Revelstoke Snowmobile Strategy

APPENDIX "C"
IMPLICATIONS OF SNOWMOBILING ON MOUNTAIN CARIBOU ANNUAL REPORT: YEAR ONE

 
Prepared by:
Janis Hooge, Carla Davidson and Bruce McLellan
December 2001

Funding provided by:

• Columbia Basin Trust

• Friends of Mt. Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks

• Habitat Conservation Trust Fund
   

Woodland caribou that live in wet ecosystems with deep snowpacks have been identified as mountain caribou (Heard and Vagt 1998). These caribou are closely associated with old forests that are relatively common in these wet regions. In these forests, arboreal lichen (Bryoria spp. and Alectoria sarmentosa), the primary winter food of caribou, is abundant (Stevenson et al. 1994) while predators are rare (Seip and Cichowski 1996). Due to their low population size, fragmented distribution, low reproductive rate, declining population trend and potential for conflicts with people, mountain caribou have been "red-listed" or classified as a threatened ecotype (B.C. Conservation Data Centre 2001, COSEWIC 2001).

The potential conflict between mountain caribou habitat requirements and forest practices has led to mountain caribou studies over most of their distribution in south-eastern British Columbia. The focus of these studies has usually been related to forest management. Habitat selection by mountain caribou has been well documented (Simpson et al. 1987, Rominger and Oldemeyer 1989, Seip 1992, Terry et al. 2000, Apps et al. 2000), as have methods of partial cutting forest stands to maintain habitat attributes that are important to caribou (Stevenson et al. 2001) and caribou population characteristics (Seip 1990, Heard and Vagt 1998, Flaa and McLellan 1999).

During the extensive land-use planning processes that were completed in British Columbia during the 1990s, integrating habitat needs of caribou with forest management was a primary issue addressed wherever these animals are found and relied heavily on information from the various caribou studies. Since the initiation of these planning processes, however, backcountry winter recreation has increased to where it is also a prominent issue facing land managers. Due to improved access and equipment, plus an increasing demand by the public and commercial enterprises, the potential for conflict between mountain caribou and winter recreationists has rapidly grown.

While most caribou-related issues facing the forest industry are in the more productive, lower-elevation forests used by caribou in the early winter, recreational issues occur mainly in the high-elevation, late winter habitat. The open, subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa) parkland conditions that make ideal late winter caribou habitat have the same features that create ideal snowmobiling, heli-skiing, and ski-touring terrain. Although the effects of winter recreational activities on caribou have not been the primary focus of research, anecdotal observations by many biologists have indicated that some caribou have been displaced at least temporarily by snowmobiling (H. Armleder, J. Hooge, B.N. McLellan, G. Watts, J. Young, pers. comm.). In addition, the concurrent abandonment of winter ranges by caribou such as Boulder Mountain, Big Timothy Mountain and Yanks Peak while snowmobiling use dramatically increased has led to concern over compatibility. However, caribou range abandonment in the absence of snowmobiling and continued use by some caribou in areas with snowmobiling indicates that the relationship between snowmobiling and caribou is complex.

Both mountain caribou and mountain snowmobiling are largely unique to British Columbia and therefore British Columbia cannot rely on research done in other jurisdictions for direction on this specific issue. Existing literature on the effects of various types of disturbance on caribou comes mostly from industrial and military sources of disturbance (Bradshaw 1994, Bradshaw et al 1997, Bradshaw et al 1998, Nelleman and Cameron 1996, Harrington and Veitch 1991). Disturbance from petroleum exploration in northern Alberta (Bradshaw 1994) caused displacement of caribou and he suggested that the displacement may have been sufficient to reduce reproductive rates (Bradshaw et al 1998). In Québec, Duchesne et al (2000) found caribou increased vigilance at the expense of foraging when ecotourists were present.

The effects of snowmobiling on other cervids has largely been limited to travel along roads and trails and studies have had varied results. In areas of Yellowstone National Park, where animals are highly habituated to large numbers of tourists, elk (Cervus elaphus) showed little overt response to snowmobiling (Schultz and Bailey 1978). However, a recent study in Yellowstone showed a direct relationship between snowmobiling intensity and levels of stress hormones in elk (Creel et al 2001). Other studies have found whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) to be temporarily displaced from areas near snowmobile trails (Dorrance et al 1975).

