St-John's, N.L. - A new report says the number of woodland caribou in Newfoundland is falling fast, and it calls on the province to take action.
The report from the conservation group Canadian Boreal Initiative says the province should protect forest habitats that are still intact.
It calls for forest management to allow herds to migrate seasonally without overexposure to predators.
It recommends a temporary halt to all new tree-cutting and road building in dense caribou habitat until management strategies are in place.
The report says Newfoundland's woodland caribou weren't considered at risk in 2002 when the population was about 85,000 animals.
That number has since dropped to about 32,000, as habitat loss makes caribou calves easy prey for bears and coyotes.
