In 1957, the body weight of the reindeer was found to exceed that of reindeer in domestic herds by 24-53 percent among females and 46-61 percent among males. The population also responded to the high quality and quantity of the forage on the island by increasing rapidly due to a high birth rate and low mortality.
What happened to the reindeer population on St Matthew Island?
Abstract: Reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus ), introduced to St. Matthew Island in 1944, increased from 29 animals at that time to 6,000 in the summer of 1963 and underwent a crash die-off the following winter to less than 50 animals.
What regulates Reindeer food supply on St Matthew Island?
Food supply, through its interaction with climatic factors, was the dominant population regulating mechanism for reindeer on St. Matthew Island. St. Matthew Island, 128 square miles in area and located in the Bering Sea Wildlife Refuge in the north central Bering Sea (Fig. 1), supports a poorly developed land fauna.
Why do reindeer die-off on islands?
The pattern of reindeer population growth and die-off on St. Matthew Island has been observed on other island situations with introduced animals and is believed to be a product of the limited development of ecosystems and the associated deficiency of potential population-regulating factors on islands.
What is the density of reindeer in the United States?
The density of reindeer on St. Matthew Island in 1957 was 10.5 per square mile and by 1963 it had increased to 46.9 per square mile. It is noteworthy that on St. Paul Island, reindeer reached a density of 49 per square mile just before the "crash die-off' there in the 1940's ( Scheffer 1951).
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Why did the reindeer population on St Matthew's Island explode?
A scientific study attributed the population crash to the limited food supply in interaction with climatic factors (the winter of 1963–64 was exceptionally severe in the region). By the 1980s, the reindeer population had completely died out. Environmentalists see this as an issue of overpopulation.
How many reindeer are on St Matthew's Island today?
Matthew Island in the 1960s, before they died off. Six thousand reindeer once lived on a remote island in the Bering Sea that was briefly their paradise. In what has become a classic story of wildlife boom and bust, no reindeer live on St. Matthew Island now.
What happened to the reindeer on St Paul Island?
When reindeer first came to the small island, there was a lot of lichen, but the reindeer ate it faster than it could regrow and now it's gone. The reindeer, however, are still there: about 400 of them.
How high was the maximum population of reindeer on St Matthew's Island at its peak in 1963 )?
Avanko DAR 144 Page 5 Summer 1963: The researchers revisit St Matthew Island. In six years the reindeer population has soared from 1350 individuals to 6,000. The dense herd's huge appetite has eliminated the island's lichen, with the population now grazing on sedge grass.
What wiped out St Matthew reindeer?
The reindeer population on the island exploded following its introduction. By 1963, the population had grown to more than 6000 reindeer. Two years later, 99% of that herd had died of starvation, having destroyed the environment that sustained them, depleting their primary energy source.
What is the decrease in the reindeer population decrease between 1963 and 1966?
The 6000 reindeer on St. Matthew Island in summer 1963 were then reduced by 99% to 42 by summer 1966.
What were the limiting factors of the reindeer population on St Matthew Island?
Food supply, through its interaction with climatic factors, was the dominant population regulating mechanism for reindeer on St. Matthew Island.
When their food ran out these reindeer kept digging?
On one Alaskan island, reindeer have eaten the lichen faster than it could regrow. They're now digging up roots and grazing on grass. Polar bears aren't the only beloved Arctic animal threatened by climate change.
Why did the reindeer population disappear completely by the 1980's?
With their habitat's resources stretched, the population had been unable to survive the extremes of winter. In a matter of months, the population crashed by more than 99%. Without a way to reproduce, the reindeer population died off completely by the 1980s.
Do people live on St. Matthew Island?
St. Matthew is a 30-mile long, three-mile wide island in the Bering Sea. No one lives there. There is no evidence of any long-term human occupation on its bumpy, treeless, mosquito-free surface.
What is the most remote place in Alaska?
