Nature's Past Episode 049: Wildlife Conservation in Quebec

There is a lot of good historical writing on wildlife conservation in Canada. Historians, including Janet Foster, George Colpitts, John Sandlos, Tina Loo, and others have provided excellent and important studies of the topic. But our understanding of wildlife conservation policy history has, until now, missed a key part of the story, the case of Quebec.

As one of the oldest wildlife regulatory regimes in British North America, Quebec forms a critical part North American conservation history. Conservation policy in Quebec took a unique form based around privately leased reserves, something nearly unknown in any other jurisdiction in North America. Why was this the case? What made Quebec distinct?

This is the subject of Darcy Ingram’s 2014 book, Wildlife Conservation and Conflict in Quebec, 1840-1914. On this episode of the podcast, we speak with Darcy Ingram.

book cover Wildlife Conservation and Conflict in Quebec, 1840-1914