Cette étude vise à identifier les effets des changements climatiques sur les activités de subsistance traditionnelles des chasseurs cris de la Baie-James. De nombreuses études se penchent sur les changements climatiques, mais relativement peu d’entre elles traitent de leurs effets socio-économiques et socioculturels sur les populations dans le Subarctique du Québec. Cette thèse explore les mécanismes d’intégration des connaissances scientifiques au savoir écologique traditionnel (SET) ; une intégration prônée par de nombreux chercheurs comme l’évolution souhaitable dans la recherche sur le SET et sur ses applications. L’étude de cette intégration se fait ici à l’aide d’une analyse des perceptions des chasseurs de l’Association des Trappeurs Cris concernant les effets des changements climatiques, avec l’accent sur les activités de subsistance traditionnelles en lien avec la bernache du Canada et le caribou des bois, deux espèces importantes culturellement. Une approche combinant l’aspect théorique de l’ethnoécologie et l’aspect pratique de l’étude de cas a été utilisée. Diverses sources de données ont été employées : l’analyse documentaire et cartographique, les questionnaires et les entrevues ouvertes et semi-dirigées. Cette recherche met en évidence des variations dans l’observation des changements climatiques et dans la perception de leurs effets par les chasseurs cris selon la localisation de leur communauté. Certains effets sont ressentis de la même façon par tous. Ainsi, les participants de toutes les communautés s’inquiètent des dangers liés à une fragilité accrue de la glace sur les lacs et les rivières. Cependant, ce sont surtout les membres des communautés côtières qui s’alarment du déplacement des bernaches vers l’intérieur du territoire. Ils sont aussi les seuls à ne pas percevoir de baisse du nombre de caribous des bois sur leurs lignes de trappe. Les effets des changements climatiques paraissent avoir un impact sur le mode de vie traditionnel cri en lien avec la bernache du Canada et le caribou des bois et affecter la transmission du savoir traditionnel vers les nouvelles générations quant au caribou des bois. Les résultats montrent aussi que la combinaison du SET et des données scientifiques permet de compléter le portrait de l’évolution du climat et des espèces (par ex. : variation du climat entre la côte et l’intérieur du territoire, apparition du cerf de Virginie et du coyote sur le territoire) et d’élaborer de nouvelles pistes de recherches et des hypothèses qui n’auraient pas été autrement identifiées (par ex. : causes d’un changement dans la structure de la gla ce, évolution des aires de répartition des sous-espèces de bernaches, impact des insectes suceurs-piqueurs sur la santé des caribous). Elle facilite également l’identification et la compréhension des enjeux et des processus d’adaptation qui ont lieu dans les communautés cries de la Baie-James (par ex. : diminution de la consommation du caribou, maintien de la consommation de la bernache, dangers accrus dans les déplacements liés à la fragilité de la glace ou à la difficulté à prévoir les schèmes climatiques). L’utilisation combinée du SET et du savoir scientifique permet de mieux appréhender les effets des changements climatiques et les dynamiques socioculturelles et environnementales complexes du territoire de la Baie-James. / This thesis intends to identify the effects of climate change as it relates to the traditional activities of the Eastern James Bay Cree. Numerous studies have analysed climate change, however relatively few have studied its socioeconomic and socio-cultural effects on the subarctic populations of Quebec as does this one. Exploring the integration mechanisms between scientific knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), this combination of knowledge being presented by many researchers as the next step in TEK research, this thesis utilizes the various perceptions that the hunters of the Cree Trappers Association have of the impacts of climate change. Emphasis was placed on their traditional activities in connection with the Canada goose and the woodland caribou, two culturally important species The study uses an approach combining the theoretical aspects of ethnoecology with the practical aspects of case studies. Various methods of data collection were used: literary and cartography reviews, questionnaires and long and short interviews. The research demonstrates a variation in Cree observations of climate change and in their perceptions of the effects of these changes based on the location of the community in the James Bay region. Certain effects are perceived in all communities, for instance participants from all communities worried about the dangers associated with an increased fragility of the ice formed on lakes and rivers. However, it was primarily members of the coastal communities who worried over the Canada geese moving further inland. Members of the coastal communities were also the only ones to not notice a reduction in the numbers of woodland caribou on their traplines. Climate change seems to have an impact on the Cree’s traditional way of life associated with the Canada goose and woodland caribou and to affect the transmission of their traditional knowledge to the newer generations as it pertains to the woodland caribou. Also highlighted is the fact that a combination of TEK and scientific data allows for a broader picture of climate and species evolution (e.g.: climate variations between the coast and the interior of the territory, presence of white-tailed deers and coyotes on the territory) and suggests new research questions and hypothesis (e.g.: causes for a change in the ice structure, evolution in the range and distribution of Canada geese subspecies, impact of bloodsucking insects on caribou health). It also allows for a better identification and understanding of the stakes and adaptation processes currently going on in Eastern James Bay communities (e.g.: decrease in caribou consumption, maintenance of geese consumption, increased dangers during travel due to an increase in ice fragility or in unusual climatic events). The combined use of TEK and scientific knowledge allows for a better understanding of the effects of climate change and the complex sociocultural and environmental dynamics at play in the Eastern James Bay.

