Conservation
As defined by the wildlife management principles “Wildlife is considered an international resource” (North American Wildlife Conservation Model - NAWCM). This means that everybody is equally responsible to manage the wildlife. Wildlife and Biodiversity are of international importance and are a measure of human and ecosystem health, a principle supported by the United Nations and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
Where We Work - The Chilcotin Ark
We work in the Chilcotin Ark, a complex 10,000 square mile ecosystem located on the lee side of the Coast Range Mountains. This region is of high ecological value on an international scale due to its high biodiversity and interconnectedness. The Chilcotin Ark is an optimal refuge for plants and animals.
The Ark's high ecological value can be measured in the number of biogeoclimatic zones. 12 of the 16 biogeoclimatic zones of British Columbia are present in the concentrated area of the Chilcotin Ark. Therefore a high biodiversity is found throughout the area. The Chilcotin Ark is home to 11 of the 29 big game species of North America. One of them is the woodland caribou which is federally and provincially protected under the Species at Risk Act. You can also find Canada's best white bark pine populations in the Chilcotin Ark. White bark pine is an endangered species growing at tree line.
The Chilcotin Ark functions as an important wildlife corridor for migration and shift in habitat due to global warming. The Chilcotin Ark contributes to the Yellowstone to Yukon Wildway that allows wildlife to migrate throughout the North American continent.
Due to the vertical elevation profile in the Chilcotin Ark, wildlife species are able to migrate a short distance vertically up the mountains instead of moving much further north to adapt to climate change.
BCTMO Conservation Club Conservation Efforts
Since 1918 BCTMO Conservation Club and our family have taken the responsibility to steward and conserve the Chilcotin Ark. A uniquely biodiverse area, home to ecosystems reaching from plateaus, over glaciers to alpine meadows and abundant wildlife populations.
Previously our focus has been on stewarding our guide territory and surrounding area. But now together with the Chilcotin Ark Institute and the Stewardship Foundation we are expanding the region of our conservation and stewardship research and projects to the whole Chilcotin Ark to ensure habitat connectivity and climate change resilience. We support a working landscape concept and management that sustains viable populations of species. The tool we use for measuring the success of our conservation efforts is to achieve maximum wildlife population numbers for the habitat‘s potential carrying capacity, this being the indicator for sustainable land management.
5% of every hunt goes towards
conservation initiatives in the Chilcotin Ark
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