Quantifying harvest of barren‐ground caribou off a winter road in the Northwest Territories – An Indigenous Guardian‐led initiative

Abstract Caribou ( Rangifer tarandus ) are at the heart of North Slave Métis culture and community and serve as a spiritual anchor and cornerstone of cultural identity. However, there has been a dramatic decline in caribou numbers in the Northwest Territories, Canada, particularly of the Bathurst herd since the 1980s. North Slave Métis Alliance (NSMA) members point to easy access for hunters and historical overhunting along the Tibbitt to Contwoyto winter road (TCWR) as a primary cause of the Bathurst herd's decline. In response, NSMA began the Guardianship Winter Road Monitoring Program to conduct on‐the‐ground TCWR patrols monitoring caribou interactions with the road and caribou harvest. Here, we present results from a Bayesian harvest model based on caribou gut pile data recorded during TCWR patrols. In 2025, Guardians documented 70 independent gut piles with an average size of 20 (90% credible interval = 16–25) caribou per gut pile. We estimate that a minimum of 2,814 (2,610–3,150) barren‐ground caribou ( R. t. groenlandicus ) were gutted directly alongside the TCWR. This is likely an underestimate of total harvest levels on the winter range. Guardians observed wastage at 10% (4.5–19%) of gut piles, where only the backstraps or quarters were taken. The NSMA Guardians were extremely disheartened to see disrespectful harvesting along the road. Quantifying the impacts of winter roads on barren‐ground caribou herds supports NSMA's commitment to safeguarding their traditional territory by integrating Indigenous knowledge into decision‐making and reconnecting people to the land, their culture, and their traditions.