Mountain Goat survey in August 2011

The key to natural resource management is knowledge.
For recreational hunting this means that one needs exact information about the number of game animals to determine if they can be sustainably harvested. The Wilderness Stewardship and Training Foundation took part in a Mountain Goat survey in the Chilcotin Mountains.
Kevan Bracewell, one of the directors of the Stewardship Foundation joined the helicopter flight in the mountains keeping an eye out for Mountain Goats:

I was picked up at Spruce Lake in a bell 206 jet Ranger – 3 passengers: the two Biologist Chris Procter and 30- years- veteran Doug Jury, and the pilot Kevin – CC Helicopter out of Kamloops.
Right of on the way to the Survey zone 333F we saw a herd of goats walking a Ridge line, and on old Billy in the timber below.
The strategy was to fly the mountain tops of a section then come back across the tree line. This is not a reconnaissance flight – but a helicopter survey usually has about 70% sight ability factor.
The fist section we covered was a wintering area for Nannies in the front and a Billy hang out in the back Valley in summer. We did not find a single goat. What a poor start!
In the second section of the zone we hit a Jack Pot! 14 Nannies and kids- all pared up were crossing a glacier! The second herd we saw had 4 Nannies and 4 kids- 100% recruitement.
The next 3 hours continued with the same success: 3 Billies on Bluff, 11 Nannies and kids in the trees. We scouted the mountains from the ridge line down to the dense trees.

The goats were all spotted between 6500 and 7500 feet elevation and although the temperature hovered at a few degrees above freezing and we had snow at some points, the visibility was very good.
Seeing some big Billies was the highlight of this flight.
The helicopter pilot had 20 years experience of doing wildlife surveys in the mountains so I was unaware of the mountain flying risk and could easily focus on spotting goats.

Since a study from 2005 reported declining numbers and lead to the closing of several zones to recreational hunting, the new results are good news: The examined populations are not as low as previously thought.
To determine whether they really are stable, however, more research is needed.
You can help us with our ongoing research for a sustainable use of nature's resources by donating to the Wilderness Stewardship Foundation.