After what Environment Minister Joe Savikataaq described as a successful first year in the Kitikmeot region, he announced on Thursday the expansion of the territorial governmentSA¹ú¼ÊÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½™s wolf sample collection program to the Kivalliq and Qikiqtaaluk regions.
The program provides harvesters with $300 when they supply wolf samples and give details of their kill to local wildlife offices.
Fifty-two hunters harvested 146 wolves in the Kitikmeot region during the 2018-2019 season, with 101 coming from Kugluktuk and 45 from the regionSA¹ú¼ÊÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½™s other communities, according to Savikataaq.
When it introduced the program last year, the Department of Environment stated that the information gathered from the samples will help researchers determine the wolvesSA¹ú¼ÊÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½™ diet and whether the predatorsSA¹ú¼ÊÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½™ population skews younger or older. Wolves prey on caribou, among other Arctic species.