The endangered Arctic fox in Norway—the failure and success of captive breeding and reintroduction

Polar research

Veronika Areskoug¹  Arild Landa²  John D. C. Linnell³  Kristine Roaldsnes Ulvund³  Anne-Mathilde Thierry³  Lars Rød-Eriksen³  Nina E. Eide³  Øystein Flagstad³  Olav Strand³ 

[1]Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, NorwayView further author information

[2]Terrestrial Division, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim, NorwayCorrespondence

[3]Terrestrial Division, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim, NorwayView further author information

关键词: Vulpes lagopus L;    climate change;    conservation actions;    survival;    lemming cycles;    red fox competition;   

DOI  :  10.1080/17518369.2017.1325139

学科分类：自然科学（综合）

来源: Co-Action Publishing

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACTThe Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus L.) is listed as extinct in Finland, endangered in Sweden and critically endangered in Norway. Around 2000 there were only 40–60 adult individuals left, prompting the implementation of conservation actions, including a captive breeding programme founded from wild-caught pups. The initial breeding trials failed, probably because of stress among captive animals, and the programme was radically changed in 2005. Eight large enclosures within the species’ historical natural habitat were established, which had the positive effect of all pairs breeding in 2007. As of 2015, 385 pups (yearly average 37) were produced. In this ongoing programme, pups are released the winter (January–February) following their birth and have had an average first-year survival of 0.44. The release sites are prepared with artificial dens and a network of supplementary food dispensers, designed to work exclusively for the Arctic fox. After just four to seven years of releases, populations have been...

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC