Inuvialuit knowledge of Pacific salmon range expansion in the western Canadian Arctic
Zander Chila, Karen M. Dunmall, Tracey A. Proverbs, Trevor C. Lantz
Abstract
Rapid climate change is altering Arctic ecosystems and significantly affecting the livelihoods and cultural traditions of Arctic Indigenous peoples. In the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR), growing evidence suggests that climate change is altering marine environments. In this project we recorded and synthesized Inuvialuit knowledge of Pacific salmon. We used methods that are emergent in fisheries science to combine interview information with voluntary harvest data and better understand changes to salmon in the Arctic. We conducted 53 interviews with Inuvialuit fishers about the history of Pacific salmon harvest, how it has changed in recent decades, and concurrent changes to local environments and fish species. Our interviews show that historical, incidental salmon harvest in the ISR ranged from infrequent to common among western communities, but was rare or unprecedented among eastern communities. Participants in all six communities reported a recent increase in salmon harvest and attributed this shift to regional environmental change. Fishers were concerned that salmon would negatively affect their cultural traditions and preferred fish species. Given uncertainty about the effects of salmon on local fisheries, research on salmon in the Arctic, the likelihood of their establishment, and their potential to provide subsidies to Arctic freshwater ecosystems is vital.