Over the last decade there has been a near-plethora of books written about northern caribou. Under the Arctic Sun: Gwich'In, Caribou, and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by Ken Madsen; Thunder on the Tundra: Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit of the Bathurst Caribou by Natasha Thorpe, Tuktu and Nogak Project; Caribou (Our Wild World) by Julia Vogel and John F. McGee; Caribou and the North: A Shared Future by Monte Hummel and Justina C. Ray. However, Being Caribou by Karsten Heuer remains one of the most riveting reads about the genus Rangifer.
Not many people would volunteer to follow a herd of wild animals as it pursues a 1,500-km migratory route, but that is just what Heuer and his new bride, Leanne, did in 1998. Heuer retells the pair's adventure as they struggle to keep up with the herd through the trials of Mother Nature and the limitations of a biped. The newlyweds' cause is noble: preserve the Porcupine Caribou Herd's calving grounds in Alaska. It's been three years since this book was published in Canada and the future of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is still uncertain, with public commentary on the updated version of a Comprehensive Conservation Plan to begin in spring 2010 that will not address oil and gas development of the coastal plain, this is perhaps a time to revisit Heurer's book and the epic journey this herd faces every year.