In January 2000, the Columbia Basin Trust (CBT) provided funding to investigate the effects of recreational snowmobiling on caribou habitat use in the Revelstoke area. Research activities for the remainder of that winter included monitoring trail use by snowmobiles in the Frisby Ridge and Keystone-Standard Basin areas, obtaining historic snowmobile use data, and radiocollaring study animals in the Keystone-Standard Basin, Frisby Ridge, and Sale Mountain areas. Later that spring, the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund (HCTF) provided funding to extend this research project into other areas of the province.

Due to the exceptionally low snowpack during the 2000-2001 winter, many caribou did not move into their normal high-elevation winter ranges because there was an insufficient snowpack to lift them to where lichen is abundant in the tree canopy. In addition, the radiocollared caribou that did move to typical high-elevation winter ranges did not use areas with snowmobiling. These conditions precluded work on both the field activities and the late-winter censuses that had been planned for this season. In the spring of 2001, a retrospective analysis of existing caribou data was conducted. Using data collected during the course of past habitat studies, we attempted to detect whether there has been a long-term change in the amount of caribou use of specific snowmobiling destinations.
 

Mountain caribou exist in the interior wet-belt of south-eastern and east-central British Columbia. The specific areas used in this study include:

1. Columbia Forest District
Recreational snowmobiling, both by local residents and tourists, has a long history in the Columbia Forest District. Areas such as Frisby Ridge have had snowmobile use since the 1970s. Recent improvements have enabled snowmachines to operate in deeper snow and steeper terrain and these areas now receive more intensive use for a longer portion of the winter than in the past. The Revelstoke Snowmobile Club (RSC) operates a snowcat to groom access roads to the subalpine on Frisby Ridge, and there are commercial guiding and rental businesses operating in this area as well. A portion of the Frisby Ridge area is closed to snowmobile use to provide a secure area for caribou and the RSC has installed signs that provide guidelines on appropriate behaviour when caribou are encountered. Simpson (1987) estimated 400 snowmobile-use days on Frisby Ridge between January and April 1985, and reported that most use occurred in March and April when snow conditions permitted more efficient travel. It is now common for Frisby Ridge to have >100 snowmobilers/day during peak season.

Other areas in the Columbia Forest District used by both snowmobiles and caribou include Keystone/Standard Basin and Sale Mountain. Until the mid-1990s, Keystone/Standard Basin received occasional, late-season use, largely from local snowmobilers. However, in the last three years use has increased to >80 snowmobiles/day during busy weekends. There were no areas closed to snowmobiling in the Keystone/Standard Basin area. A pilot project by the RSC to groom the access road to Keystone/Standard Basin was tested in 1999/2000 but has been discontinued.

Snowmobiling and caribou share the same terrain on Sale Mountain, however, animals radio collared near this area and late winter censuses have shown so little caribou use of this area over the past decade that it will not be discussed in this report.
 

2. Silvercup Ridge
Silvercup Ridge is located approximately 130 km north of Nelson. This ridge rises immediately above the northeast side of Trout Lake, separating the lake from the headwaters of the Lardeau River. The nearest population center to this snowmobiling area is Nakusp which is approximately a one hour drive away. There is year-round accommodation and a gas station in the nearby town of Trout Lake, and these facilities are interested in developing this area as a snowmobiling destination.

Topographically, Silvercup Ridge is similar to Frisby Ridge, consisting of a long alpine ridge with gentle basins on one side and more rugged terrain on the other. Most snowmobilers access the alpine area via American Creek or Rue de Beau roads on the south half of the ridge. Old mining roads, as well as newer logging roads, provide access to the alpine. There is also heli-skiing on Silvercup Ridge. Until the early 1990s, there was virtually no snowmobile use of this area, but up to 15 snowmobilers/day use it now (D. Seaton, pers. comm.). There are no access restrictions in this area.
 