A series of crustal-scale shear zones demarcates the northern and eastern margins of the North Caribou greenstone belt (NCGB), proximal to a Mesoarchean terrane boundary in the core of the western Superior Province of Canada. The dominant deformation produced a pervasive steeply dipping fabric that trends broadly parallel to the doubly arcuate shape of the belt and was responsible for tight folding the banded iron formation host to Goldcorp’s prolific gold deposit at Musselwhite mine. The shear zones in the North Caribou greenstone belt are of particular interest because of their ability to channel hydrothermal fluids with the potential to bear ore and cause alteration of the middle to shallow crust. Shear zones are commonly reactivated during subsequent tectonism, but exhibit a consistent and dominant dextral shear sense across the belt; fabric-forming micas and chlorite are generally Mg-rich. Although garnets samples from within the shear zones are dominantly almandine, they possess variable geochemical trends (HREEs of >2 orders of magnitude) and can be syn-, intra-, or post-tectonic in origin. In situ geochronological analysis of zircon (U-Pb) and monazite (total-Pb) in high strain rocks in and around the NCGB, interpreted in light of in situ geochemical analysis of garnet and fabric-forming micas and chlorite, reveals four relatively discrete events that span 400 million years. Metamorphism of the mid-crust was coeval with magmatism during docking of the Island Lake domain at c. 2.86 Ga and subsequent terrane accretion at the north and south margins of the North Caribou Superterrane from c. 2.75 to 2.71 Ga. Transpressive shear at c. 2.60 to 2.56 Ga and late re-activation of shear zones at c. 2.44 Ga produced a steeply-dipping pervasive fabric, and channeled fluids for late crystallization of garnet and monazite recorded in the Markop Lake deformation zone. These observations implicate a horizontal tectonic model similar to the modern eastern Pacific plate margin. Further, this study highlights the caution that should be exercised when using traditional rock forming metamorphic minerals (mica, chlorite, garnet) when attempting to vector into zones of hydrothermal alteration within midcrustal rocks.

Global and local climate patterns may affect barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus) populations. I predicted global climate changes to be correlated with periods of population decline, and local changes to be more pronounced on the habitat of caribou with a declining population. In chapter 1, the Arctic Oscillation (AO), changes in normalized difference vegetation index and phenology were used as measures of global and local climate. In chapter 2 environmental variables and caribou presence points were used to build Maxent habitat models. There was no consistent correlation with the positive AO phase and periods of population decline, or phenology trends and the habitat of caribou with a declining population. Maxent models underestimated the amount of suitable habitat spatially and failed to model suitable habitat temporally. This thesis is the first to look at a range of density-independent variables over a long time period and model suitable habitat for multiple herds.

From the Arctic to the South Pacific, Indigenous Peoples have experienced a rapid nutrition transition involving the decline of traditional/subsistence-based ways of life and the adoption of a “Western” diet that is high in saturated fats, sugar, and processed foods. This dietary shift has been paralleled by an increased prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and, other diet-related chronic diseases. In the Arctic, rapidly changing biophysical conditions, globalization, and integration into market economies are collectively challenging access to both country foods and nutritious market foods. Food security and nutrient adequacy thus remain elusive for Inuit communities of northern Canada. Premised upon the view that human well-being is predicated upon complex and dynamic interactions between ecosystems, economies, and societies, this dissertation integrates multiple lines of inquiry and scales of engagement (community, regional, and national) to further understanding of the nutrition transition among Inuit in Canada. The thesis is comprised of two sections. Section 1 bridges the often disparate fields of human nutrition and wildlife conservation by addressing key questions about the status and management of Arctic species, and the implications for Inuit food security and health. For example, caribou (Rangifer tarandus) populations across the circumpolar north are currently experiencing dramatic declines in abundance and restrictions on Inuit subsistence harvest are currently implemented for several caribou populations. Caribou, however, is the primary source of protein and several micronutrients involved in the prevention of anemia (e.g. iron zinc, copper, riboflavin, and vitamin B12) in the contemporary diet of Inuit adults. Caribou consumption is also positively associated with hemoglobin levels in Inuit adults. Section 2 considers elements of the market food system in Inuit communities. We found that the most popular market foods consumed by Inuit (e.g. sweetened beverages, added sugar, and bread) contribute significantly to total diet energy while contributing minimally to most micronutrients. Using optimization models, we have demonstrated that a nutritious diet (one meeting Health Canada dietary reference intake values) is theoretically feasible based on a mix of country food and market food, and at relatively little additional cost from current diets. However, significant deviations in patterns of food expenditure away from sweetened beverages, towards dairy, and whole fruits and vegetables would be required. Taken collectively, this thesis provides important information, as well as new tools, and approaches, for communities, wildlife conservation and public health professionals to jointly promote ecosystem and human health in a rapidly changing environment.

