By ARTHUR MAX, The Associated Press Few sights in Alaska are more regal than a majestic Bull Caribou against the waning fall colors of Alaska’s tundra. Look closely and you’ll notice this image was taken in a downpour. Photo copyright by Dwight PhillipsPOZNAN, Poland — Chief Bill Erasmus of the  Dene nation in northern Canada brought a stark warning about the climate crisis: The once abundant herds of caribou are dwindling, rivers are running lower and the ice is too thin to hunt on. Erasmus raised his concerns recently on the sidelines of a U.N. climate conference, seeking to ensure that North America’s indigenous peoples are not left out in the cold when it comes to any global warming negotiations. Erasmus, the 54-year-old elected leader of 30,000 Natives in Canada, and representatives of other indigenous peoples met with the U.N.’s top climate official, Yvo de Boer, and have lobbied national delegations to recognize them as an "expert group" that can participate in the talks like other nongovernment organizations. … The caribou, or reindeer, herds are declining across North America and northern Europe, he said. "We can’t hunt because the ice is not frozen yet. Our hunters are falling through the ice, and lives are being lost," Erasmus told The Associated Press. This winter the normally dry area has been covered by thick, wet snow, further hampering hunting, he said. Petroleum extraction from the Canadian tar sands is draining the underground water table and reducing the flow of the rivers northward, and the effects are felt hundreds of miles away, he said.

Native leaders say climate affecting caribou populations