INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND BIODIVERSITY IN THE ARCTIC

Lead Authors:  Tero Mustonen and Violet Ford

Photo: Indigenous Peoples’ Secretariat

The late Yukaghir-Chukchi reindeer herder Grigorii Velvin was a well-known storyteller and keeper of his people’s culture. He lived in the Lower Kolyma region of Republic of Sakha-Yakutia, Russia. In 2005 he related the following oral history regarding the Yukaghir relationship with bears:

About relatives, about my family. Mother of my grandmother, grandmother of my mother. They were Yukaghir. There used to be people from Alai. Especially from my mother’s side, they were Yukaghir from Alai. They were considered to be ‘proper’ Yukaghir. Mother of my grandmother told the story that our ancestor is the bear. One of the ladies got married… She got lost and met a bear. The bear took her as his bride. When the bear would leave its den,it would close the opening with a big rock so that the woman would not leave the den. Once however she managed to escape. She ran to her relatives and said: “He will come after me for sure, please butcher and sacrifice a white reindeer as an offering.” Her people followed her orders, made the offering at a campsite and went away themselves. It is told that the bear took the reindeer and left the area. In a way they made a bargain. And thus she was able to escape. She gave birth to a child and that is how our family got started. This family has this oral history. Therefore the Yukaghir here, our tundra Yukaghir, do not touch the bear. It is our ancestor. This is a legend that the mother of my grandmother told. I have heard it. My grandmother told it to my mother and my mother passed it on to me (Mustonen 2009).

This story indicates the deep and multifaceted relationships that the Arctic’s Indigenous peoples have with northern ecosystems and species. The Arctic is a homeland for the many nations that have existed there for millennia. Arctic biodiversity supports Arctic Indigenous peoples as they maintain and develop their societies, cultures and ways of life. An example illustrating the way in which people renew their connection to the sea can be seen in the ritual of the Nuataaqmiut Inupiaq hunters of Northwest Alaska. When they have caught a beluga whale they place a piece of its skin on a pole by the sea shore to indicate to other belugas swimming by that the hunters are treating the body of their dead relative properly and are enabling its spirit to return to the sea (Burch 1998).

Indigenous peoples’ perceptions of biodiversity and the challenges it faces globally are based on their dependence on the environment, their values and their belief systems. Varied as these values and belief systems are, the special relevance of Indigenous peoples’ views on the protection of biodiversity have been recognized by the international community and clearly set forth in diverse instruments, most prominently, perhaps, in the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

The CBD, in Article 8 on ‘In-situ Conservation’, specifies the duty of the national parties to the convention to:

respect, preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations and practices of Indigenous and local communities embodying traditional lifestyles relevant for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and promote their wider application with the approval and involvement of the holders of such knowledge, innovations and practices and encourage the equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of such knowledge, innovations and practices

To the degree that stipulations such as this are implemented, they greatly facilitate Arctic’s Indigenous peoples’ contributions to the protection of Arctic biodiversity and will provide more opportunities for traditional knowledge to inform the policy making process.

When discussing Arctic biodiversity and Indigenous peoples, we need to appreciate that Indigenous environmental governance regimes have existed and to certain extent still exist in the Arctic. The Saami siida family and clan territories (Mustonen & Mustonen 2011, Mustonen 2012), the North-west Alaskan Inupiaq territoriality (Burch 1998) and the regional governance based on seasonal cycles of the Yukaghir peoples in the Kolyma region of Siberian Russia (Mustonen 2009) are examples of such regimes.

These are spiritual-cultural systems of reciprocity, with the characteristics of the surrounding ecosystems dictating the way the relationship between an animal and a hunter is be ing understood across the community and the region. There is a social dimension to hunting, a spiritual dimension and a direct relationship with the land. What Arctic Indigenous peoples bring to this relationship is associated with their wellbeing, culture and spirituality. Moreover, customary laws were, and to some extent still are, understood and applied with reference to beliefs and values concerned with managing and sustaining biodiversity. These laws prescribe how and when to utilize Arctic ecosystem services.

According to traditional beliefs of the Amitturmiut Inuit in Nunavut, if a camp is occupied for too long, the land becomes hot and dangerous. People have to move away to other areas to give the land a chance to cool (Bennet & Rowley 2004):

A land could only be occupied for three years. No one canlive on this land beyond the three years. … That was the way they lived, always moving to another [place], never occupying one land beyond three winters. … The land itself was prevented from’rotting’ by this. Should one choose to occupy the land beyond three years, then they are bound to face peril, which might include dearth, therefore they had to follow this rule.

These are no perfect systems of sustainability. They are vulnerable and fragile and dependent upon the conditions of the surrounding environment. It is important to highlight that although cases of overharvest are known, these systems usually operate within the carrying capacity of a particular ecosystem. However one should be careful not to uncritically impose an explanation from the outside as to why overhar vest has happened, and instead carefully examine a range of features of and reasons for a particular event, especially through utilizing the oral histories of the people themselves (Burch 1998).

