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dc.contributor.authorAlbon, Steve D.
dc.contributor.authorIrvine, R. Justin
dc.contributor.authorHalvorsen, Odd
dc.contributor.authorLangvatn, Rolf
dc.contributor.authorLoe, Leif Egil
dc.contributor.authorRopstad, Erik
dc.contributor.authorVeiberg, Vebjørn
dc.contributor.authorvan der Wal, René
dc.contributor.authorBjørkvoll, Eirin Marie
dc.contributor.authorDuff, Elizabeth I.
dc.contributor.authorHansen, Brage Bremset
dc.contributor.authorLee, Aline Magdalena
dc.contributor.authorTveraa, Torkild
dc.contributor.authorStien, Audun
dc.date.accessioned2016-08-24T12:09:19Z
dc.date.accessioned2016-09-05T09:28:09Z
dc.date.available2016-08-24T12:09:19Z
dc.date.available2016-09-05T09:28:09Z
dc.date.issued2016
dc.identifier.citationGlobal Change Biology 2016nb_NO
dc.identifier.issn1365-2486
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11250/2404234
dc.description.abstractThe cumulative effects of climate warming on herbivore vital rates and population dynamics are hard to predict, given that the expected effects differ between seasons. In the Arctic, warmer summers enhance plant growth which should lead to heavier and more fertile individuals in the autumn. Conversely, warm spells in winter with rainfall (rain-on-snow) can cause ‘icing’, restricting access to forage, resulting in starvation, lower survival and fecundity. As body condition is a ‘barometer’ of energy demands relative to energy intake, we explored the causes and consequences of variation in body mass of wild female Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus) from 1994 to 2015, a period of marked climate warming. Late winter (April) body mass explained 88% of the between-year variation in population growth rate, because it strongly influenced reproductive loss, and hence subsequent fecundity (92%), as well as survival (94%) and recruitment (93%). Autumn (October) body mass affected ovulation rates but did not affect fecundity. April body mass showed no long-term trend (coefficient of variation, CV = 8.8%) and was higher following warm autumn (October) weather, reflecting delays in winter onset, but most strongly, and negatively, related to ‘rain-on-snow’ events. October body mass (CV = 2.5%) increased over the study due to higher plant productivity in the increasingly warm summers. Density-dependent mass change suggested competition for resources in both winter and summer but was less pronounced in recent years, despite an increasing population size. While continued climate warming is expected to increase the carrying capacity of the high Arctic tundra, it is also likely to cause more frequent icing events. Our analyses suggest that these contrasting effects may cause larger seasonal fluctuations in body mass and vital rates. Overall our findings provide an important ‘missing’ mechanistic link in the current understanding of the population biology of a keystone species in a rapidly warming Arctic. Keywords: climate change, density dependence, extreme events, icing, nutrition, primary production, Rangifer, reindeer, Svalbard, weathernb_NO
dc.language.isoengnb_NO
dc.publisherWileynb_NO
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.titleContrasting effects of summer and winter warming onbody mass explain population dynamics in a food-limitedArctic herbivorenb_NO
dc.typeJournal articlenb_NO
dc.typePeer reviewednb_NO
dc.date.updated2016-08-24T12:09:19Z
dc.source.journalGlobal Change Biologynb_NO
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/gcb.13435
dc.identifier.cristin1371350
dc.description.localcodeAttribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)nb_NO


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