Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond
Abstract Local people can act as sentinels for change, especially for wildlife populations not monitored by centralized governments. Responding to concern expressed by the Kitasoo Xai'xais (KX) First Nation over a decline in mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) sightings, our community‐academic...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2022-04-01
|
| Series: | Conservation Science and Practice |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12662 |
| _version_ | 1811328495987458048 |
|---|---|
| author | Tyler D. Jessen Christina N. Service Kim G. Poole A. Cole Burton Andrew W. Bateman Paul C. Paquet Chris T. Darimont |
| author_facet | Tyler D. Jessen Christina N. Service Kim G. Poole A. Cole Burton Andrew W. Bateman Paul C. Paquet Chris T. Darimont |
| author_sort | Tyler D. Jessen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Local people can act as sentinels for change, especially for wildlife populations not monitored by centralized governments. Responding to concern expressed by the Kitasoo Xai'xais (KX) First Nation over a decline in mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) sightings, our community‐academic partnership assessed the conservation status of goats in KX territory and beyond in British Columbia by evaluating three independent information sources. Aerial surveys (2019 and 2020) over 542 km2 revealed a low‐density population (mean 0.25, SD 0.12 goats/km2), typical of peripheral coastal range. Interviews with KX Knowledge Holders revealed that sightings from sea level have declined sharply over 40 years, a period during which temperatures have increased and snowpack has decreased. Finally, Kill data (1980–2018) showed that kills/hunter/day initially increased among guided hunters before plateauing, but declined among resident hunters (~70% of hunt days) in both coastal and interior BC. Convergent patterns among datasets suggest that coastal goats declined in abundance and/or reduced use of low‐elevation habitat, disrupting a millennia‐old relationship between KX people and goats, thereby posing a conservation concern. Broadly, our work shows that detecting threats to peripheral populations, and wildlife in general, can be informed and empowered by the knowledge of place‐based peoples and associated decentralized management. Kitasoo Xai'xais First Nation mountain goat research illustrates roles of Indigenous peoples as sentinels of population and ecosystem change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T15:27:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e88c28089cb34330b62932db1ee56c3f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2578-4854 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T15:27:14Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conservation Science and Practice |
| spelling | doaj.art-e88c28089cb34330b62932db1ee56c3f2022-12-22T02:41:29ZengWileyConservation Science and Practice2578-48542022-04-0144n/an/a10.1111/csp2.12662Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyondTyler D. Jessen0Christina N. Service1Kim G. Poole2A. Cole Burton3Andrew W. Bateman4Paul C. Paquet5Chris T. Darimont6Department of Geography University of Victoria Victoria British Columbia CanadaStewardship Authority, Kitasoo Xai'xais First Nation British Columbia CanadaAurora Wildlife Research Nelson British Columbia CanadaDepartment of Forest Resources Management University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia CanadaDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Toronto Toronto Ontario CanadaDepartment of Geography University of Victoria Victoria British Columbia CanadaDepartment of Geography University of Victoria Victoria British Columbia CanadaAbstract Local people can act as sentinels for change, especially for wildlife populations not monitored by centralized governments. Responding to concern expressed by the Kitasoo Xai'xais (KX) First Nation over a decline in mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) sightings, our community‐academic partnership assessed the conservation status of goats in KX territory and beyond in British Columbia by evaluating three independent information sources. Aerial surveys (2019 and 2020) over 542 km2 revealed a low‐density population (mean 0.25, SD 0.12 goats/km2), typical of peripheral coastal range. Interviews with KX Knowledge Holders revealed that sightings from sea level have declined sharply over 40 years, a period during which temperatures have increased and snowpack has decreased. Finally, Kill data (1980–2018) showed that kills/hunter/day initially increased among guided hunters before plateauing, but declined among resident hunters (~70% of hunt days) in both coastal and interior BC. Convergent patterns among datasets suggest that coastal goats declined in abundance and/or reduced use of low‐elevation habitat, disrupting a millennia‐old relationship between KX people and goats, thereby posing a conservation concern. Broadly, our work shows that detecting threats to peripheral populations, and wildlife in general, can be informed and empowered by the knowledge of place‐based peoples and associated decentralized management. Kitasoo Xai'xais First Nation mountain goat research illustrates roles of Indigenous peoples as sentinels of population and ecosystem change.https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12662conservation statusindigenous knowledgelocal ecological knowledgemountain goatOreamnos americanussentinel |
| spellingShingle | Tyler D. Jessen Christina N. Service Kim G. Poole A. Cole Burton Andrew W. Bateman Paul C. Paquet Chris T. Darimont Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond Conservation Science and Practice conservation status indigenous knowledge local ecological knowledge mountain goat Oreamnos americanus sentinel |
| title | Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond |
| title_full | Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond |
| title_fullStr | Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond |
| title_full_unstemmed | Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond |
| title_short | Indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human‐wildlife relationships: Conservation status of mountain goats in Kitasoo Xai'xais territory and beyond |
| title_sort | indigenous peoples as sentinels of change in human wildlife relationships conservation status of mountain goats in kitasoo xai xais territory and beyond |
| topic | conservation status indigenous knowledge local ecological knowledge mountain goat Oreamnos americanus sentinel |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.12662 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT tylerdjessen indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT christinanservice indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT kimgpoole indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT acoleburton indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT andrewwbateman indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT paulcpaquet indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond AT christdarimont indigenouspeoplesassentinelsofchangeinhumanwildliferelationshipsconservationstatusofmountaingoatsinkitasooxaixaisterritoryandbeyond |