Another important realization is that the cultural notions of cosmology, time, space and scale of Indigenous peoples in many cases differ markedly from the linear concepts typically applied to time and space by mainstream society. Having their own knowledge and terminologies, Indigenous peoples conceive ecosystems and species altogether differently.

In short, Arctic biodiversity has been and continues to be managed and sustained by Arctic Indigenous peoples through their traditional knowledge. Traditional knowledge is used to observe, evaluate and form views about a particular situation on the land. This knowledge reflects perceptions and wisdom that has been passed on to new generations right up to the present day. How ever, steps need to be taken to ensure that traditional knowledge is renewed and passed on to the generations to come. The imposition of ‘western’ ways of living, introduced diseases and health regimes, formalized school-based education, Christianity, and the criss-crossing of traditional homelands by modern infrastructure have reduced the capacity of Arctic Indigenous communities to maintain their customary ways of understanding and interacting with their environment. The past century has seen the rise of modern conservation practices in tandem with increasing industrial uses of the land, often with no appreciation for traditional modes of life in the region.

The past teaches that it is essential to maintain and support Indigenous management regimes to revitalize language and knowledge systems that organize sustainable practices such as nomadic reindeer herding in Siberia, and to explore best practices of co-management in order to sustain Indigenous ways of life and the biodiversity with which they have long co-existed. Indigenous peoples’ views are now recognized as part of the formal environmental decision-making process. Therefore, it is time to initiate a respectful and all-encompassing dialogue between mainstream societies and Indigenous peoples on how to manage and preserve the Arctic for future generations.

However, the time has also come to recognize that rights to full consultation and the principle of free, prior and informed consent so often invoked as pivotal Indigenous rights actually are meaningless in themselves. The right to consultation and the consent principle make sense only as related to fundamental human rights of Indige nous peoples: the right to self-determination, to culture, to property and to use of land and waters, to name a few. Although not directly a part of this assessment, the question of these fundamental rights still needs to be addressed in order to determine the role of Indigenous peoples with regards to the future of Arctic biodiversity.

The Arctic Biodiversity Assessment is an important step in the right direction. Now, humankind needs to continue towards regional and local implementation of the messages contained in this report to make sure we act together, with due diligence, for the good of the Arctic today and tomorrow.

INTRODUCTION

Lead Authors:  Hans Meltofte, Henry P. Huntington and Tom Barry 

THE ARCTIC IS CHANGING

Inukshuk (Cairn) Photo: Larry Maurer, Shutterstock

The Arctic is home to a diverse array of plants and animals. They are adapted in various ways to a region that is often cold, experiences prolonged daylight in summer and equally lengthy darkness in winter, and includes habitats that range from ice caps to wetlands to deserts, from ponds to rivers to the ocean. Some of the Arctic’s species are icons, such as the polar bear, known throughout the world. Some are obscure, with many yet to be discovered. Arctic peoples, too, have adapted to this environment, living off the land and sea in keeping with the cycles of the seasons and the great migrations of birds, mammals and fish. Many birds, for example, spend the summer in the Arctic and are absent in winter, having flown to all corners of the Earth, thus connecting the Arctic with every region of the planet.

Today, Arctic biodiversity is changing, perhaps irreversibly. This introduction summarizes some of the main stressors as described in a series of Arctic Council assessments. Many of these threats have been the subject of intense research and assessment, documenting the impacts of human activity regionally and globally, seeking ways to conserve the biological and cultural wealth of the Arctic in the face of considerable pressures to develop its resources. These assessments have focused primarily on individual drivers of change.

The Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) focuses on the species and ecosystems characteristic of the Arctic region and draws together information from a variety of sources to discuss the cumulative changes occurring as a result of multiple factors. It draws on the most recent and authoritative scientific publications, supplemented by information from Arctic residents, also known as traditional ecological knowledge (TEK). The chapters of the ABA have been through comprehensive peer reviews by experts in each field to ensure the highest standards of analysis and unbiased interpretation (see list below). The results are therefore a benchmark against which future changes can be measured and monitored.

The purpose of the ABA, as endorsed by the Arctic Council Ministers in Salekhard, Russia, in 2006 is to

Synthesize and assess the status and trends of biological diversity in the Arctic … as a major contribution to international conventions and agreements in regard to biodiversity conservation; providing policymakers with comprehensive information on the status and trends of Arctic biodiversity (CAFF 2007).

The intent is to provide a much needed description of the current state and recent trends in the Arctic’s ecosystems and biodiversity, create a baseline for use in global and regional assessments of Arctic biodiversity and a basis to inform and guide future Arctic Council work. The ABA provides up-to-date knowledge, identifies gaps in the data record, describes key mechanisms driving change and presents suggestions for measures to secure Arctic biodiversity. Its focus is on current status and trends in historical time, where available.

