Animals - Climate crisis is causing reindeer problems
The climate crisis is causing problems for reindeer breeders in northern Norway. According to the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, there is a risk of breeding problems.
Pastures difficult to reach
According to Anna-Laila Danielsen, who wrote her master's thesis on the problem, it is often no longer cold enough for lakes and rivers to freeze over and for the reindeer to walk across the ice on their way to their winter grazing grounds. This interrupts the migration routes.
Reindeer live in the tundra and taiga of the northern polar regions. They are the only domesticated deer species.
Breeders also told Danielsen that a light blanket of snow often covers the still thin ice. The animals are then often unable to recognize that the ice is not yet bearing weight. They can then collapse when walking over it. Some breeders therefore want to build bridges for the reindeer.
In addition, there is now less permafrost and winter temperatures fluctuate around freezing point more frequently than in the past. As a result, several thin layers of ice can form on the snow, which together are so hard that the reindeer can no longer reach the food under the ice, writes Danielsen. The herders therefore have to bring in additional food, which is expensive and time-consuming, especially as vehicles with hay and pellets cannot get everywhere in the wilderness.
In addition, there is often crowding among the reindeer during feeding. Dominant animals keep other animals away from the food. This is not a problem in the wild, where the weaker ones look for another place to graze. This is not possible at an artificial feeding site. Some breeders have now developed special feeding devices.
Read also:
- This will change in December
- German activists speak out in Dubai on suffering in Israel and the Gaza Strip
- Despite UN vote: fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip continues
- Nuclear fusion - hype or solution to energy problems?
Source: www.stern.de
