Tr'ondk Hwch'in organizes community hunt of Fortymile caribou to bridge generation gap

For more than two decades, the Tr'ondk Hwch'involunteered to not harvest caribou from the Fortymile herd, after its numbers dwindled.

Now, the First Nationsays, the time is right for a community hunt.

"It's a subsistence hunt that's intended to bring the community together to reconnect with the Fortymile caribou herd," said Lee Whalen,fish and wildlife manager with the First Nation.

"There's kids who are 20 years old now that haven't harvested that herd."

The hunt is taking place near the Top of the World Highway, northwest of Dawson City. Whalen said Tr'ondk Hwch'incitizens and their families are encouraged to harvest a caribou and share meat withelders and those who cannot harvest for themselves.

"Part of this hunt is this collaboration between elders, youth, community hunters to be able to teach and learn."

Connecting to ancestors

The hunt is already off to an auspicious start.

Allison Anderson, a Hnsinger,took part in a ceremony to welcome the Fortymile caribou to Tr'ondk Hwch'intraditional territory. Later that day, a hunter successfully harvested the first caribou of the community hunt.

Anderson said the ceremony, which included singing and prayers, made her feel more connected to her culture.

"It was one of those ... moments when you felt really connected with the land and with ancestors," she said. "It was awesome to be a part of doing something like that again."

The harvested caribou has already beensmoked and distributed to citizens.

"I heard that a lot of them were really thankful for it, and just so happy to receive meat early this year," Anderson said.

Hunt opened to Yukoners

Earlier this year, the Yukon government opened the Fortymile caribou herd to licensed hunting for the first time since 1995, when the herd was estimated to be just 6,500 animals. The hunting season was open fromJan.1 to Mar. 31 with 225 tags available on a rotating basis.

At the time, Tr'ondk Hwch'inChief Roberta Joseph said the territory actedtoo quicklyin reopening the hunt.

She said the First Nation wasnot opposed to a licensed hunt but was still in the process of negotiating a herd management plan with the Yukon government.

The Fortymile herd is estimated to have 84,000 animals.Thepopulation rebounded thanks to conservation efforts by First Nations, the state of Alaska, and the Yukon Government.