DEFINITION OF THE ARCTIC

For this assessment a more scientific definition of the Arctic was needed than the CAFF boundaries, which are defined as much by political boundaries as by climatic and biological zoning, and therefore vary considerably among the Arctic nations. That such a clear definition is a prerequisite for a meaningful account of Arctic biodiversity can be illustrated by the highly varying numbers of ‘Arctic’ bird species found in the literature. By including huge tracts of boreal forest and woodland into the Arctic, as politically defined by CAFF, figures of up to “450 Arctic breeding bird species” have been quoted (Zöckler 1998, Trouwborst 2009) as compared with the circa 200 species given in the present report based on a stricter ecological definition (Ganter & Gaston, Chapter 4).

The name Arctic derives from the ancient Greek word Arktikós, meaning the land of the North. It relates to Arktos, the Great Bear, which is the star constellation close to the Pole Star. There are several definitions of the Arctic. From a geophysical point of view, the Arctic may be defined as the land and sea north of the Arctic Circle, where the sun does not set on the summer solstice and does not rise on the winter solstice. From an ecological point of view, it is more meaningful to use the name for the land north of the tree line, which generally has a mean temperature below c. 10-12 °C for the warmest month, July (Jonasson et al. 2000). With this definition, the Arctic land area comprises about 7.1 million km², or some 4.8% of the land surface of Earth.  Similarly, the Arctic waters are defined by characteristics of surface water masses, i.e. the extent of cold Arctic water bordering temperate waters including ‘gateways’ between the two biomes. The Arctic Ocean covers about 10 million km² (see Michel, Chapter 14 for details).

The vegetated lowland of the Arctic is often named tundra, which originates from the Saami word tundar, meaning treeless plain. In general, the low Arctic has much more lush vegetation than the high Arctic, where large lowland areas may be almost devoid of vegetation, like the Arctic deserts of the northernmost lands in the world.  The sub-Arctic or forest tundra is the northernmost part of the boreal zone, i.e. the area between the timberline and the tree line. Hence, the sub-Arctic is not part of the Arctic, just as the sub-tropics are not part of the tropics. Like the Arctic, the word boreal is derived from Greek: Boreas was the god of the cold northern winds and bringer of winter. Related zones are found in mountainous areas outside of the Arctic as sub-alpine, low-alpine and high-alpine biomes.

This assessment follows the Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation Map’s (CAVM Team 2003) definition of the Arctic, since this map builds on scientific criteria for Arctic habitats. Furthermore, inclusion of tree-covered sub- Arctic habitats would have expanded the volume of species and ecosystems beyond achievable limits. Yet, different chapters may cover additional bordering areas as needed to provide scientific and ecological completeness. The entire Arctic tundra region (sub-zones A-E on the CAVM) is addressed as comprehensively as possible in terms of species and ecosystem processes and services. Oceanic tundra (e.g. the Aleutian Islands), the sub-Arctic and other adjacent areas are addressed as appropriate in regard to (1) key ecosystem processes and services, (2) species of significance to the Arctic tundra region, (3) influences on the Arctic tundra region, and (4) potential for species movement into the current Arctic tundra region, e.g. due to global change.

For the separation between the high Arctic and the low Arctic, we follow the simplest division which is between sub-zones C and D on the CAVM. The southern limit of the sub-Arctic is ‘loose’, since work on a CAFF Circumpolar Boreal Vegetation Map is pending (CBVM 2011). Contrary to the Arctic zones on land, the boundaries at sea are tentative, and on Fig.1 they are indicated only with rough boundaries between the different zones.

SPECIES AND ECOSYSTEMS INCLUDED

According the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), biodiversity is

the variability among living organisms from all sources, including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine, and other aquatic ecosystems, and the ecological complexes of which they are part: this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.

Similarly, ecosystems are defined as

a dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit.

As also stated by the CBD

biological diversity is about more than plants, animals and micro organisms and their ecosystems – it is about people and our need for food security, medicines, fresh air and water, shelter, and a clean and healthy environment in which to live.

Hence, in the present report, humans are both considered part of the ecosystems and as outside agents influencing the environment. The main focus, however, remains on status and trends in ‘non-human’ biodiversity.

This assessment covers all three aspects of biological diversity: species, ecosystems and genetic variation. Chapters 3-11 deal with taxonomic groups, Chapters 12-14 cover major ecosystems, Chapters 15 and 16 deal with two functional groups (parasites and invasive species, respectively), and Chapter 17 addresses genetic diversity. Finally, Chapters 18-20 deal with ecosystem services and other aspects of the human relationship with nature, including linguistic diversity.

Since there is no strict definition of an Arctic species, this assessment includes all species that reproduce in and/or have more than peripheral populations in the Arctic as defined above, i.e. excluding species with accidental or clearly insignificant appearance within the Arctic. Sub-Arctic species and ecosystems are dealt with as outlined above, i.e. where they have direct bearing on the Arctic but not for their own sake. Similarly, ecosystems are included if they have a substantial presence within the Arctic (see e.g. the CAVM).

