| Dolphin and Union Caribou herd | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Cervidae |
| Subfamily: | Capreolinae |
| Genus: | Rangifer |
| Species: | R. tarandus |
| Subspecies: | R. t. groenlandicus |
| Population: | Dolphin-Union caribou |
| |
| Approximate range of caribou. Dolphin and Union population occupy area 5 and parts of area 4. Overlap with other subspecies of caribou is possible for contiguous range. 1. Rangifer tarandus caribou subdivided into ecotypes: woodland (boreal), woodland (migratory), woodland (montane), 2.R. t. Dawsoni extinct 1907, 3. R. t. groenlandicus, 4. Barren-ground caribou R. t. groenlandicus, 5. R. t. groenlandicus 6. Peary caribou R. t. pearyi | |
Dolphin and Union Caribou,[1] Dolphin and Union caribou herd,[1] Dolphin-Union, locally known as Island Caribou,[2] are a migratory population of barren-ground caribou, Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus, that occupy Victoria Island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and the nearby mainland. They are endemic to Canada. They migrate across the Dolphin and Union Strait from their summer grazing on Victoria Island to their winter grazing area on the Nunavut-Northwest Territories mainland in Canada.[2][3] It is unusual for North American caribou to seasonally cross sea ice and the only other caribou to do so are the Peary caribou who are smaller in size and population. They were listed as Endangered by Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) since November 2017.[4]
- ^ a b COSEWIC 2004.
- ^ a b NWT 2012.
- ^ Poole, Patterson & Dumond 2010.
- ^ "Caribou (Rangifer tarandus): COSEWIC assessment and status reports 2017", COSEWIC, November 2017, archived from the original on 2 October 2022, retrieved 23 May 2022