St. Matthew IslandSt. Matthew Island is said to be the most remote place in Alaska. Marooned in the Bering Sea halfway to Siberia, it is well over 300 kilometers and a 24-hour ship ride from the nearest human settlements. It looks fittingly forbidding, the way it emerges from its drape of fog like the dark spread of a wing.
What is the most remote place in Alaska?
St. Matthew IslandSt. Matthew Island is said to be the most remote place in Alaska. Marooned in the Bering Sea halfway to Siberia, it is well over 300 kilometers and a 24-hour ship ride from the nearest human settlements. It looks fittingly forbidding, the way it emerges from its drape of fog like the dark spread of a wing.
Do people live on St. Matthew Island?
St. Matthew is a 30-mile long, three-mile wide island in the Bering Sea. No one lives there. There is no evidence of any long-term human occupation on its bumpy, treeless, mosquito-free surface.
Who owns St Lawrence Island?
When the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) was passed in 1971, Gambell and Savoonga decided not to participate and instead opted for title to the 1.136-million acres of land in the former St. Lawrence Island Reserve. The island is jointly owned by Savoonga and Gambell.
How many people live on St Paul island Alaska?
Saint Paul Island is the largest of the Pribilof Islands, about 44 square miles in area and is home to approximately 480 people.
How much density did the reindeer have?
The herd was then at a staggering density of 47 per square mile. Klein noted the animals’ body size had decreased since his last visit, as had the ratio of yearling reindeer to adults. All signs pointed to a crash.
How many reindeer were there in 1963?
The reindeer population on the island exploded following its introduction. By 1963, the population had grown to more than 6000 reindeer. Two years later, 99% of that herd had died of starvation, having destroyed the environment that sustained them, depleting their primary energy source.
What was the name of the island in the Bering Sea?
Coast Guard set in motion a classic experiment in the boom and bust of a wildlife population. The island was St. Matthew, an unoccupied 32-mile-long, four-mile-wide sliver of tundra and cliffs in the Bering Sea, ...
When did the Coast Guard release reindeer?
In August 1944 , the Coast Guard released 29 reindeer as a backup food source for the men. Barged over from Nunivak Island, the animals landed in an ungulate paradise: lichen mats 4 inches thick carpeted areas of the island, and the men of the Coast Guard station were the reindeer’s only potential predators.
When did Klein return to the island?
Klein did not get a chance to return to the island until summer 1963, when a Coast Guard cutter dropped him and three other scientists off on the island. As their boots hit the shore, they saw reindeer tracks, reindeer droppings, bent-over willows, and reindeer after reindeer.
Where did reindeer come from?
Population Dynamics The original reindeer were obtained from Nunivak Island and were all yearlings; that is, just over 1 year of age. Under the as- sumed ideal range conditions on St. Mat- thew Island at the time of release, introduced nucleus herd probably increased at a rate approaching the theoretical maxi- mum during the years immediately follow-
What do reindeer eat?
the predominant plants eaten by the rein- deer. On the drier, better-drained meadows, Carex nesophila was the most abundant sedge and received the brunt of summer use. The wetter, boggy sites support a wider variety of sedges, but C. aquatilis is usually the dominant form and in these sites it received the heaviest use during 1957. Other sedges, grasses, leaves stripped from willows, and forbs were also important components of the summer diet of the rein- deer. All vegetation types received some summer use by reindeer; however, the types with a high proportion of sedges and grasses appeared to support the brunt of summer grazing. During the 1963 studies, heavy reindeer pressure on the summer forage was evident but no significant lasting damage was noted. Closely cropped sedges and grasses were present in all vegetation types sup- porting these plants but were most exten- sive in moist but well-drained meadows, on lake shores and lake floodplains, and on the drier slopes of hills. There appeared to be sufficient summer forage on the is- land, but competition for the most nutri- tious and palatable plants was undoubtedly keen. Evidence from other reindeer ranges in Alaska indicates that summer range sel- dom suffers from overutilization, while win- ter range condition varies with population pressure and appears to be the most im- portant factor in population control. How- ever, the importance of summer range in the ecology of reindeer may be greater on an island where opportunity for move- ment is restricted. Summer grazing is