Regarding distinction between marine, freshwater and terrestrial, in this report the marine includes everything up to the high water mark (i.e. including the intertidal zone). Fens and marshes are considered terrestrial, whereas tarns and ponds are considered freshwater ecosystems together with lakes, rivers and streams.

The organizing principles for the chapters are:

• The species chapters focus on status and trends in distribution, population densities and abundance (population size).
• For some taxa, species lists etc. are given in digital appendixes.
• In the ecosystem chapters, the focus is on status and trends in distribution, composition (habitat and species richness), productivity (e.g. greening), phenology and processes (e.g. grazing and predation).
• Causal explanations of observed changes are provided to the extent that the scientific literature offers analyses or descriptions thereof.
• Similarly, to the extent that the scientific literature holds modeling or other information on future prospects for Arctic biodiversity and ecosystems within the 21st century – including anticipated tipping points and thresholds – these are referred to as well.
• Information from holders of traditional knowledge has been considered in all chapters, in addition to a section on Indigenous peoples and biodiversity in the Arctic, which follows this Introduction.
• Cumulative effects are considered where relevant.
• Every effort has been made to avoid bias towards selective reporting of either positive or negative trends.

STRESSORS OF ARCTIC BIODIVERSITY

Climatically, ecologically, culturally, socially and economically, the Arctic is changing in many ways with implications throughout the region and around the world. In order to set the stage for assessing biodiversity, and to avoid repeating the same descriptions in each chapter, this section summarizes the main findings of major assessments undertaken within the Arctic Council, as these assessments have covered most of the major drivers of change. This section is not intended to be comprehensive, but rather to show the urgency and the timeliness of the ABA. Many changes are rapid and even accelerating, and the various assessments conducted in recent years make possible an examination of the combined effects of multiple stressors.

Climate

The Arctic climate is warming rapidly (ACIA 2005). Summer sea ice extent has diminished greatly in recent years, more of the Greenland ice cap is melting than before, and permafrost is thawing (AMAP 2009a, 2011a, 2011b). All of these changes affect Arctic ecosystems, as described in detail in this ABA. The Arctic Council, in cooperation with the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), produced in 2005 the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA), which compiled into one document the information available at that time concerning the changing climate of the Arctic and the resulting effects on the cryosphere, ecosystems and human activities. Since that time, the Arctic Council has contributed to updates concerning various aspects of climate change in the Arctic. This recent information shows that the projections of the ACIA were, if anything, conservative (AMAP 2009a). Newer updates now include biological information, which will allow better monitoring and reporting of the effects of climate change on biodiversity.

Development

The Arctic has abundant petroleum and mineral resources, the development of which has been slowed only by the costs of operating in remote areas with a harsh climate. Nonetheless, oil and gas fields in the Arctic provide a substantial part of the world’s supply at present, and many fields have yet to be developed. The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP)’s assessment, Oil and gas activities in the Arctic: effects and potential effects, describes the petroleum reserves of the Arctic, development to date, likely development in the next two decades, and effects on ecosystems and society (AMAP 2009b). The pace of development will ref lect global demand as well as decisions by Arctic governments on the regulation of oil and gas activities and the capture of revenues from them. To date, oil and gas and other developments have had substantial though largely localized impacts on the environment. Further development, particularly the threat of oil spills and the introduction of invasive species in the marine environment, nonetheless poses a risk to much of the Arctic region.

Cultural and social change

Within living memory in many parts of the Arctic, local societies and economies have become ever more connected with the wider world through telecommunications, trade, travel and other influences and interactions. Today, monetary economies, national and regional governmental institutions, formalized educational systems, modern health care and new forms of communications are among the many factors shaping the lives of Arctic residents. While some changes have been highly beneficial, as seen in longer life expectancy and decreased infant mortality, other changes have disrupted traditional ways of life and contributed to environmental degradation. The Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG) of the Arctic Council published the Arctic Human Development Report (AHDR) in 2004, examining a range of issues affecting Arctic peoples. Connection to the environment remains a vital part of the quality of life for many Arctic residents, as well as the foundation for Arctic cultures, but those connections are under threat from many directions (AHDR 2004). The SDWG is currently working on a follow-up to the AHDR.

Transportation

As sea ice retreats, the prospects for shipping in the Arctic increase. The Northern Sea Route across the top of Eurasia has been used by icebreakers and ice-strengthened ships since the 1930s, primarily for transportation within Russia. A regular ice-free summer season would make the route attractive for through-shipping between East Asia and Europe, cutting thousands of kilometers off current routes. Recent summers have seen a few cargo ships making this voyage. The Northwest Passage through the Canadian Archipelago also offers the prospect of shorter shipping routes and improved access to the region’s resources, though not expected to become a transit shipping route for some time. The Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) Working Group of the Arctic Council completed the Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment (AMSA) in 2009, evaluating the prospects for future shipping activity as well as resulting environmental, economic and social impacts (AMSA 2009). Much of the outcome for shipping depends on the governance regimes that are established in both territorial and international waters by the Arctic states and the global demand for Arctic resources. Increased shipping is also likely to increase Arctic resource development through improved access and lower costs. Local transportation has also improved over recent decades, with the widespread use of motorboats and mechanized snow travel (snowmobiles), as well as regular air service to many parts of the Arctic providing easier access to goods and services from the south.