3.Cariboo Forest Region
There are several caribou wintering areas within the Williams Lake region that are used by snowmobilers. Snowmobile use predates the collection of telemetry data in some of these areas. Some terrain in this area is less rugged than the Columbia Forest District or the Central Selkirks and caribou winter on subalpine plateaus and broad mountaintops which provide more continuous habitat. Several areas of concern exist in the Cariboo Region including Groundhog Lake, Yanks Peak, Cameron Ridge, Bill Miner Creek, and Mica Mountain. There is one commercial snowmobile operator working out of the Wells area.
 

The data used in this analysis were collected during previous caribou habitat studies. For each study, caribou were captured in late winter by netgunning from a helicopter. They were collared with mortality-sensitive radiocollars and their location recorded at least biweekly during the winter from a fixed-wing aircraft.

Caribou were censused when most were in alpine and subalpine habitats during March. Shortly after a new snowfall, 3 observers would fly in a helicopter along a contour close to treeline (1,800 – 2,130 m). Tracks observed would be followed until the animals were observed and counted. The censuses conducted since 1994 in the Columbia Forest District are thought to be more thorough than those conducted earlier.

Snowmobiling areas in Columbia Forest District, Silver Cup Ridge, and Cariboo Forest Region were identified by combining the input of local snowmobilers with the knowledge of pilots and caribou biologists familiar with the area. These areas were delineated on 1:50000 topographic maps or 1:20000 orthophotos then digitised into the GIS PAMAP on 1:20000 maps. Census observations and late winter (January – April) caribou telemetry locations were overlaid on the snowmobiling polygons to determine the proportion of caribou use in snowmobiling and in non-snowmobiling areas for each year.

In the Mica Mountain area, snowmobiling activity is centered near the peak and surrounding basins. In this area distances of caribou radio locations from Mica Mountain peak were compared between years to test the hypothesis that as snowmobiling increased, caribou shifted their use away from the center of activity and onto adjacent ridges.
 

Columbia Forest District
Censuses were conducted in the Columbia Forest District each winter between 1988 and 1991, and in 1993,1994, 1996 and 1997. In Standard Basin, caribou were frequently seen in the snowmobiling area in most years (Figure 1). On Frisby Ridge, no caribou have been seen in the snowmobiling area during a census since 1988. Based on census data, the total number of animals on Frisby Ridge (snowmobile and non-snowmobile areas) has declined since 1994. (Figure 2).

In the Williams Lake area, caribou have been censused each winter since 1993. There does not appear to be a change in the proportion of caribou seen in snowmobiling areas (Figure 3). Censuses were conducted in the Silvercup Ridge area annually from 1996 to 1999. No caribou were observed in the snowmobiling area during these censuses but they were found in the basins on the northeast side of the ridge.

In the Standard Basin area, two caribou were radiocollared in 1992 and two others in 1993. Between 1993 and 1999, these animals were located in the snowmobiling area 8 to 26 % of the time during the late winter period. In 2000 and 2001, they were not found in this area but used high-elevation ridges to the southeast of Standard Basin (Figure 1).

On Frisby Ridge, four caribou were radio collared in 1981 and 1982 and were located until 1984 by Keith Simpson. In 1993, four more were collared. In the 1980s and between 1994 and 1996, 14 to 36% of the radiolocations were in the snowmobiling area. Collared animals were not located in the snowmobiling area since 1996 (Figure 2).

Silvercup Ridge
On Silvercup Ridge five caribou were radiocollared between 1995 and 1998. These animals were relocated 25 and 36% of the time in the snowmobiling area in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1997 and 1998, they were located 9 and 8% of the time in the snowmobiling area respectively (Figure 4).

Cariboo Forest Region
Between 1994 and 2000, 8 to 20% of the late winter caribou radio locations in the Williams Lake Region were in snowmobiling areas. In 1993, the first year animals were monitored, 38% of the locations were in snowmobiling areas (Figure 3).

