Journal
BIOLOGY LETTERS
Volume 12, Issue 11, Pages -Publisher
ROYAL SOC
DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2016.0466
Keywords
Rangifer tarandus; Yamal Peninsula; Nenets herders; Barents and Kara seas; West Siberia; climate change
Categories
Funding
- Academy of Finland [256991, 251111]
- JPI Climate [291581]
- Dickey Center for International Understanding, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
- NERC IRF [NE/L011859/1]
- NERC [NE/L011859/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- Natural Environment Research Council [NE/L011859/1] Funding Source: researchfish
- Austrian Science Fund (FWF) [I1401] Funding Source: Austrian Science Fund (FWF)
- Academy of Finland (AKA) [251111, 256991, 256991, 251111] Funding Source: Academy of Finland (AKA)
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Sea ice loss is accelerating in the Barents and Kara Seas (BKS). Assessing potential linkages between sea ice retreat/thinning and the region's ancient and unique social-ecological systems is a pressing task. Tundra nomadism remains a vitally important livelihood for indigenous Nenets and their large reindeer herds. Warming summer air temperatures have been linked to more frequent and sustained summer high-pressure systems over West Siberia, Russia, but not to sea ice retreat. At the same time, autumn/winter rain-on-snow (ROS) events have become more frequent and intense. Here, we review evidence for autumn atmospheric warming and precipitation increases over Arctic coastal lands in proximity to BKS ice loss. Two major ROS events during November 2006 and 2013 led to massive winter reindeer mortality episodes on the Yamal Peninsula. Fieldwork with migratory herders has revealed that the ecological and socio-economic impacts from the catastrophic 2013 event will unfold for years to come. The suggested link between sea ice loss, more frequent and intense ROS events and high reindeer mortality has serious implications for the future of tundra Nenets nomadism.
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