In the landscape on the central coast of what is now known as British Columbia, genetic analyses have identified three distinct genetic groups of grizzly bears. The spatial areas of these groups align strikingly well with the geographies of three Indigenous language families (Tsimshian, Northern Wakashan, Salishan Nuxalk). The explanation the research partnership favours is…
A new paper, published by a team of researchers including Raincoast scientists, dives into the tangle of cognitive bias, institutional agendas, human interests, and pays special attention to the role of undisclosed value judgments.
Chris Darimont spoke with hunter and podcaster Chris Pryn to discuss their shared interests in hunting and habitat protection, and also to figure out where they disagree. It’s a remarkable interview, in part, because both Darimont and Pryn work so hard to have a respectful conversation despite their differences.
A new study suggests killing predators like wolves, grizzly bears, and cougars for trophy is a potential threat not only to these sensitive animals, but also to other hunters…
An interview with Dr. Heather Bryan who has been studying wolves with Raincoast since she was an undergraduate student…
The rise of vessel traffic, the growth of the whale watching industry, increased interactions between whales and small vessels, and the precarious existence of Southern Residents in particular, has given rise to some regulations from the federal government that attempt to mitigate the harm these interactions pose…
The last episode of this “semester’s” Wolf School looks toward existing and emerging solutions to the conservation of wolves in British Columbia. Raincoast’s Director of Science, Dr. Chris Darimont, will also look back to share how his mentor, Chester “Lone Wolf” Starr, influenced him, all of our wolf research and the direction of Raincoast’s conservation work on BC’s coast…
In episode 140 of The Hunting Collective podcast, Ben O’Brien does a fascinating and good-natured follow up interview with Dr. Barrie Gilbert. Dr. Gilbert is a prominent bear biologist, friend of Raincoast, and previous verbal sparring-partner with Ben (at least when it comes to the hunting of predators). Ben invited Dr. Gilbert back for another interview, and they made productive amends…
The scientists looked closely at the data provided in a previous study that examined how 18 caribou populations responded to different treatments including wolf culls, maternal penning, moose reduction, and combinations thereof, as well as controls. There were important errors in the statistical methods associated with that prior study…
Michael Soulé’s work has been central to the growth of conservation science. He has been called the grandfather of conservation biology. Soulé has been an important source of knowledge, counsel, and insight to many of the scientists at Raincoast Conservation Foundation. May 28, 1936 – June 17, 2020 Thoughtful counsel and generosity My last conversations…
In a recent commentary published in Nature Human Behaviour, “Hypermobile human predators,” Raincoast scientists Chris Darimont and Heather Bryan raise questions regarding potential differences between human hunters and other predators with respect to the potential for disease transmission in prey populations and point out a need for further research…
BC’s wolves are killed through a variety of means, most of which are gratuitous, inhumane and unethical. These include legal hunting and trapping, as well as government sanctioned culling, the latter using such techniques as aerial gunning and neck snares…
Read Tracking Raincoast into 2021, online.