Caribou locations collected in the 1980s when snowmobiling was relatively uncommon were an average of 7.9 km (n= 60, SD = 4.4) from Mica Peak and significantly less (t = 3.45, df = 136) than the 10.5 km average (n = 78, SD = 4.3) during the 1990s. Furthermore, caribou relocations from 1993 – 1997 were an average of 8.5 km (n = 35, SD = 3.7) from Mica Mountain and significantly less (t = 3.98, df = 76) than the 12.1 km average (n = 43, SD = 4.0) from 1998 -2000 during which time access to the alpine was improved through implementation of a trail grooming program. With the exception of the above specific data since 1994, there has been no obvious trend in caribou movements in or out of the snowmobile areas within the Cariboo Region. The telemetry and census data suggest a decrease in caribou use of snowmobiling areas between 1993 and 1994. Other areas, such as Bill Miner Creek, have recently had a reduction in caribou use (Jim Young pers. comm.). The Bill Miner drainage was at one time consistently used by caribou in the winter, but in the last five years has received only minimal caribou use.
 

Results of retrospective studies are often equivocal. The level of control necessary to disentangle the multitude of factors influencing the behaviour or population process of a species is rarely obtained without carefully planned experimental design. Our study is not an exception. There is a trend suggesting a shift of caribou use away from snowmobiling areas over the years, however, this result is inconclusive. The original intent of the telemetry studies was not to specifically collect data from snowmobiling areas, but to ensure an even representation of collared animals over their entire distribution. This design resulted in fewer collared animals in or near snowmobiling areas than would have been optimal.

Of all the areas with snowmobiling and caribou-use data, Keystone/Standard Basin appears to have the most appropriate information. There, caribou were collared and monitored when there was very little snowmobile activity but snowmobiling rapidly increased while collared caribou were monitored. In Keystone/Standard Basin, caribou have shifted the areas that they use over the past five winters. They now spend nearly all of the winter in areas inaccessible to snowmobiles. During regular telemetry flights over the Keystone/Standard Basin area in the winters of 1999-2000 and 2000-01, only a few sets of caribou tracks were observed in the areas used by snowmobiles. The absence of caribou from this winter range over the past two winters may be a reflection of the unpredictability of caribou movements. If caribou continue to avoid this area, however, it may indicate the start of long-term range abandonment similar to that on Boulder Mountain, Big Timothy Mountain and Yanks Peak.

The results of census and telemetry data from Frisby Ridge show a similar pattern as Keystone/Standard Basin with no animals being seen in the snowmobiling area during censuses for many years. On Frisby Ridge, however, a few caribou are still observed by snowmobilers and the animals show little or no immediate reaction to the machines (Tom Dickson and Ron LaRoy, RSC). It appears that a small group of animals may have gradually become habituated to the gradual increase in snowmobile use in this area over the past 20 years. The relatively narrow and long ridge with areas closed to snowmobiling may have enhanced the habituation process. When in areas closed to snowmobiling or some steep side basins, caribou can be close enough to hear snowmobiles but infrequently encounter them at close range. Steeper ridges, such as Frisby Ridge or Silvercup Ridge where portions are not snowmobiled due to closures or difficult terrain, likely provide animals with greater security than more open plateaus such as Keystone/Standard Basin or portions of the Cariboo Forest Region (i.e. Quesnel Highland) and thus more intensive snowmobiling could be tolerated. Understanding the process of caribou habituation to predictable and innocuous activities, and the many factors involved in this process, will be an important step towards integrating caribou and snowmobiling.

Animal movement may be one of the easier response variables to measure in a disturbance study, but other aspects of an animal’s behaviour are also important. Knight and Cole (1995) suggested that responses to disturbance may be both short and long term. Temporary movements away from a disturbance, an alteration in activity patterns, or a physiological response such as an increase in heart rate would be examples of short-term reactions. These factors, however, may be additive and translate to more serious long-term effects. For example, a decrease in time spent foraging plus the increased energy expenditures associated with displacement from a preferred feeding or resting area may reach a threshold where an individual’s fitness could be affected and thus have consequences at the population level. Stress hormones are produced as a short-term response to environmental stress, but if chronically elevated they may have detrimental physiological effects such as immune system suppression and decreased reproduction (Creel et al 2001). Deer and elk exposed to all-terrain vehicle (ATV) disturbance showed decreased reproductive success (Yarmoloy 1988, Phillips 1998).

