Research on impacts of human activity and infrastructure development on reindeer and caribou (Rangifer tarandus) is reviewed in the context of spatial (m to many km) and temporal (min to decades) scales

Nellemann, Christian

Vistnes, Ingunn

Arctic Portal Library

Polar Biol (2008) 31:399–407  DOI 10.1007/s00300-007-0377-9123REVIEWThe matter of spatial and temporal scales: a review of reindeer and caribou response to human activityIngunn Vistnes · Christian Nellemann Received: 21 November 2006 / Revised: 3 October 2007 / Accepted: 3 October 2007 / Published online: 30 October 2007©  Springer-Verlag 2007Abstract Research on impacts of human activity andinfrastructure development on reindeer and caribou (Rang-ifer tarandus) is reviewed in the context of spatial (m tomany km) and temporal (min to decades) scales. Before the1980s, most disturbance studies were behavioral studies ofindividual animals at local scales, reporting few and short-term (min to h) impacts within 0–2 km from human activ-ity. Around the mid 1980s, focus shifted to regional-scalelandscape studies, reporting that Rangifer reduced the useof areas within 5 km from infrastructure and human activityby 50–95% for weeks, months or even years and increaseduse of remaining undisturbed habitat far beyond those dis-tances. The extent could vary with type of disturbance, sex,terrain, season, and sensitivity of herds. Of 85 studiesreviewed, 83% of the regional studies concluded that theimpacts of human activity were signiWcant, while only 13%of the local studies did the same. Accurate assessment ofimpacts from human activity requires regional-scale stud-ies, a pattern conWrmed in a few long-term (decades) pre-and post-development studies. Such long-term studies areneeded to improve understanding of both temporal and spa-tial patterns.Keywords Caribou · Disturbance · Oil · Pipelines · Reindeer · Roads · ScaleIntroductionOver the last century, humans have dramatically altered theface of the planet and triggered the highest extinction rateof Xora and fauna in recent history (Chapin et al. 2000;Clark et al. 2001; Loreau et al. 2001). Roads, railway lines,power lines, airports, harbors, and dams form the skeletonof the modern world (UNEP 2001), which are necessary foraccessing, developing, and transporting people, goods, andservices (Leinbach 1995). Infrastructure development,however, has many environmental costs and has beenshown to disrupt the physical environment, alter the chemi-cal environment, impact species relationships, accelerateintroduction of invasive species, modify animal behavior,and induce changes in land use in areas proximate to devel-oped roads (Andrews 1990; Forman and Alexander 1998;Lawton et al. 1998; Trombulak and Frissell 2000). Growthin infrastructure and subsequent habitat fragmentation hasalso been shown to negatively impact the ability of wildlifeto cope with climate change (Thomas et al. 2004; Tyleret al. 2006).In the Arctic, natural resources exploitation and anthro-pogenic activity is more recent, and has expanded rapidlyduring the last 30 years (UNEP 2001), driven largely by theregion’s large reserves of hydrocarbons and minerals(UNEP 2004; Kryukov and Moe 2005). Today oil and gasdevelopment is the keystone to many northern economies,with plans underway to extend infrastructure and develop-ment networks to new regions (UNEP 2004; Cizek 2005).Examples of this expansion are found in the Yamal Penin-sula of Russia, in the National Petroleum Reserve andArctic National Wildlife Refuge of Alaska, and in theBarents Sea region. Following the large industrial development projects ofpetroleum exploration and hydroelectric power in CanadaI. Vistnes (&)Norut NIBR Finnmark, Follumsvei 33, 9510 Alta, Norwaye-mail: ingunn.vistnes@Wnnmark.norut.noC. NellemannNorwegian Institute for Nature Research, Fakkelgården, Storhove, 2624 Lillehammer, Norway

The matter of spatial and temporal scales: a review of reindeer and caribou response to human activity

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The matter of spatial and temporal scales: a review of reindeer and caribou response to human activity

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