Vole abundance and reindeer carcasses determine breeding activity of Arctic foxes in low Arctic Yamal, Russia

Dorothee Ehrich,Aleksandr A Sokolov,Maite Cerezo,Anna Y Rodnikova,Natalya A Sokolova,Victor G Shtro,Eva Fuglei

doi:10.1186/s12898-017-0142-z

Abstract

BackgroundHigh latitude ecosystems are at present changing rapidly under the influence of climate warming, and specialized Arctic species at the southern margin of the Arctic may be particularly affected. The Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus), a small mammalian predator endemic to northern tundra areas, is able to exploit different resources in the context of varying tundra ecosystems. Although generally widespread, it is critically endangered in subarctic Fennoscandia, where a fading out of the characteristic lemming cycles and competition with abundant red foxes have been identified as main threats. We studied an Arctic fox population at the Erkuta Tundra Monitoring site in low Arctic Yamal (Russia) during 10 years in order to determine which resources support the breeding activity in this population. In the study area, lemmings have been rare during the last 15 years and red foxes are nearly absent, creating an interesting contrast to the situation in Fennoscandia.ResultsArctic fox was breeding in nine of the 10 years of the study. The number of active dens was on average 2.6 (range 0–6) per 100 km2 and increased with small rodent abundance. It was also higher after winters with many reindeer carcasses, which occurred when mortality was unusually high due to icy pastures following rain-on-snow events. Average litter size was 5.2 (SD = 2.1). Scat dissection suggested that small rodents (mostly Microtus spp.) were the most important prey category. Prey remains observed at dens show that birds, notably waterfowl, were also an important resource in summer.ConclusionsThe Arctic fox in southern Yamal, which is part of a species-rich low Arctic food web, seems at present able to cope with a state shift of the small rodent community from high amplitude cyclicity with lemming dominated peaks, to a vole community with low amplitude fluctuations. The estimated breeding parameters characterized the population as intermediate between the lemming fox and the coastal fox ecotype. Only continued ecosystem-based monitoring will reveal their fate in a changing tundra ecosystem.

Highlights

High latitude ecosystems are at present changing rapidly under the influence of climate warming, and specialized Arctic species at the southern margin of the Arctic may be affected
Collared lemmings were present in most years, whereas siberian lemmings were nearly absent during the study period
Contrary to what has been observed in Fennoscandia [5], the Arctic fox population at Erkuta in southern Yamal is a lemming fox population that seems at present to be able to cope with a shift of the small rodent community from high amplitude cyclicity with lemming dominated peaks, to a vole community with low amplitude fluctuations and a consistent population increase over the summer [55]

Summary

Introduction

High latitude ecosystems are at present changing rapidly under the influence of climate warming, and specialized Arctic species at the southern margin of the Arctic may be affected. The Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus), a small mammalian predator endemic to northern tundra areas, is able to exploit different resources in the context of varying tundra ecosystems. Generally widespread, it is critically endangered in subarctic Fennoscandia, where a fading out of the characteristic lemming cycles and competition with abundant red foxes have been identified as main threats. Lemming or inland foxes feed preferably on lemmings, but switch to alternative prey such as birds in low lemming years [13] They maximize reproductive effort in peak years with very large litters, but may skip breeding or breed poorly in years with low lemming abundance [14, 15]. This was the case on Yamal Peninsula, Russia, during the 1970s and 1980s, when largescale surveys showed that Arctic fox den occupancy and the percentage of pregnant females among hunted foxes were related to lemming abundance [17]

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