Contaminants

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and heavy metals accumulate in Arctic ecosystems, despite being produced and released at far higher rates in temperate and tropical regions. Contaminants can be transported to the Arctic via ocean currents, large rivers and the atmosphere. In a cold climate, some of these substances tend to settle from the air onto land or into water and then stay there. Other substances, like mercury, have a more complex chemical cycle. These contaminants can accumulate in organisms at the bottom of the food web, and the concentrations of many of these substances magnify as they move from one trophic level to the next. Species at the top of the food web, such as seals and polar bear as well as humans who eat Arctic species, can be exposed to high levels of these contaminants, posing health risks in some instances. AMAP has conducted several assessments of contaminants in the Arctic (AMAP 1998, 2004, 2009c, 2011c). One result of this information was strong scientific and political motivation for the Stockholm Convention on POPs, a global agreement signed in 2001 that explicitly acknowledged concern for Arctic peoples and ecosystems. The biological and ecological impacts of contaminants remain subjects of research in the Arctic, particularly as climate change may alter contaminant transport and uptake (AMAP 2011c, UNEP/AMAP 2011).

THE ARCTIC COUNCIL

The Ottawa Declaration of 1996 formally established the Arctic Council as a high-level, consensus-based, intergovernmental forum to provide a means for promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic states, with the involvement of the Arctic indigenous communities and other Arctic inhabitants on common Arctic issues, in particular issues of sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic. The Arctic Council is comprised of eight Arctic states and six Permanent Participants that represent the Indigenous Peoples of the circumpolar north. The Arctic Council is unique among intergovernmental forums in that both Arctic states and Permanent Participants have a seat at the same table. Several observer states, intergovernmental and interparliamentary organizations6 and non-government organizations7 also make valuable contributions to the Council’s work.

The Arctic Council members have recognized that their shared ecosystems with unique flora and fauna are fragile and threatened from a number of causes, and that changes in Arctic biodiversity have global repercussions (AEPS 1991). The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) working group was established in 1991 under the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS, a precursor to the Arctic Council) in order to encourage the conservation of Arctic f lora and fauna, their diversity and their habitats. CAFF was subsequently incorporated within the Arctic Council.

CAFF’s mandate is to address the conservation of Arctic biodiversity and to communicate the findings to the governments and residents of the Arctic, helping to promote practices which ensure the sustainability of the Arctic’s resources. CAFF serves as a vehicle for cooperation on species and habitat management and utilization, to share information on management techniques and regulatory regimes, and to facilitate more knowledgeable decision-making. It provides a mechanism for developing common responses to issues of importance for the Arctic ecosystems such as development and economic pressures, conservation opportunities and political commitments.

The objectives assigned to CAFF are (CAFF 1995):

• to collaborate for more effective research, sustainable utilization and conservation,
• to cooperate to conserve Arctic f lora and fauna, their diversity and their habitats,
• to protect the Arctic ecosystem from human-caused threats,
• to seek to develop more effective laws, regulations and practices for f lora, fauna and habitat management, utilization and conservation,
• to work in cooperation with the Indigenous Peoples of the Arctic,
• to consult and cooperate with appropriate international organizations and seek to develop other forms of cooperation,
• to regularly compile and disseminate information on Arctic conservation, and
• to contribute to environmental impact assessments of proposed activities.

Achieving success in conserving Arctic natural environments, while allowing for economic development, depends on obtaining and applying comprehensive baseline data regarding status and trends of Arctic biodiversity, habitats and ecosystem health. This need to identify and fill knowledge gaps on various aspects of Arctic biodiversity and monitoring was identified in the Arctic Council’s Strategy for the Conservation of Arctic Biodiversity (CAFF 1997) and reinforced by the Arctic Flora and Fauna report (CAFF 2001) and the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA 2005), which recommended that long-term Arctic biodiversity monitoring be expanded and enhanced.

CAFF responded with the implementation of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP). The CBMP is an international network of scientists, government agencies, indigenous organizations and conservation groups working to harmonize and integrate efforts to monitor the Arctic’s living resources. Following the establishment of the CBMP, it was agreed that it was necessary to provide policy makers and conservation managers with a synthesis of the best available scientific and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) on Arctic biodiversity. The ABA will serve as a baseline upon which the CBMP will build, providing up-to-date status and trends information to support ongoing decision-making and future assessments of the Arctic’s biodiversity.

