Research project financed by Formas
Over the past decade, the Arctic has warmed by 0.75°C, and the vegetation has already responded to these increased temperatures. Although the vegetation has changed dramatically in some locations, in most of the Arctic recorded changes are lagging predicted changes. Herbivores is one of the proposed drivers for these lags. In this project we are going to test if reindeer are slowing down responses of arctic plant communities to climate change, and if they by doing this protect arctic biodiversity.
Over the past decade, the Arctic has warmed by 0.75°C, and the vegetation has already responded to these increased temperatures. Although the vegetation has changed dramatically in some locations, in most of the Arctic recorded changes are lagging predicted changes. The magnitudes of these lags, as well as the relative importance of factors causing them remain poorly understood. Herbivores is one of the proposed drivers for these lags, and this is especially interesting since large herbivore management is one of few tools northern societies can use to mitigate large scale ecosystem changes in response to global warming.
The aim of this project is to test if reindeer are slowing down responses of arctic plant communities to climate change, and if they by doing this protect arctic biodiversity. We will achieve this by combining analyses of data from the National Inventories of the Landscapes in Sweden (NILS), field experiments, surveys, UAV based vegetation studies, and interacting with stakeholders through participatory workshops, customized information sheets and participation in meetings about environmental monitoring. The increased knowledge gained about how negative impacts on Arctic ecosystems by a warming climate can be mitigated by managing herbivore populations are highly relevant for the work with United Nations sustainability goals 13. Climate Action and 15. Life on Land, and for the work with the Environmental Quality Goal A Magnificent Mountain Landscape.