Using specially trained scat detection dogs we located fecal samples from black bear (Ursus americanus) and coyote (Canis latrans) throughout three study areas in Newfoundland, Canada, to describe these predators diet. Our sampling efforts were designed around seasons which were important to woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) calving and resource use. We identified hairs microscopically to prey species and grouped other remains to facilitate our analysis. Bear exhibited an omnivorous diet throughout the study areas, ecological seasons and inside and outside the caribou calving grounds while coyote were limited to caribou, moose and snowshoe hare.

The North Caribou Terrane forms the core of Superior Province and records a protracted history of crustal growth and modification. At the centre of the North Caribou Terrane, lies the North Caribou greenstone belt, which is surrounded by granitoids of diverse compositions and ages. This study reports whole-rock geochemistry, zircon and titanite geochronology, and hornblende geobarometry on these plutonic rocks. Although zircons as old as 3132 ± 7 Ma were found, the main magmatic pulse occurred between 2880 and 2830 Ma, and geobarometry indicates tectonic thickening during this period. This was followed by widespread hydrothermal alteration and limited magmatism from 2760 to 2680 Ma, and shallow, brittle-ductile intrusions at circa 2630 Ma. From 2730 to 2630 Ma, intrusions were emplaced at increasingly shallow crustal levels. All of the rocks, except for the youngest pegmatitic intrusions, show similar patterns in major and trace elements, with a general trend toward more evolved compositions through time. These patterns indicate that the granitoids record mostly reworking of early intrusions, which is also consistent with patterns observed in the geochronology.

We investigate an approach to apply Genetic Programming for the evolution of optimal escaping strategies of a team of caribou agents in the wolf-caribou predator prey problem (WCPPP) where the WCPPP is comprised of a team of caribou agents attempting to escape from a single yet superior (in terms of sensory abilities, raw speed, and maximum energy) wolf agent in a simulated twodimensional infinite toroidal world. We empirically verify our hypothesis that the incorporation of empathy in caribou agents significantly improves both the evolution efficiency of the escaping behavior and the effectiveness of such a behavior. This finding may be viewed as a verification of the survival value of empathy and the resulting compassionate behavior of the escaping caribou agents. Moreover, considering the fact that a single caribou cannot escape from the superior wolf, the ability of a team of empathic caribou agents to escape may also be viewed as an illustration of the emergent nature of a successful escaping behavior – in that the team-level properties are more than the mere sum of the properties of the individual entities. Within this context, we also present empirical results that verify the complex (nonlinear) nature of the relationship between the size of team of caribou agents and the efficiency of their escaping behavior. / 博士(工学) / Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

Lichen mapping is vital for caribou management plans and sustainable land conservation. Previous studies have used Random Forest, dense neural network, and convolutional neural network (CNN) models for mapping lichen coverage with remote sensing data. However, to date, it is not clear how these models rank in the performance of this task. In this study, these machine learning models were evaluated on their ability to predict lichen percent coverage in Sentinel-2 imagery covering Québec and Labrador, NL. The models were trained on 10-m resolution lichen coverage (%) maps created from 20 drone surveys collected in July 2019 and 2022. The maps were divided into quadrant blocks and then split into train, validation, and test datasets. The quadrant-blocking approach exposed the models to a variety of different landscapes and reduced spatial autocorrelation between the training sites. All three models performed similarly when evaluated on the test set. However, the dense neural network achieved a higher accuracy than the other two, with a reported Mean Absolute Error (MAE) of 5.2% and an R2 of 0.76. By comparison, the Random Forest model returned an MAE of 5.5% (R2: 0.74) and the CNN had an MAE of 5.3% (R2: 0.74). The models were also evaluated on their ability to predict lichen coverage (%) for larger quadrant blocks consisting of, on average, 400 Sentinel-2 pixels. The Random Forest and dense neural network had an R2 of 0.93, while the CNN had an R2 of 0.90. The MAE in this assessment for the dense neural network, Random Forest, and CNN were 2.1%, 2.3%, and 3.1% respectively. A regional lichen map was created using the dense neural network and a Sentinel-2 image mosaic. Model predictions have larger errors for land covers that the model was not exposed to in training, such as mines and deep lakes. While the dense neural network requires more computational effort to train than a Random Forest model, the 5.9% performance gain in the test pixel comparison and 9.1% performance gain in the quadrant block comparison renders it the most suitable for lichen mapping. This study represents progress toward determining the appropriate methodology for generating accurate lichen maps from satellite imagery for caribou conservation and sustainable land management.

Un déclin mondial des populations de caribou forestier est présentement observé. Il devient impératif d’envisager des stratégies d’aménagement pour atténuer l’impact négatif de l’aménagement forestier sur le caribou. L’objectif principal de ce projet est donc de déterminer l’impact de différentes approches de spatialisation de la récolte dans un contexte d’optimisation de la récolte de matière ligneuse afin de préciser la relation entre la possibilité forestière et la qualité de l’habitat du caribou forestier. Plusieurs scénarios de récolte ont été simulés et évalués sur un horizon de 150 ans en tenant compte du régime de feu, d’un indice de perturbation du territoire, d’un indice de qualité d’habitat, du niveau de coupe du territoire et de l’importance du réseau routier. Les résultats indiquent que l’augmentation de la taille des compartiments de coupe et l’ajout de certaines contraintes spatiales permet d’augmenter la probabilité d’observation du caribou forestier et de réduire l’importance du réseau routier, mais produit également une diminution de la possibilité forestière.

Dans le Nord-du-Québec et au Labrador, les troupeaux de caribous migrateurs Rivière-George et Rivière-aux-Feuilles sont en déclin, respectivement depuis les années 1990 et 2000. Plus particulièrement, le déclin marqué du troupeau Rivière-aux-Feuilles qui a coïncidé avec la croissance de la population de bœuf musqué, une espèce introduite dans le Nord-du-Québec, a mené les communautés inuites à s'interroger sur le potentiel de compétition entre les deux espèces. En réponse à ce questionnement, nous avons combiné trois approches pour évaluer le potentiel de compétition interspécifique : (1) quantifier le chevauchement spatial, (2) comparer les patrons de sélection d'habitats des deux espèces dans leur aire de répartition commune et (3) évaluer le chevauchement des régimes alimentaires. Pour ce faire, nous avons utilisé des données provenant de suivis télémétriques et récolté des échantillons de fèces pour les analyser avec la méthode du codage à barre d'ADN. À l'échelle annuelle, le chevauchement spatial était faible et avait lieu principalement au printemps sur la côte de la baie d'Hudson et à l'été sur la côte de la baie d'Ungava. Dans leur aire de répartition commune, le bœuf musqué sélectionne les milieux arbustifs et productifs situés près des côtes alors que le caribou sélectionne des milieux de toundra avec substrat rocheux et des habitats de faible altitude. À une échelle spatiale plus fine, cela fait en sorte que les probabilités de co-occurrence sont faibles. Toutefois, notre analyse du régime alimentaire a montré des similarités, puisque les familles de plantes détectées les plus fréquemment (Ericacea, Salicaceæ, Betulaceae) étaient les mêmes pour les deux espèces à l'été et à l'hiver. Dans leur ensemble, ces résultats suggèrent que le potentiel de compétition est faible entre le caribou migrateur et le bœuf musqué dans le Nord-du-Québec. Cependant, plusieurs facteurs dont l'expansion possible de l'aire de répartition du bœuf musqué et les interactions avec les prédateurs, dans un contexte de changement climatique, pourraient éventuellement influencer les interactions entre ces deux espèces d'ongulés. / In northern Quebec and Labrador, the Rivière-George and Rivière-aux-Feuilles caribou herds have been declining since the 1990s and 2000s, respectively. In particular, marked decline of the Rivière-aux-Feuilles caribou herd coinciding with the demographic growth of muskoxen, an introduced species in northern Quebec, has led local Inuit communities to question the potential for interspecific competition. In response to these concerns we used three methods to evaluate the potential for interspecific competition at different scales: (1) we quantified spatial overlap, (2) we compared both species habitat selection patterns in their overlapping range and (3) we evaluated diet overlap. We used telemetric data and collected fecal samples of both species for DNA barcoding analysis. At the annual scale, spatial overlap was low and limited in time, mostly in spring on the coast of Hudson Bay and in summer on the coast of Ungava Bay. Within their overlapping range, migratory caribou and muskoxen had mostly different habitat selection patterns, particularly in regard to habitat types and proximity to the coast. At a finer spatial scale, this led to low probability of co-occurrence across both coastal areas. Our dietary analysis of fecal samples suggested that both species had a similar diet based on the frequency of the most detected plant families (Ericaceae, Salicaceae et Betulaceae) in summer and winter. Combined, our results suggest that the potential for competition between migratory caribou and muskoxen is low in our study area. However, several factors such as the possible expansion of the muskoxen range and interactions with predators, in the context of climate change, could potentially influence the interactions between these two ungulate species