Although animals may alter their temporal use of an area to avoid recreationists, shifts in behaviour have costs usually in the form of inefficient foraging or increased movements. Elk that were experimentally disturbed by an ATV made greater daily movements than undisturbed animals (Vieira et al 2000) and elk responded more strongly to situations where human activity was unpredictable and inconsistent (Schultz and Bailey 1978). During experimental closures on Frisby Ridge during the mid-1980s, Simpson (1987) found increased caribou use of the central portion of the ridge when it was closed to snowmobiles. Animals used the portion of the ridge that was left open to snowmobiling less frequently when the adjacent section was closed.

Even seemingly low-impact recreational activities may have an effect on caribou. In Québec, Duchesne et al (2000) studied the responses of woodland caribou to regular, escorted ecotourist visits. They found that during the disturbance period, caribou spent more time standing and in vigilant behaviours at the expense of time spent foraging and resting compared to periods when groups of people were not present. For elk, standing requires 25% more energy consumption than resting (Parker et al 1984) so even this seemingly inconsequential response may have affect an individual’s body condition if subjected to this disturbance on a regular basis. Duchesne et al (2000) also reported that these effects decreased as the winter progressed. This decrease may reflect habituation of the animals to the ecotourists or it may be that the animals could not afford to maintain this response as their body condition dropped later in the season.

Results of disturbance studies conducted in other areas are unlikely to be directly applicable to the mountains of British Columbia because both mountain snowmobiling and mountain caribou and their habitat are different from situations in other areas. In most other studies, snowmobiles were restricted to roadways or trails in relatively flat terrain (Dorrance 1975, Eckstein 1979, Freddy 1986, Creel et al 2001). Displacement in these areas may have less impact on animals than in more mountainous terrain where wintering areas consist of discrete units of subalpine habitat that are separated by steeply-sided valleys. Animals travelling from one winter range to another may risk exposure to hazards such as avalanches in steep terrain or predators that are more abundant at low elevations.
 

In summary, the existing data do not provide conclusive information on the long-term effects of snowmobiling on mountain caribou. Results from other studies, however, indicate that recreational disturbance, including snowmobiling, has behavioral and physiological effects in other ungulates. Although some caribou continue to inhabit a few areas used by snowmobilers, the reduction in use or abandonment of high-quality winter ranges may indicate that the current level of snowmobile use interferes with caribou use of these areas.

Recreational disturbance is only one of several factors that may influence the number and distribution of mountain caribou. However, declines in the number of caribou is some areas, along with alterations in the distribution of caribou over the last decade, suggest that some factor or combination of factors is having a negative effect on mountain caribou populations. Until more is known about the role of recreational disturbance in this trend, a cautious approach to any expansion of recreational use should be taken in late winter caribou habitat. In the interim, further recreational development should be focused in areas that are outside the current range of mountain caribou. The effectiveness of management plans in areas such as Frisby Ridge should be monitored to evaluate recreationists’ adherence to current guidelines and the level of caribou use of these areas.

Funding is currently in place to continue with the research program initiated in 2000. Recent developments such as fecal stress hormone analysis provide a noninvasive method to observe physiological stress in both control animals (caribou that are not exposed to recreational disturbance) and experimental groups living in areas with varying levels of disturbance. As well, monitoring the continued caribou use of areas that receive, or are projected to receive, increasing levels of use will provide baseline data to evaluate the impacts of recreational development.

Figure 1: Caribou Locations in the Standard Basin area.

Figure 2: Caribou Locations in the Frisby Ridge area.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the many people who supplied data and information for this report. This includes Dennis Hamilton, Doug Seaton and Graham Smith for data and information on the Silvercup Ridge area and Jim Young and John Youds of the Ministry of Water, Air and Land Protection (Cariboo Region) for data from the Williams Lake area. We also thank John Flaa of Parks Canada for helping to initiate this project and for ongoing help in the field. Tom Dickson and Ron LaRoy of the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club provided information on snowmobiling use for the Revelstoke area. Funding was provided by the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund through Ian Hatter and James Quayle of the provincial Wildlife Branch, the Columbia Basin Trust through its Affected Communities Initiative, and the Friends of Mt. Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks.

 
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