From its high peaks to its wide river valleys, Kluane National Park and Reserve is part of a vast wild land. But even a park as seemingly pristine as Kluane has its pressures, and Parks Canada wants to ensure that it can track any changes that do occur in the park.

The park wants to begin an ecological monitoring progamme, possibly as early as this summer. David Henry, the conservation ecologist for Parks Canada in the Yukon, coordinates the monitoring program.

"National parks are obligated to maintain their ecological integrity, and we think that there will be more pressure from now on to complete that part of our mandate," says Henry. "How do you know what is happening to ecological integrity unless you are tracking it? We really have to be tracking it in scientifically credible ways so that we can say it is not changing or this is how it is changing."

Parks Canada has been using the term "ecological integrity" for more than a decade to describe ecosystems that are whole and complete, and have not been significantly altered by humans. In 1997, a State of the Parks Report gave Vuntut National Park in the northern Yukon the highest rating for ecological integrity among all Canadian national parks.

Kluane was rated as being in better shape than about two-thirds of the other national parks, but both Kluane and Ivvavik were judged as having "significant" threats to their ecological integrity.

In Kluane, many of these stresses come from habitat fragmentation and loss in the surrounding region, not just within the park boundaries. Examples include the effects of development and roads, clearcuts, mining and agriculture.

"A coordinated ecosystem management approach for the whole region is the greatest need for Kluane," says Henry.

Inside park boundaries, managers want to monitor possible recreational overuse of backcountry areas such as the Slims River and Alsek River valleys. They also want to ensure that aircraft and helicopters do not disturb wildlife while flying over and landing in the park, and that exotic plants do not become established in the park.

Understanding these effects can help park managers make better decisions, and protect ecosystems within the park as much as possible. But monitoring natural systems is a challenge, as it can be hard to distinguish between real changes and short-term fluctuations.

"It may take up to ten years before meaningful patterns begin to show up," explains Henry.

But Kluane has a major advantage. If all goes well, the park will not be starting this exercise from scratch; it will be able to build upon information gathered by the Kluane Boreal Forest Ecosystem Project. This massive decade-long project studied the interaction between different animals and the food they eat in a 350-square kilometre area near Kluane Lake.

The researchers focussed on the ten-year population cycles that affect hares, lynx, coyotes and other animals in the boreal forest. Their intensive efforts have made the study area arguably the most well-studied ecosystem on Canadian soil, and Henry hopes that park researchers can build on this existing information.

"We hope to collect various measurements on vegetation and small mammals and snowshoe hares in three different areas of the park. Then if we can establish relationships between the park plots and the boreal forest ones, we literally can go back in time without spending ten years collecting the data," says Henry.

Possible locations for study areas include the Duke River, an area between the Auriol Trail and Kathleen Lake, and Alder Creek near Mush Lake. Henry says that there are limits to what they can accomplish because of existing demands on park personnel.

Monitoring is far from a new concept in Kluane. The park wardens have been carrying out surveys for years on everything from ungulates such as sheep, goats and moose to breeding birds. They also monitor snow plots in the high country to help keep track of the snowpack, and share this information with other government agencies.

These efforts help park managers assess factors such as habitat changes and global climate warming. "Some problems have complex causes and solutions need to be developed slowly over time," says Henry.

But all in all, Kluane is a relatively healthy park, not subject to the major problems that plague places such as Banff. "Stability is the major pattern in Kluane, and that is good," says Henry.

For more information on Kluane National Park, contact the park headquarters at (867) 634-7250.