This Wednesday, eight Arctic foxes, seven white and one blue, were released on the Varanger Peninsula in beautiful winter weather. The Arctic foxes come from the breeding station in Oppdal as part of the breeding program for Arctic foxes.
Three of this year's released Arctic foxes heading into their new habitat on the Varanger Peninsula. Photo: Jan Erik Knutsen / COAT
Between 2018 and 2020, a total of 67 Arctic foxes were released from the breeding station, leading to significant growth in the local population. Since then, there have been many litters, and the Arctic fox has become a relatively common sight along the coast between Urnes and Vardø. The goal of the current release is not to increase the number of individuals but to enhance genetic diversity. Genetic studies conducted by NINA have shown that despite the remarkable population growth in recent years, the effective population size, meaning the number of unrelated individuals participating in reproduction, has not increased as much. At the same time, genetic diversity has slightly decreased, and the inbreeding coefficient has shown an increasing trend. Inbreeding and low genetic diversity can lead to reduced survival rates among the Arctic foxes. Hopefully, this release will help improve genetic variation among the Arctic foxes and contribute to inreased population robustness. Time will tell.
We wish the young Arctic foxes a good start on the Varanger Peninsula and hope they find a mate by spring. It is likely that the density of small rodents will increase this year, creating favorable conditions for Arctic fox breeding.
Video from this year's release. Video: Jan Erik Knutsen / COAT