ナショナルジオグラフィックさんのインスタグラム写真 - (ナショナルジオグラフィックInstagram)「Photo by @katieorlinsky | Writer Neil Shea and I have been living and breathing caribou for the past three years, and now our story, “Where Are All the Caribou?” is finally online. Check it out at the link in bio and in the December issue of National Geographic. The animals pictured here are part of Alaska’s Western Arctic herd, photographed deep within the Brooks Range outside the Nunamiut village of Anaktuvuk Pass. Two centuries ago, there were hundreds of thousands of caribou as far south as Maine, and in the Arctic, herds numbered close to 5 million. However, over the past 2 decades, Arctic caribou populations have been in shocking decline, dropping to roughly 2 million and falling. There hasn’t been a disappearance of so many large land mammals in such a short time since the American bison. No one knows exactly why, and it's considered to be one of the greatest wildlife mysteries on the continent. What we do know for certain is that caribou decline is an enormous loss that threatens to put even more pressure on the fragile ecosystem of the Arctic, as well as on Indigenous communities across Alaska and Canada. They need caribou for food security, and they're also culturally and spiritually dependent on the animals, just as they have been for thousands of years. This story was made possible because of these communities and the people who graciously shared their time and knowledge with us over the years. We thank the Nunamiut of Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska, the Tlicho Tribe in the Northwest Territories of Canada, the Neets'aii Gwich'in community of Arctic Village, Alaska, the Inupiat village of Ambler, Alaska, and the West Moberly and Saulteau First Nations in British Columbia, Canada. Working on this story, it’s become clear that if we want to save the caribou, we have to listen to the people who know them best.」11月10日 7時00分