Importance of geese as arctic herbivores

Numbers of studies have been carried out into the effect of changing goose behaviour, some of which are thought to be as a result of global warming. Studies into this changing behaviour have been conducted in the arctic areas of Canada and in Svalbard and it seems likely that a combination of more favourable wintering grounds [4] and earlier snow-melt at breeding grounds [1] has allowed some goose species such as the pink-footed goose to increase in number [5].

Increases in goose numbers have already caused problems in arctic Canada where snow geese, Chen caerulescens, have been over-grazing the tundra. Such an increase in numbers not only results in over-grazing but also in an increase in nutrient input [6]. Although long-term studies have been carried out in arctic Canada on the effects of increasing goose numbers, the effects in other arctic areas, such as Svalbard, are less well understood [7].