Waterfowl Kill by Cree Hunters of the Hudson Bay Lowland, Ontario

Abstract

From 1974 to 1976 annual interviews were conducted with 9756 of male Indian potential hunters at James Bay and Hudson Bay coastal villages to determine waterfowl kill. Sample interviews were conducted at inland villages. Of those interviewed at coastal communities, 87% hunted waterfowl. The mean yearly take of all species ranged from 55 to 145 birds per hunter. Lesser Snow Geese and large Canada Geese were the main prey, averaging 38 350 and 23 152 birds shot per year, respectively. Small numbers of other goose species were taken. The duck kill averaged 22 715. Eighty percent of the large Canada Goose kill occurred in spring; 76% of Snow Geese were taken in fall. Considerable inter-year variation in total kill occurred. The take for the highest kill year (1975-76) exceeded-that for the lowest (1976-77) by 61% for Snow Geese and 34% for large Canada Geese; the spring kill was particularly variable. The kill of Snow Geese has apparently increased by a factor of 2, and that of large Canada Geese by a factor of 3, since the mid-1950s. Through analysis of band recoveries, the kill was determined to have been apportioned among separately managed stocks. The Indian kill made up approximately 13% of the total hunting kill of the Tennessee Valley Population, 9% of the Mississippi Valley Population, and 7% of Hudson Bay Lesser Snow Geese.

Characteristics and Management Implications of the Spring Waterfowl Hunt in the Western Canadian Arctic, Northwest Territories

“…Whereas other studies demonstrated reduced harvests in years of early, rapid springs (Hanson and Currie, 1957;Prevett et al, 1983), harvests in this area were greater in earlier springs or their size appeared unrelated to spring phenology. Unlike more southerly harvests, Western Arctic harvests occurred at or near the terminus of spring migration.…”

“…On a per hunter basis, average numbers harvested were similar to those of Cree hunters in the Hudson Bay Lowlands of Ontario (Prevett et al, 1983). Capabilities for handling and storing harvests and need likely contribute to limiting the overall take.…”

“…Therefore it is likely that the spring hunt accounted for a declining annual proportion of the regional population as numbers increased during the course of this study. Prevett et al (1983) determined that the spring and fall harvest by Cree of the Hudson Bay Lowlands accounted for 7% of the annual harvest of the mid-continent population of lesser snow geese.…”

“…Most studies of spring harvests have concentrated on species and numbers of birds harvested (e.g., James Bay and Northern Quebec Native Harvesting Research Committee, 1982;Prevett et al, 1983). The Inuvialuit Harvest Study, conducted concomitant to this study, also focused on species and numbers of all wildlife harvested, including birds, with monthly estimates throughout the year (Fabijan, 1991a, b, c).…”

"Wetlands of the Ontario Hudson Bay Lowland: A Regional Overview" by John L. Riley. 2011. [book review]

“…There are a few more studies that might be referred to, but one has to remember that this is an overview and its particular strength is in wetland classification. Those seeking a little more in the area of biodiversity may refer to Desroches et al (2010), James et al (1983), Peck (1972), Prevett & Lumsden (1983), and Sutherland et al (2005). Biological information has been gathered from the more accessible parts of the lowlands around Moosonee and at Churchill, Manitoba, and this can be searched online.…”