February to June, 2005 About the Caribou Migration Study credit Allison Heuer Scientists say that the annual migration journey of the Porcupine caribou is thousands of years old. These magnificent animals, sometimes called the deer of the north, are the North's wild spirit. The Porcupine Caribou herd in northern Yukon, Alaska and Northwest Territories is the one of the largest herd of North America's barren-ground caribou. In February the caribou will be in their winter feeding grounds. They will have endured the deepest part of winter, when darkness prevails and temperatures commonly drop far below zero. How are caribou adapted to this climate? What do they eat? Of equal concern, what eats them? Where do they find food and shelter in the mountainous terrain? Why do they travel deep into this territory each winter? credit Travis Frost When spring finally arrives, it will be an urgent time for the females. Leaving before the males, they migrate to the Alaskan coastal plain where each year more than 129,000 caribou gather to calve and raise their young. How can people and caribou coexist? Learn about the people whose lives have been centered on the caribou for thousands of years. Then bring current affairs into your curriculum as we explore issues surrounding the proposed oil recovery in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge's coastal plain calving grounds. Using maps and other information from the Internet follow the migration this year through a cooperative project with scientists using satellite telemetry to study migration patterns and seasonal range use of the Porcupine Caribou herd in northern Yukon, Alaska and Northwest Territories. Link to Porcupine Caribou Herd Satellite Collar Project for the latest news, data and maps. Copyright 2001-2005 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to jn-help@learner.org