Wildlife research and monitoring program

The ministry’s wildlife science team designs and delivers studies and programs that help inform decisions to ensure diverse, healthy, sustainable wildlife populations and habitats for the benefit and enjoyment of all Ontarians.

Their research areas include:

Ministry science staff collaborate with many partners, including:

  • other government agencies
  • First Nations
  • non-profit organizations
  • universities and colleges
  • industry

Wildlife health

Our team monitors wildlife health in Ontario and the diseases and parasites that may be affecting their populations. Our staff are focused on promoting and supporting collaboration across all sectors in a One Health approach to:

  • detect, identify and research emerging diseases in wildlife, such as SARS-CoV-2 and Avian Influenza
  • proactively survey for diseases, such as chronic wasting disease, so we can respond quickly if a case is detected
  • lessen the impacts of diseases that can be spread between animals and humans, such as rabies, to reduce the risk to people, pets, livestock and wildlife
  • conserve the biodiversity of fish and wildlife species

One Health

One Health cross-disciplinary approach that recognizes that the health of humans, animals, plants, and the environment are closely linked and interdependent.

The One Health approach can:

  • prevent or reduce outbreaks of diseases that spread between animals and people
  • improve the safety and availability of food
  • decrease infections that resist antibiotics and enhance health for both humans and animals
  • preserve biodiversity and support conservation efforts

By encouraging teamwork across different sectors, the One Health approach can enhance the health of people, animals and plants in our shared environment.

Moose research

Moose are one of the most well-known symbols of the northern wilderness, holding great spiritual, cultural, ecological and recreational value. Moose hunting contributes an estimated $200 million annually to the Ontario economy.

Our wildlife researchers are working on a multi-year research project to better understand what is driving moose population declines. Findings from this research project will support future moose harvest strategies to ensure sustainable populations.

State of moose populations

Moose populations in Ontario have declined by about 20% province wide since the early 2000’s. We have also observed fewer calves during winter aerial surveys in many parts of the province.

In response to declines and the low number of calves, the number of tags available to licenced hunters were reduced in many areas. While the moose population in some regions seem to have stabilized, others have not recovered, and in some cases have continued to decline despite the reduced harvest.

What we are doing

We have started a multi-year project in Northern Ontario near Thunder Bay in wildlife management unit (WMU) 13 to assess the factors that may be contributing to continued moose population declines such as predation, harvest, diseases and population density.

We are tracking moose, their competitors and predators including white-tailed deer, black bears and gray wolves around WMU 13 using GPS collars. We are also collecting information about the health of individuals and samples for genetic analysis.

How can you help

We are asking the public and hunters in wildlife management units 11B, 12B, 13 and 15B to report:

  • sightings of moose, deer, bear or wolf with a collar or ear tag
  • harvested moose, deer, bear or wolf with a collar or ear tag
  • harvested moose, deer, bear or wolf that you’re willing to provide tissue samples from

Biological samples will provide information on age and genetic structure of these populations.

Reports can be made to Moose.Research@ontario.ca.

Do not treat collared moose differently

During your hunt, if you see a collared animal of the sex and age class that matches your wildlife tag, you should treat that animal the same as any other with respect to your decision to shoot or not.

Report any moose you harvest that has a collar or ear tag to Moose.Research@ontario.ca.

Our staff

Learn more about some of the wildlife research and monitoring projects our staff are working on right now.

  • Jeff Bowman studies how changes in habitat brought on by changes in land use and climate (for example, drought, floods, warming temperatures) influence different animal populations in Ontario, including lynx, fisher, muskrat, mink, and wild turkey.
  • Glen Brown studies the relationships among climate variation, habitat and population dynamics of wildlife inhabiting the Hudson Bay Lowlands, including waterfowl, shorebirds, and Arctic fox.
  • Michelle DiLeo’s research integrates ecological data with genomics to understand how species-at-risk respond to habitat fragmentation and climate change.
  • Richard Feldman is interested in landscape ecology and how habitat and climate connectivity shape wildlife populations and their distributions.
  • Larissa Nituch leads the rabies research and control program which is currently working to eliminate terrestrial rabies in southern Ontario. She also leads the chronic wasting disease surveillance program and other wildlife health initiatives.
  • Joe Northrup studies how human-caused environmental change influences the behaviour and population dynamics of large mammals, including white-tailed deer, black bears and polar bears.
  • Brent Patterson is looking at the factors that influence the distribution and abundance of wolves and coyotes in Ontario, as well as relationships between these predators and their prey. He also studies deer, moose and caribou with an emphasis on the interactive effects of hunting, predation, and habitat on the population dynamics of these iconic species.
  • Ken Abraham (scientist emeritus) continues his support to improving the understanding of the distribution and abundance of animals and plants (biodiversity) in the Far North of Ontario. This will help with community based land use planning and development of the Far North Land Use Strategy.
  • Martyn Obbard (scientist emeritus) monitors the movement and foraging patterns of adult female polar bears in James Bay, where changes to the sea ice are happening faster than anywhere else in the Hudson Bay region.

Publications

Visit our catalogue of natural resource scientific and technical publications, which lists what we've published since 2004.

If you want to get a copy of a publication, contact the journal directly or email info.mnrscience@ontario.ca.