We can already see the effects of climate change altering the everyday lives of people across the globe. These large environmental changes, however, also effect the survival prospects of many different species and endanger the stability of ecosystems. One animal in particular that is impacted by climate change is the arctic fox.
History of the Arctic Fox
Currently, there are a variety of environmental factors that are limiting the expanse and survival of Arctic foxes. This is especially clear in what is called the Fennoscandian Peninsula, also called Fennoscandia, which encompasses Norway, Sweden, Finland, and parts of Russia. 
Arctic foxes used to be widely hunted for their coats. This hunting was not limited to Fennoscandia, but is notable in this particular area due to the close call at regional extinction. It is estimated that at one point, there were only 40-60 adult Arctic foxes in the wild in this region. Hunting bans enacted between 1920 and 1940, however, gave the Arctic fox a fighting chance at survival. Recovery efforts put in place in the mid to late 1900s made the future of the Arctic fox in this region less bleak, until the effects of climate change started to interfere with the budding population.
The Role of Climate Change
Just as climate change is a complex and multi-faceted issue, the obstacles facing the growth of the Arctic fox population in Fennoscandia are not uniform. While there are more noticeable and global issues, like the reduced levels of sea ice and the melting permafrost, some issues are harder to pinpoint but still drastically affect the lives of Arctic foxes.
- One example of this is the reduced lemming population. Lemmings are the main food source for inland Arctic foxes, but the warming climate limits access to the lemming’s main food source, reducing their abundance in the wild, greatly impacting the diet and reproduction of Arctic foxes.
- The warmer global climate has contributed to a reduction in size of the tundra, the Arctic fox’s main environment. As more southern biomes impede on the tundra, southern species follow. The red fox is one such species, and the introduction of a competitor in a relatively simple ecosystem greatly impacts the survival of Arctic foxes and their pups.
- Melting sea ice poses a relatively unique problem to Arctic foxes, as it is not noticeable at a surface level. Without sea ice allowing foxes to travel from the mainland of the continents to islands with fox populations, genetic diversity has greatly decreased in the past 100 years. Genetic diversity is important in populations to ensure varied immune systems to protect against a species widedecimation due to a single virus or disease, which is now a much bigger threat than 100 years ago.
Research
One major research initiative is the Save the Arctic Fox Project, funded by Fjallraven and created to assist Anders Angerbjörn, a professor at Stockholm University who has been studying Arctic foxes for over 30 years. Through this program, Fjallraven supports research on the population cycle of Arctic Foxes in Fennoscandia and on the effectiveness of various conservation efforts in the area.
Policy Recommendations
While there have been conservation efforts to save Fennoscandian Arctic foxes, the degrees of success are varied and the low population only makes it riskier to bring foxes into captivity for breeding efforts. Aiding the fox population, however, could take forms other than direct Arctic fox breeding:
- Lemming breeding/conservation: with troubles arising in bringing Arctic foxes into captivity for breeding, perhaps ensuring the safety of the lemming population could indirectly benefit the Arctic foxes. The reproduction rates of Arctic foxes are closely linked with lemming population, so perhaps if lemmings are more receptive to conservation efforts, it could have a great impact on Arctic foxes without removing them from the wild.
- Keeping red foxes out of Arctic fox territory: red foxes are larger than Arctic foxes and naturally live in more complex ecosystems with more predators and competition. By encouraging the hunting of red foxes in the tundra or other efforts to keep red foxes in the south, that removes an obstacle from the path to a greater Arctic fox population and keeps the Arctic ecosystem more stable.
- Preserving sea ice: the preservation of sea ice can greatly increase the mobility of Arctic foxes and naturally promote further genetic diversity. Groups like the Arctic Ice Project focus on ways to preserve and foster growth of sea ice in the Arctic, which not only could help the fox population but also works as a mitigation efforts to slow the rate of climate change.
To learn more about the plight of Arctic foxes amongst our changing environment, watch the video below that goes more in depth into the struggles of this Arctic species and possible ways to help remedy this issue.
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