Park staff conduct aerial
surveys of the wildlife populations to determine
fluctuations from year to year. Most of the
wildlife in Glacier is found in the remote backcountry:
mountain goats on the rocky ledges, a few caribou
in the sub-alpine forest, and grizzlies on the
avalanche slide paths in spring.
When the park was first protected
in 1886, caribou were common in Glacier. The
area between the park and the North Columbia
Mountains is home to one of the major populations
of the mountain caribou, a distinct eco-type
of the woodland caribou. The numbers have declined,
whether due to human intrusion on their habitat
or natural cycles, but today there are fewer
than 400 out of a total population of 2400 mountain
caribou in and around the park. According to
biologists Bruce McLellan and John Flaa, part
of the problem may be food supply. The caribou
rely on the boreal lichens, which grow almost
exclusively on old trees, and those are the
trees sought after by the forestry industry.
Smaller animals also play
an important role in the ecosystem. Park researchers
have been trapping wolverines to attach radio
collars, which will allow them to track their
movements through the park area and beyond.
They know the smaller mammals are also subject
to dwindling food supplies. Wolverines are mainly
carion eaters, feeding on the carcasses of caribou,
deer and elk, although they have been known
to do some hunting.
Life in the steep, snow-covered
mountains is difficult for large ungulates,
but bears do very well here. Avalanches clear
slide paths, which produce excellent feeding
grounds for black bears and grizzlies. The bears
den through the winter months, emerging in late
March or April in time for early shoots of spring
flowers, and by late summer are feasting on
the abundant mountain berry supply. The bears
here are primarily vegetarian, although that
shouldn’t lull anyone into complacency
about the dangers of travelling in bear country.
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