Reindeer, as in Alaska, is probably more feasible. Have any past studies been done?

  4. Posted by concerned on

    Back in 1967, the gov’t put 15 musk ox to old chimo in Nunavik, now they’re over 5000. Nuisance. Anyways, I think Nunavik should put some of our caribou which are abundant of about 1/4 million to Nunavut. Where it is most needed at this time. We have good caribou of Leaf River Herd and I think they can grow in Nunavut.

  5. Posted by haster on

    the gov’t put 15 musk ox to old chimo in Nunavik, now they’re over 5000. Nuisance. Anyways, I think Nunavik should put some of our caribou which are abundant of about 1/4 million to Nunavut. Where it is most needed at this time. We have good caribou of Leaf River Herd and I think they can grow in Nunavut.

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