The neglected season Warmer autumns counteract harsher winters and promote population growth in Arctic reindeer

The neglected season : Warmer autumns counteract harsher winters and promote population growth in Arctic reindeer

© 2020 The Authors. Global Change Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Global change biology. - 1999. - (2020) vom: 24. Nov.
1. Verfasser: Loe, Leif Egil (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Liston, Glen E, Pigeon, Gabriel, Barker, Kristin, Horvitz, Nir, Stien, Audun, Forchhammer, Mads, Getz, Wayne Marcus, Irvine, Robert Justin, Lee, Aline, Movik, Lars K, Mysterud, Atle, Pedersen, Åshild Ø, Reinking, Adele K, Ropstad, Erik, Trondrud, Liv Monica, Tveraa, Torkild, Veiberg, Vebjørn, Hansen, Brage B, Albon, Steve D
Format: Online-Aufsatz
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: 2020
Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk:Global change biology
Schlagworte:Journal Article Rangifer GPS body mass climate change fitness movement ecology plant phenology snow space use ungulates
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:© 2020 The Authors. Global Change Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Arctic ungulates are experiencing the most rapid climate warming on Earth. While concerns have been raised that more frequent icing events may cause die-offs, and earlier springs may generate a trophic mismatch in phenology, the effects of warming autumns have been largely neglected. We used 25 years of individual-based data from a growing population of wild Svalbard reindeer, to test how warmer autumns enhance population growth. Delayed plant senescence had no effect, but a six-week delay in snow-onset (the observed data range) was estimated to increase late winter body mass by 10%. Because average late winter body mass explains 90% of the variation in population growth rates, such a delay in winter-onset would enable a population growth of r = 0.20, sufficient to counteract all but the most extreme icing events. This study provides novel mechanistic insights into the consequences of climate change for Arctic herbivores, highlighting the positive impact of warming autumns on population viability, offsetting the impacts of harsher winters. Thus, the future for Arctic herbivores facing climate change may be brighter than the prevailing view
Beschreibung:Date Revised 22.02.2024
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status Publisher
ISSN:1365-2486
DOI:10.1111/gcb.15458