Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic: Perspectives from the Barents Area

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Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic: Perspectives from the Barents Area

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300 km

Snow / Ice Bare (Arctic tundra / other rocky habitats) Sparse vegetation (alpine tundra / Arctic tundra) Grass / Shrubland (alpine tundra / wetlands) Marshlands (wetlands) Coniferous forest (boreal forest / taiga) Decidous forest (boreal forest / taiga) Cropland Urban

Figure 2.3 Distribution of forest types and ecozones in the Barents area.

the ability to survive under ice-covered water is a prerequisite for fish of the taiga. Examples of species that reside in the region are the northern pike ( Esox lucius ), grayling ( Thymallus thymallus ) and trout (e.g. Salvelinus alpinus and Salmo trutta ). The largest animal group is the insects,which are important prey for mammals and birds and also function as pollinators and decomposers. The taiga is home to a few hundred bird species in summer, most of which take advantage of the long days and the abundance of insects.While many of these species leave as autumn arrives, carrion-feeders and large raptors such as the golden eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos ) and the raven ( Corvus corax ), stay behind in the southernmost parts of the taiga together with seed-eating birds such as ptarmigans ( Lagopus spp.) and crossbills ( Loxia spp.). About 1160 species of vascular plant, over 1000 lichens, 600 mosses, 36 mammals, 180 birds, and 19 different freshwater fish have been documented in this ecozone. Tundra Alpine and Arctic tundra covers almost 20% of the area and is mainly present in Norway and Russia, situated north of the taiga belt in coastal areas of the north and west and in the High- Arctic archipelagos of Svalbard and Franz Josef Land.The area corresponds well with the CircumpolarArcticVegetationMap’s (CAVM Team, 2003) definition of the Arctic. The tundra is often defined as a biome where tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and a short growing season. In this context the tundra is defined both from a latitudinal and an altitudinal perspective, both with the tree line as a border to other biomes further south or at lower altitudes. Nevertheless, scattered occurrences of trees can occur in tundra.Moderating ocean winds prevent temperatures from becoming as severe as interior regions of the Barents area tundra. However, it is still relatively cold throughout all months of the year, with summer temperatures rarely exceeding 7–10°C and average winter

well as many different types of berry, for example cranberry ( Vaccinium oxycoccus ), cloudberry ( Rubus chamaemorus ), blueberry ( V. myrtillus ) and cowberry ( V. vitis-idaea ), most of them surviving winter protected by the snow cover. Grasses grow wherever they can find a patch of sun, and mosses and lichens thrive on the ground and on the sides of tree trunks. Wildfire and windfalls are important factors in the dynamics of the forests (Angelstam, 1998), opening up the canopy and enabling regeneration. Mixed in among the forests are bogs, fens, marshes, shallow lakes, rivers and wetlands, all of which hold vast amounts of water. The flora listed here are based on Olson et al. (2001) and https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/List_of_terrestrial_ecoregions (WWF), ‘Scandinavian and Russian taiga’. The fauna is relatively low in species richness, but many species consider the taiga home for all or part of the year. Large herbivorous mammals are represented by reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus ), moose ( Alces alces ), red deer ( Cervus elaphus ) and roe deer ( Capreolus capreolus ). Smaller mammals are represented by the mountain hare ( Lepus timidus ) and rodent species such as beaver ( Castor fiber ), squirrel ( Sciurus vulgaris ) and voles (Arvicolinae). Mammalian predators of the taiga include the (Eurasian) lynx ( Lynx lynx ),stoat ( Mustela erminea ), European otter ( Lutra lutra ), wolverine ( Gulo gulo ), gray wolf ( Canis lupus ), red fox ( Vulpes vulpes ), and brown bear ( Ursus arctos ).The fauna listed here are based on Hof et al. (2015), the Swedish Species Observation System (www.artportalen.se), and the Norwegian Species Observation Reporting System (www. artsobservasjoner.no). The taiga has environmental conditions that are too harsh for most reptiles and amphibians. However, the common European adder ( Vipera berus ) survives winter by hibernating underground,and the European common frog ( Rana temporaria ) may survive for months under ice.Adaptations to coldwater and