Wildlife
At Earthroots, we protect Ontario's most vulnerable species — Eastern wolves, Ontario's turtles, and woodland caribou — through science, advocacy, and grassroots action.
Ontario's Caribou
Guardians of the Boreal Wild
Caribou are more than a symbol of Canada's northern wilderness, they are sentinels of the boreal forest, embodying the health of Ontario's most vital and fragile ecosystems. Once widespread across the province, Ontario's caribou now survive only in fragmented pockets of old-growth forest and undisturbed peatlands, landscapes that are rapidly disappearing under the pressure of industrial development.
Today, every remaining caribou herd in Ontario is at risk. Decades of logging, roadbuilding, mining, and energy projects have carved up the ancient forests they depend on. Climate change and expanding human disturbance have pushed them closer to the brink. Without bold, immediate action, Ontario could lose its caribou within a generation.
A Species on the Edge
Ontario is home to two main types of caribou:
Boreal Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou)
Found across the northern boreal forest, these elusive animals require large, undisturbed tracts of mature forest and wetlands to avoid predators and raise their young.
Eastern Migratory Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou)
Historically roaming the Hudson Bay Lowlands, coastal tundra, and northern forest regions, these herds once migrated seasonally across vast landscapes. Today, they are confined to shrinking, fragmented ranges under mounting pressure from industrial encroachment and climate change.
Once present across two-thirds of Ontario, caribou now occupy less than half that area. Many southern herds have already vanished, a stark warning of what's to come without immediate intervention.
Threatened and in Need of Protection
Ontario's caribou are protected under both provincial and federal law, but their status varies by ecotype. Boreal Caribou are listed as Threatened under Ontario's Endangered Species Act (ESA), while Eastern Migratory Caribou are designated Special Concern (SC). Federally, both ecotypes are listed as Threatened under Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA). These listings recognize the severe decline of caribou populations due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and human disturbance, and they mandate recovery planning and protection of critical habitat.
Despite these legal protections, implementation has been inconsistent. Policy rollbacks, exemptions for industrial development, and delays in recovery strategies have left caribou habitats increasingly fragmented and degraded. Scientists agree that caribou require at least 65% undisturbed habitat to maintain self-sustaining populations, a threshold still unmet across much of their range. The combined ESA and SARA status underscores the urgent need for enforceable, science-based action to safeguard these iconic animals and the boreal forests they inhabit.
What's Driving the Decline
Caribou depend on large, intact forests and tundra landscapes to avoid predators and find the lichen-rich habitats they rely on for food. Fragmented landscapes, criss-crossed by roads, clearcuts, and seismic lines, open up pathways for wolves and other predators, increase human access, and break apart the delicate balance caribou need to survive.
Key threats include:
Industrial Logging and Road Networks
Fragment the forest and open pathways for predators while increasing human access to sensitive areas.
Mining and Exploration
In sensitive caribou ranges, disrupting habitat and migration patterns.
Energy and Infrastructure Development
In the Hudson Bay Lowlands and boreal shield, further fragmenting critical habitat.
Climate Change
Altering habitat and migration patterns, affecting food availability and survival.
Weak Enforcement and Policy Rollbacks
Under the ESA and now the proposed SCA, leaving caribou without adequate legal protection.
Despite clear scientific consensus that caribou need at least 65% undisturbed habitat to sustain stable populations, Ontario continues to approve development that violates these thresholds, sacrificing long-term ecological health for short-term profit.
A Crisis of Commitment
Ontario's government has repeatedly delayed or weakened habitat protection plans, opting for voluntary, industry-led measures instead of binding legal safeguards. The province's failure to meet its obligations under the ESA has triggered federal scrutiny under the Species at Risk Act (SARA), which empowers the federal government to intervene when provincial protections are inadequate.
In 2023, Ottawa issued a formal warning to Ontario over its failure to protect caribou habitat, a rare and serious indictment of the province's neglect.
Why Caribou Matter
Caribou are a keystone species. Their survival depends on and ensures the integrity of vast, intact ecosystems that support countless other forms of life. Protecting caribou means safeguarding the boreal forest, one of Earth's largest carbon stores and a crucial ally in the fight against climate change.
Caribou also hold profound cultural and spiritual significance for Indigenous Nations across Ontario, whose traditional knowledge and leadership are essential to caribou recovery. For many communities, caribou are part of ancestral identity, sustenance, and stewardship.
Earthroots' Commitment
Earthroots is standing with Indigenous partners, scientists, and advocates across Ontario to demand real, enforceable protections for caribou and the ecosystems they depend on.
We are calling for:
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Immediate protection of all remaining critical habitat under the ESA
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Moratoriums on new industrial development in key caribou ranges
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Habitat restoration and reconnection of fragmented landscapes
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Partnerships with Indigenous governments and knowledge keepers in conservation planning and governance
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Transparency and accountability in habitat management and recovery reporting
Caribou recovery is still possible but only if Ontario chooses courage over complacency.
Studies and Research
Environment & Climate Change Canada