apparently seldom permanently destructive to moist subarctic tundra. In fact, indications are that limited grazing of the annual growth of sedges, grasses, and some forbs is actually bene- ficial in stimulating forage production. Harmful effects on summer range are lim- ited to trampling vegetation and compact- ing loose, moist soil where movements of large numbers of animals are constricted by narrow valleys and other terrain features. Throughout the spring and summer, when actively growing, plants are able to with- stand considerable trampling and still re- cover rapidly. In addition, the high hu- midity which accompanies the persistent spring and summer fogs on St. Matthew Is- land keeps the lichens moist and resilient and less subject to shattering than in a drier atmosphere. The nutritive quality of the low-growing plants which make up the summer forage for reindeer on St. Matthew Island can ap- parently be very high. This is indicated by the excellent physical status of the rein- deer in 1957. On St. Matthew Island the variations in exposure resulting from irreg- ularities in terrain account for a wide range in plant development and maturity. Also, the cool moist summers delay maturity and curing of vegetation. Consequently, during its most nutritious period, the early stages of growth, vegetation is being produced over an extended period. Under the heavy stock- ing of the range in 1963, competition was apparently great enough to restrict the con- sumption of highest quality forage by in- dividual reindeer to a minimal portion of their diet. Selected forage samples collected in 1963 were analyzed chemically for nutritive value
How old were reindeer in 1966?
The reindeer shot in 1966, all 4 years old or older, represent animals that were alive in 1963 before the die-off. All but one were at least 3 years old in 1963 and there- fore had attained essentially all of their growth before the die-off. One would there- fore not expect to see any growth response in these animals to the reduced competition for high quality range vegetation, and the body measurements confirm this. The weight of the females in 1966, however, substantially exceeds the average weight for the 1963 adult females. Probably this resulted from reduced competition for high quality forage after the winter of 1963-64 and because the 1966 females had not pro- duced young since the die-off. The absence of the burden of gestation and lactation undoubtedly resulted in a substantial con- servation of energy. The reproductive status of females has been used as an index to physiological wel- fare (Cheatum and Severinghaus 1950, Myers and Poole 1962). The reproductive history of female reindeer collected in 1963 and 1966, as determined from ovarian ex-
Who funded Alaska Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit?
1 This study of the Alaska Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit was financed by the U. S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, and in 1963 and 1966 additional support was available from a Na- tional Science Foundation Institutional Grant and the U. S. Bureau of Land Management. Trans- portation to the island was provided by the U. S. Coast Guard. 350
How many fawns did 350 ing produce?
350 ing. This rate could have been as high as 83 percent the first year if all females bred , ~2, and produced one fawn each. Under opti-
What was the purpose of the reindeer on the island?
The reindeer were intended as a roaming food source should the men be cut off from supply shipments.
Where did the reindeer go in Alaska?
The story began in August 1944, when the U.S. Coast Guard corralled 29 Nunivak Island reindeer on a barge and floated the animals north to St. Matthew Island, more than 200 miles away and one of the most remote places in Alaska. Coast Guard officials had earlier in the year placed a radio navigational system on the island, along with 19 men.
What was the most extreme winter in the Bering Sea?
They found -- and described in an article in the November/December 2009 issue of the magazine Weatherwise -- that the winter of 1963-1964 was one of the most extreme on record in the northern Bering Sea.
How much snow did reindeer get in 1964?
Perhaps even more damaging to the reindeer were record amounts of snow. St. Paul, Alaska, received 140 inches of snow during the 1963-1964 season.
What did Klein see in the bones of reindeer?
When Klein examined the skeletal remains during his 1966 visit, he saw that the bones of fetal reindeer nestled within the bones of their mothers revealed that "most of the pregnant females had died about the time of the storms or shortly thereafter.".
Who helped Klein reconstruct the events of the extraordinarily harsh winter of 1963 to 1964?
Soon, Martha Shulski and John Walsh were helping Klein reconstruct the events of the extraordinarily harsh winter of 1963 to 1964.