New Artica Writings 2023 essay out now: The Secret to Getting Fat by Samantha P. H. Dwinnell

Two Svalbard reindeer fighting over a spot to eat. Photo: Morgan Heim

We are very pleased to share the second essay of Artica Writings 2023: The Secret to Getting Fat, A glimpse into the foraging habits of Svalbard reindeer, written by Samantha P. H. Dwinnell, translated to Norwegian by Karin Olås

“For nearly 30 years, we have been following collared Svalbard reindeer, collecting more than their poop. We have been seeing where they go (with GPS-collars), how well they survive, and the number of calves they raise. We’ve monitored what parasites they carry, how heavy they are each spring, and how that changes with shifting conditions of Svalbard. We have mostly focused on females residing just South of Longyearbyen, in Colesdalen, Semmeldalen, and Reindalen. These are the reindeer that have been most abundant since their near extirpation from Spitsbergen in the early 1900’s [1]. They also appear to be thriving under the rapidly warming Arctic and have nearly tripled in number in the last 30 years. The reason for this? Food!”

Read the full essay, available in English and Norwegian here.