Open Collections

Mill, Sian

As the interest in non‐motorized backcountry exploration gains traction among locals and tourists in British Columbia’s Parks, there have been concerns expressed about potential impacts on local wildlife populations. I undertook this study to help BC Parks assess the existing mountain goat population in the Spearhead area of Garibaldi Park and to gain a better understanding for how the potential increase in non‐motorized recreation due to the proposed Spearhead Hut System could affect the population. Collecting data through a literature review, interviews with experts and participatory mapping exercises, this study focuses on human disturbance impacts on mountain goats. These disturbance impacts are assessed through different senses and are categorized as follows: proximity, feeding, communication interruption, reproduction and population viability, and seasonality. Finally, this study recommends monitoring and evaluating the population before and after the proposed huts have been installed, as well as suggestions for regulating and minimizing the human and goat interactions. These suggestions include keeping recreationists quiet and the trails free of dogs, educating users of the area, and using local knowledge to collect presence and abundance data.

Graduating Project

eng

2017-02-01

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/58471

Unreviewed

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/