Selkirk Mountain Caribou

Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou)

Selkirk Mountain Caribou Population 5 year Review

The Upper Columbia Fish and Wildlife Office (UCFWO) is the lead federal agency for recovery of the Selkirk Mountain Caribou in the United States. UCFWO biologists represent the U.S. on the Selkirk Mountains Caribou Recovery Team, and on the International Mountain Caribou Technical Committee (IMCTC), which is an international group with members representing the Federal, State, and Provincial governments of the U.S. and Canada, timber industry, Universities, and NGO’s.

Woodland caribou, often referred to as “mountain caribou”, are medium-sized members of the deer family. In the United States, woodland caribou are found in the Selkirk Mountains of northeastern Washington and northwestern Idaho. They are the only remaining woodland caribou population in the lower 48 states. Due to their low and decreasing population numbers these caribou were federally listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1983. In Canada they are considered threatened by COSEWIC (Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada) and are provincially a red-listed (species at risk of extinction or extirpation) by the British Columbia Conservation Data Centre.

The southern Selkirk caribou recovery area lies within northeastern Washington, northwestern Idaho, and southeastern British Columbia. As of late 2007 it was estimated that the South Selkirk herds contain a minimum of 46 caribou, 41 adults and 5 calves.

For further information visit the FWS web site: http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/SpeciesReport.do?spcode=A088