Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there have been some recent reports of skinny, sick or dead caribou in the Northwest Territories, particularly in the Bathurst caribou herd. Concerns about lame caribou with lower leg lesions have been received from a number of sources, including Lutselk'e elders, barren-ground caribou outfitters and officials from Ekati Diamond Mine. Similar concerns have been raised by some hunters in the Beaufort region regarding Bluenose caribou.

I want to assure people that there is nothing unusual about these sightings and reports. Each report received by RWED officers is followed up. In the case of the Bathurst herd, samples were taken from 10 animals and sent to the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre in Saskatoon to determine the cause of illness and/or death.

Test results and field observations suggest that this condition is consistent with a condition called "footrot", not to be mixed up with hoof and mouth disease, or necrobacillosis. It is a naturally occurring condition that turns up periodically in wildlife populations as individual cases or larger outbreaks. This condition is caused by naturally occurring bacteria that will usually only affect animals in poor condition with injuries or wounds that bacteria can penetrate.

Leg wounds from running over rough terrain or persistent exposure to wet ground provides an opportunity for this to occur. Infected animals often appear lame and can go on to develop a generalized infection resulting in death. It is important to note that footrot is not a contagious disease and is not spread from animal to animal.

A combination of conditions this year on the Bathurst caribou range could explain the higher than usual reports of lame caribou. This past summer was unusually wet, with some areas of the caribou range receiving 80 percent more rainfall than normal. As Members will recall, this past summer was also a prime year for mosquitoes and other insects. Caribou, like people, suffer from insect harassment. The animals can become skinny from running away from these insects.

Mr. Speaker, while there have been a few more reports of animals in poor condition this year, it is still considered to be within the range of normal occurrences.

The department is planning a survey of the Bathurst herd over the next few weeks to determine if conditions this summer have impacted calf survival or the overall health of the herd. We continue to work closely with community groups, outfitters and mining camps to document and investigate any additional cases of sick or dead caribou. I encourage any hunters who are encountering sick or dead caribou to report these incidents to their local RWED office. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.