The context of an emerging predation problem: Nenets reindeer herders and Arctic foxes in Yamal

Wolverines (Gulo gulo) in the Arctic: Revisiting distribution and identifying research and conservation priorities amid rapid environmental change

Wolverines (Gulo gulo) occupy most of the globe’s Arctic tundra. Given the rapidly warming climate and expanding human activity in this biome, understanding wolverine ecology, and therefore the species’ vulnerability to such changes, is increasingly important for developing research priorities and effective management strategies. Here, we review and synthesize knowledge of wolverines in the Arctic using both Western science sources and available Indigenous Knowledge (IK) to improve our understanding of wolverine ecology in the Arctic and better predict the species’ susceptibility to change. To accomplish this, we update the pan-Arctic distribution map of wolverines to account for recent observations and then discuss resulting inference and uncertainties. We use these patterns to contextualize and discuss potential underlying drivers of distribution and population dynamics, drawing upon knowledge of food habits, habitat associations, and harvest, as well as studies of wolverine ecology elsewhere. We then identify four broad areas to prioritize conservation and research efforts: (1) Monitoring trends in population abundance, demographics, and distribution and the drivers thereof, (2) Evaluating and predicting wolverines’ responses to ongoing climate change, particularly the consequences of reduced snow and sea ice, and shifts in prey availability, (3) Understanding wolverines’ response to human development, including the possible impact of wintertime over-snow travel and seismic testing to reproductive denning, as well as vulnerability to hunting and trapping associated with increased human access, and (4) Ensuring that current and future harvest are sustainable.

Changes in dental wear and breakage in arctic foxes across space and time: Evidence for anthropogenic food subsidies?

Increased human presence in the Arctic may affect its vulnerable ecosystems. Effects on arctic and red foxes provide notable examples. Both have been documented to take anthropogenic subsidies when available, which can change diet and ranging patterns in complex ways that can either benefit or harm populations, depending on the situation. Understanding this complexity requires new tools to study impacts of increasing human presence on endemic mammals at high latitudes. We propose that dental ecology, specifically tooth wear and breakage, can offer important clues. Based on samples of arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus Linnaeus, 1758) trapped prior to (n = 78) and following (n = 57) rapidly growing human presence on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia, we found that foxes trapped recently in proximity to human settlement had significantly less tooth wear and breakage. This is likely explained by a dietary shift from consumption of reindeer carcasses (Rangifer tarandus Linnaeus, 1758) including bone to softer human-derived foods, especially when preferred smaller prey (e.g., West Siberian lemmings, Lemmus sibiricus Kerr, 1792 and arctic lemmings, Dicrostonyx torquatus Pallas, 1778) are unavailable. These results suggest that tooth wear can be a useful indicator of the consumption of anthropogenic foods in arctic foxes.