Svalbard reindeer population size and trends in four sub-areas of Edgeøya

• Published in: Polar Research
• Main Author: Eigil Reimers
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 2012
• Subjects: Edgeøya; population regulation; recruitment rates; Svalbard reindeer; winter mortality; Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus; Environmental sciences; GE1-350; Oceanography; GC1-1581; Svalbard; Plurdalen; Siegelfjellet; Burmeisterfjellet; Polar Research; Rangifer tarandus; svalbard reindeer
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v31i0.11089; https://doaj.org/article/5b51b37f928d42f58138058c6864ffed

In summer 2006 Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus) in south-western Edgeøya (Plurdalen, Grunnlinjesletta, Siegelfjellet and Burmeisterfjellet) showed a low population (181 animals) and recruitment rate, in terms of both calves (9.4%) and yearlings (1.2%). The low recruitment rates were not accompanied by high winter mortality: of only five carcasses found, none were calves born in 2005. A comparison with survey data from 1969 in a restricted part of the study area (Plurdalen and Grunnlinjesletta) shows a consistently low recruitment rate since 1975, indicating a stable or slowly decreasing population.