Europe’s last herds of wild mountain reindeer at risk

2003 CENorway

Over the last century, development in Norway has resulted in an estimated 70% loss of undisturbed reindeer habitat. “Europe's last remaining population of wild [mountain] reindeer is in peril . . . dams, mountain cabins and hydroelectric schemes . . . serve as frontiers that reindeer herds are reluctant to cross. So many exist that the 30,000 remaining animals – down from 60,000 in the 1960s – are fragmented into 24 isolated groups.”

Coghlan, Andy. “Europe's Last Wild Reindeer Herds in Peril.” New Scientist. New Scientist, 19 Dec. 2003. Web. 11 Dec. 2016. “Progressive impact of piecemeal infrastructure development on wild reindeer.” Biological Conservation, Volume 113, Issue 2, October 2003, Pages 307-317.

Image: Arnstein Rønning/CC-BY-SA-3.0