Bighorn
in our Backyard (BIOB)
Project
Update
Every fall the Radium-Stoddart Rocky
Mountain Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) return to
forage and mate in their critical winter habitat, which is
centred on the village of Radium Hot Springs, B.C..
Historically, this region was characterized by
fire-maintained grassland and open forest ecosystems, and
supported up to 300 bighorn sheep.
However, decades of fire suppression resulting in the
encroachment and ingrowth of dense coniferous forests, as
well as increasing human alteration of the landscape have
created smaller and less suitable winter habitat for the
sheep. As a
result, the population of Radium-Stoddart Rocky Mountain
bighorn sheep has dropped to as few as 140 individuals.
The Bighorn In Our Backyard Project (BIOB)
was initiated in 1997 by Osprey Communications and Parks
Canada in order to highlight the needs of the wild bighorn
and their associated ecosystem in the Radium area. It is an
ecosystem-based education and research project involving a
broad range of partners, including community residents,
ranchers, government and non-government agencies, and
various interest groups. Several
projects have been initiated to restore the fire-maintained
grassland and open forest ecosystem in hopes of increasing
the size and quality of the population’s critical winter
range. To date,
restoration projects have been conducted on two provincial
parcels of land (totalling approximately 140 hectares) on
the Radium-Stoddart historic winter range.
The areas were logged, thinned and the slash piles
burned, thereby creating an ideal environment for the growth
of grasses and decreasing the risk of catastrophic wildfire.
Parks
Canada recently initiated the Redstreak Restoration Project
in the south end of Kootenay National Park, in and around
the Redstreak Campground.
During January and February 2003, trees were cut and
removed from three areas (totalling around 150 hectares), to
restore the open forest ecosystem, reduce the dangerous fuel
load and create a fire guard for Redstreak Campground.
Given the right conditions, low intensity prescribed
burns in these areas will begin early in spring 2003 to thin
out the Douglas fir forests, to facilitate nutrient
recycling and restore the open forest ecosystem.
Local
landowners will soon be encouraged to support restoration
efforts through a new BIOB initiative, the Private Land
Stewards Program. BIOB hopes to assist landowners with the
cost and planning of restoration, encouraging a stewardship
ethic. Other
ongoing BIOB Project initiatives include the Bighorn
Community Monitoring Program and remote satellite monitoring
of ten radio-collared bighorn sheep.
With the continuing success of this collaboration
these projects will help to identify bighorn sheep critical
habitat and migration corridors, and thus refine ecosystem
restoration efforts.
For more
information or to request copies of the BIOB newsletter: the
BIOB Beat, please contact:
Larry
Halverson, Naturalist, Lake Louise, Yoho and Kootenay
National Parks. Tel: (250) 347-2207; larry.halverson@pc.gc.ca
For
more information on the Redstreak Restoration Project please
contact:
Rob
Walker, Fire and Vegetation Specialist, Radium Hot Springs.
Tel: (250)347-6155; rob.walker@pc.gc.ca
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