To take stock of the current state of biodiversity in the Arctic, the ABA was endorsed by the Arctic Council in 2006 (Salekhard Declaration). The ABA has been an inclusive process which has harnessed the efforts of 251 scientists from 10 countries including both Arctic and non-Arctic states. Co-lead authors for each chapter were appointed from North America and Eurasia in order to seek a balanced approach. TEK was recognized as an important contribution to provide ‘eye-witness’ observations on the status and trends in Arctic biodiversity, and a process was put in place to allow for the incorporation of TEK within the ABA (Mustonen & Ford 2013).  TEK coordinators were appointed for Eurasia and North America and compiled TEK material into a reference document to inform the ABA (Mustonen & Ford 2013).

The first deliverable from the ABA process was Arctic Biodiversity Trends: Selected Indicators of Change (CAFF 2010), which presented a preliminary assessment of status and trends in Arctic biodiversity and was based on a suite of 22 indicators developed by the CBMP. The 2010 report was the Arctic Council’s contribution to the United Nations International Year of Biodiversity in 2010 and its contribution to the CBD’s 3rd Global Biodiversity Outlook to measure progress towards the 2010 Biodiversity Targets (CBD 2010a). The CBD COP11 welcomed the report and noted its key findings. Changes in Arctic biodiversity can have global implications (CAFF 2010), and it is critical to ensure that information on such changes is linked into international agreements and legal frameworks. The CBD has recognized the importance of Arctic biodiversity in a global context, and highlighted the need for continued collaboration between the CBD and CAFF to contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of the Arctic’s living resources (CBD 2010b), in particular with regards to monitoring and assessing status and trends, and stressors to Arctic biodiversity. CAFF was requested to provide information on status and trends in Arctic biodiversity to inform the next Global Biodiversity Outlook report.

The ABA has benefited from the broad range of research efforts generated by the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2008. It contributes to the legacy of IPY by providing a means of integrating and allowing IPY research to reach a wider audience.

A key challenge for conservation in the Arctic and globally is to shorten the gap between data collection and policy response. CAFF has recognized this challenge and in recent years has worked towards developing a solution. This approach has focused on not just developing traditional assessments but also addressing the collection, processing and analysis of data on a continuous basis. Indeed, the ABA provides a baseline of current knowledge, closely linked to the development of the CBMP as the engine for ongoing work, including the production of regular and more flexible assessments and analyses.

SPECIES DIVERSITY IN THE ARCTIC (Chapter 2)

Lead Authors: David C. Payer, Alf B. Josefson and Jon Fjeldså 

SUMMARY

Photo: Jenny E. Ross

Species richness is generally lower in the Arctic than at lower latitudes, and richness also tends to decline from the low to high Arctic. However, patterns of species richness vary spatially and include significant patchiness. Further, there are differences among taxonomic groups, with certain groups being most diverse in the Arctic.

Many hypotheses have been advanced to explain the overall decline of biodiversity with increasing latitude, although there is still no consensus about a mechanistic explanation. Observed patterns are likely the result of complex interactions between various biotic and abiotic factors. Abiotic factors include lower available energy and area at high latitudes, and the relatively young age of Arctic ecosystems. Among biotic factors, latitudinal differences in rates of diversification have been suggested, but empirical evidence for this as a general principle is lacking. Recent evidence suggests that ‘tropical niche conservatism’ plays a role in structuring latitudinal
diversity.

When there is an earthquake, we say that the mammoth are running. We have even a word for this, holgot. Vyacheslav Shadrin, Yukaghir Council of Elders, Kolyma River Basin, Russia; Mustonen 2009.

Physical characteristics of the Arctic important for structuring biodiversity include extreme seasonality, short growing seasons with low temperatures, presence of permafrost causing ponding of surface water, and annual to multi-annual sea-ice cover. The Arctic comprises heterogeneous habitats created by gradients of geomorphology, latitude, proximity to coasts and oceanic currents, among others. Superimposed on this is spatial variation in geological history, resulting in differences in elapsed time for speciation.

Over 21,000 species of animals, plants and fungi have been recorded in the Arctic. A large portion of these are endemic to the Arctic or shared with the boreal zone, but climate-driven range dynamics have left little room for lasting specialization to local conditions and speciation on local spatial scales. Consequently, there are few species with very small distributions. In terrestrial regions, high-latitude forests were replaced by tundra about 3 million years ago. Early Quaternary Arctic flora included species that evolved from forest vegetation plus those that immigrated from temperate alpine habitats, but the most intensive speciation took place in situ in the Beringian region, associated with alternating opportunities for dispersal (over the Bering land bridge, when sea levels were low) and isolation (during high sea levels). In the marine realm, the evolutionary origin of many species can be traced to the Pacific Ocean at the time of the opening of the Bering Strait, about 3.5 million years ago.

