MOSCOW, Mar 20Scientists at the Siberian Federal University (SFU) have studied how wild reindeer are adapting to dramatic climate change in the Arctic. Observations have shown that their habitat is shifting from the tundra to the forests of Evenkia, the timing of migration and behavior have changed significantly. The obtained data will help specialists understand how to preserve and carefully use the unique biological resource of the North of Russia, the press service of the university reported.
According to the researchers, the climate in the Arctic has changed significantly in recent years. For several years in a row, scientists have recorded the highest annual temperature in the entire history of observations in the Arctic region.
According to forecasts, by 2030 the Arctic Ocean may be completely free of ice in the summer. According to experts, over the past half century, the Arctic has been warming twice as fast as the rest of the world. The Taimyr Peninsula «heats up» the fastest. 1855129920.html» data->
Such global changes have a serious impact on the entire ecosystem of these territories, SibFU scientists reported. In order to preserve biological diversity and prevent the extinction of unique species, specialists are conducting large-scale studies of this region.
The biologists of the university noted that wild reindeer are a key link in the entire ecosystem of the Arctic. Climate change is having a major impact on these animals. According to their observations, over the past quarter of a century, the number of deer of the Taimyr-Evenki (Taimyr) population has decreased from 900 to 320 thousand.
SibFU biologists conducted a number of expeditions in the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory to study the migration routes and the state of the deer population. According to scientists, they used collars with a satellite monitoring system and built-in GPS receivers. This made it possible to observe the movement of reindeer throughout the year, to identify seasonal and other features of their behavior. data-crop-ratio=»0.5625″ data-crop-width=»600″ data-crop-height=»338″ data-source-sid=»not_rian_photo» class=»» />
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Researchers noted that if in the 60s of the twentieth century up to 90% of deer lived in Western Taimyr in the summer, now most of them have shifted to the central and eastern parts of the peninsula. The timing of migration has also changed dramatically. The total duration of reindeer stay in their «parental» home has decreased from 7–8 months to 60–65 days. There was even an expression «deer leave Taimyr».
“With an increase in temperature and, as a result, an increase in the productivity of reindeer pastures, their departure from Taimyr looks paradoxical. Nevertheless, the biochemical studies carried out by us confirm the process of adaptation of deer to new living conditions in the forests of Evenkia,” said the head of the Department of Hunting Resource Science and Reserve Affairs SibFU Oleksandr Savchenko.
According to scientists, in order to study the state of the wild deer population in as much detail as possible, they used all available methods, including molecular genetic, chemical and biochemical laboratory studies.
Preservation of the population of these unique animals in the northern regions of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) makes it possible not only to preserve the Arctic nature, but also serves as an important biological resource for humans, the researchers note.
The wild reindeer of Taimyr and Evenkia is an object of hunting, including the indigenous peoples of Siberia. Thanks to the work carried out by biologists of the Siberian Federal University, new hunting dates have been set.
«Hunting in Taimyr is now open not from August 1, but from August 15, that is, after the majority of females with underyearlings have crossed the main water barrier — the Kheta and Khatanga rivers This is already bearing fruit. We see the stabilization of the number of wild reindeer at a new level,» Savchenko said. between fixed hunting grounds).
The work was carried out as part of a project to assess the sustainability of Arctic ecosystems based on a study of the dynamics of the state of key species (polar bear, walrus, white gull, wild reindeer) by order of Rosneft Oil Company PJSC