Global warming is predicted to drive one of the greatest declines in caribou populations in the last 21,000 years, with British Columbia’s herds expected to see declines of up to 61 per cent by 2100 if high rates of warming go unchecked, a new study says.  Caribou — also known as reindeer in Europe and Asia — have survived several spells of Arctic warming in the past. Their presence across the planet’s tundra, forests and mountains have long supported Indigenous populations while acting as ecosystem engineers, disturbing the soil and trampling vegetation in a way that promotes new plant growth. …Human disturbance of those landscapes — from logging to road building — has already led to a two-thirds decline in the global population over the past 30 years. New research, published in the journal Science Advances last week, has now found global warming could push caribou populations even closer to extinction.