More than 20 cycles of Pleistocene glaciation forced species to migrate, adapt or go extinct. Many terrestrial species occupied southern refugia during glaciations and recolonized northern areas during interglacials. Ice-free refugia persisted within the Arctic proper; species occupying these refugia diverged in isolation, promoting Arctic diversification. The most significant Arctic refugium was Beringia and adjacent parts of Siberia. Pleistocene glaciations also resulted in a series of extinction and immigration events in the Arctic Ocean. During interglacials, marine species immigrated mainly though the Arctic gateways from the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, a process that continues today.

Throughout the Pleistocene, Arctic species responded to climatic cycles by shifting their distributions, becoming extirpated or extinct, persisting in glacial refugia, and evolving in situ. Although the last 10,000 years have been characterized by climatic stability, the Earth has now entered a period of rapid anthropogenic climate change that is amplified in the Arctic. Generalism and high vagility typical of many Arctic species impart resilience in the face of climate change. However, additional anthropogenic stressors including human habitation, overharvest, industrial and agricultural activities, contaminants, altered food webs and the introduction of invasive species pose new challenges. The consequences of current warming for Arctic biodiversity are therefore not readily predicted from past periods of climate change.

INTRODUCTION

Arctic ecosystems are relatively young in a geological sense, having developed mainly in the last 3 million years (Murray 1995), although some Arctic species’ lineages diverged and adapted to cold, polar conditions much earlier (see Section 2.3). In general, species richness is lower in the Arctic than in more southerly regions (Fig. 2.1). This is consistent with the general observation that biodiversity declines from the Equator to the poles (Rosenzweig 1995, Gaston & Blackburn 2000, Willig et al. 2003). The strength and slope of latitudinal biodiversity gradients differ between regions and are more pronounced in terrestrial and marine systems than in freshwater environments, and, in general, most pronounced in organisms with greater body mass and those occupying higher trophic levels (Hillebrand 2004). With the recent development of global distributional and phylogenetic datasets, however, it has become apparent that the pattern is much more complex than previously assumed (Jetz et al. 2012).

A number of hypotheses have been advanced to explain the latitudinal trend of biodiversity, although no consensus exists for a mechanistic explanation (Currie et al. 2004). Hypotheses may be grouped into those based on ecological mechanisms of species co-occurrence, evolutionary mechanisms governing rates of diversification, and earth history (Mittlebach et al. 2007). Until recently, ecological hypotheses have dominated the discussion, but with the development of large DNA-based phylogenies there is now more focus on understanding the underlying historical processes. The hypotheses proposed to date are not necessarily mutually exclusive, and observed patterns are likely the result of complex interactions between various biotic and abiotic factors.

The decline of available energy (Allen et al. 2002) and decreasing biome area (Rosenzweig 1995) with increasing latitude should both contribute to declining species richness in the North. Rohde (1992) posited that the ultimate cause could be a positive relationship between temperature and evolutionary speed. Relative to the tropics, the Arctic has limited insolation (lower solar energy input and thus colder temperatures) and a shorter elapsed time for diversification. In Rohde’s (1992) view, all latitudes could support more species than currently exist, and, given adequate evolutionary time, the Arctic could support biodiversity rivaling that of lower latitudes. Because of great variation in speciation rates, however, the number of species in taxonomic groups is uncoupled from the age of groups (Rabosky et al. 2012). Further, several Arctic groups (notably waterfowl and gulls) underwent significant recent increases in speciation rates (Jetz et al. 2012). Thus, there is no general latitudinal change in speciation rates (as assumed, e.g. by Wiens et al. [2010]), and Jetz et al. (2012) instead point out hemispheric or even more local differences.

The recently proposed ‘tropical niche conservatism’ hypothesis may reconcile some of these diverging tendencies. This hypothesis assumes that most organismal groups originated during times when the global climate was warm paratropical), and these groups tend to retain their adaptations to such conditions (Webb et al. 2002). Thus, as the global climate became cooler during the Oligocene, and again in the late Miocene, the ancient groups contracted their geographical distributions towards the Equator to maintain their original niches. The long time or speciation in tropical environments, compared with cold environments, would explain the large accumulation of species, and phylogenetically overdispersed communities, in the humid tropics (Wiens 2004). The most significant increases in speciation rates are associated with ecological shifts to new habitats that arose outside the humid tropics, notably in montane regions and archipelagos (Fjeldså et al. 2012, Jetz et al. 2012; see also Budd & Pandolfi 2010). However, only some groups have (yet) responded by adapting to these new environments, resulting in small and phylogenetically clustered communities in the Arctic.

The diversification process within the Arctic may have been strongly affected by the climatic shifts caused by variations in Earth’s orbit known as Milankovitch oscillations. This includes a tilt in the Earth’s axis that varies on a 41,000-year cycle (precession), an eccentricity in Earth’s orbit that varies on a 100,000-year cycle, and 23,000 and 19,000-year cycles in the seasonal occurrence of the minimum Earth-Sun distance (perihelion; Berger 1988). Milankovitch Oscillations cause variations in the amount of solar energy reaching Earth, and these variations interact with characteristics of the Earth’s atmosphere such as greenhouse gas concentration and surface albedo, resulting in rapid, nonlinear climatic change (Imbrie et al. 1993). The present interglacial period, which has extended over the last 10,000 years, is a period of exceptional climatic stability; stable conditions have typically lasted only a few thousand years, and > 90% of the Quaternary Period (2.6 Million years ago to present) has been characterized by more climatically dynamic glacial periods (Kukla 2000).

Webb & Bartlein (1992) noted that Milankovitch oscillations are associated with changes in size and location of species’ geographical distributions. Dynesius & Jansson (2000) called these recurrent changes “orbitally forced species’ range dynamics” (ORD), and noted that they constrain evolutionary processes acting on shorter time scales. The effects of Earth’s precession and orbital eccentricity on surface temperatures are greatest at high latitudes (Wright et al. 1993), resulting in increasing ORD along the latitudinal gradient from tropics to poles. Predicted evolutionary consequences of enhanced ORD are apparent in general characteristics of Arctic biota, including enhanced vagility and larger species’ geographic range sizes (Rapoport’s rule), and therefore increased mixing of locally-adapted populations, increased proportion of polyploids within plant taxa, and reduced rates of speciation (Dynesius & Jansson 2000, Jansson & Dynesius 2002). There is spatial variation in these processes within latitude, however, which must be considered when evaluating current diversity patterns. For example, the Pleistocene temperature amplitude was lower in East Siberia and the Bering Strait region than in areas around the North Atlantic, leading to less glaciation (Allen et al. 2010) and enhanced opportunities for speciation in the Siberian-Beringian region (see below).

Although ORD increases risk of extinction associated with habitat change, this is mitigated by enhanced generalism, vagility and genetic mixing at high latitudes (Dynesius & Jansson 2000). This has important implications for risk of extinction associated with climate change and other stressors, as will be discussed in subsequent chapters of this Assessment.

FUTURE PROSPECTS FOR ARCTIC BIODIVERSITY

Over the last 2.6 million years, throughout the cycles of Pleistocene glaciations, Arctic species have shifted their distributions, become extirpated or extinct, persisted in glacial refugia, undergone hybridization, and evolved in situ. Although the last 10,000 years have been characterized by a relatively high degree of climatic stability, the Earth has now entered a period of rapid anthropogenic climate change. Global temperatures have been warmer than today’s for less than 5% of the last three million years (Webb & Bartlein 1992) and are within 1 °C of the maximum over the last one million years (Hansen et al. 2006). Further, the rate and magnitude of warming is amplified in the Arctic (McBean 2005, IPCC 2007, AMAP 2009, AMAP 2011). This trend of accelerating climate change and Arctic amplification is expected to continue (Overland et al.2011). Global warming has caused species distributions to shift northward and to higher elevations for a wide range of taxa worldwide (Walther et al. 2002), including species occupying the Arctic (e.g. Sturm et al. 2001, Hinzman et al. 2005).

The Arctic, being a region with high ORD and therefore populated by species that have experienced selection pressure for generalism and high vagility (Jansson & Dynesius 2002), should have inherent resilience in the face of climate change. Some extant Arctic species have survived population bottlenecks driven by climatic change, including cetaceans (e.g. narwhal [Laidre & Heide-Jørgenson 2005]) and waders (Kraaijeveld & Nieboer 2000), further suggesting some degree of climate-change resiliency. However, the rapid rate of change occurring now and the amplification of this change at high latitudes pose unique challenges for Arctic species. The Arctic has experienced less anthropogenic habitat change and fragmentation than lower latitudes, which favors the ability of species to track shifting habitats. However, because of the limited area available in the polar regions, terrestrial Arctic biota have limited ability to respond to warming by northward displacement (MacDonald 2010). Kaplan & New (2006) predicted that Arctic tundra will experience a 42% reduction in area if global mean temperature is stabilized at 2 °C above pre-industrial levels. Although the rate of change is debated (e.g. Hofgaard et al. 2012), there is general agreement that area of tundra will be significantly reduced in this century.

In addition to rapid and accelerating climate change, Arctic species are experiencing anthropogenic stressors that did not exist during past periods of warming, including human habitation, overharvest, industrial and agricultural activities, anthropogenic contaminants, altered food webs, and the introduction of invasive species (Meltofte et al., Chapter 1). The many migratory species that occur only seasonally in the Arctic face additional and potentially cumulative anthropogenic stressors on migration routes and in overwintering areas that could further impact their ability to adapt. The suite of stressors experienced by Arctic species today is therefore novel, making past periods of climatic change an imperfect analogue for the challenges now facing Arctic biodiversity. Future efforts to preserve Arctic biodiversity must be similarly novel and broadreaching.