The effect of climate, environment and man on variations in
wildlife population fluctuations in Greenland over 200 years.
The underlying factors of species fluctuating population dynamics has been the dominant focus
of attention in population ecology throughout much of this century. In arctic regions where a
severe climate with high seasonal and annual variability and simplistic ecosystems prevail,
species of fish, birds and mammals display distinct population fluctuations of varying temporal
and spatial scale. In Greenland, historical records, archaeological findings and oral accounts
passed on from Inuit elders all document that the presence of wildlife species and their population
sizes have undergone pronounced fluctuations throughout recordable historical time. The most
detailed accounts are found for the species that were harvested or had economical value. While
several recent studies from northern latitudes have shown the relative roles of climate, the
exogenous and endogenous environment of species and man as factors driving species population
dynamics, the relative contributions and potential interactions among these factors remains
unsolved. In Greenland, these fluctuations in the harvests of individual species are believed to be
related to changes in climate, as well as variations in hunting pressure. Dating back 200 years,
these hunting records therefore represent a unique time series for retrospective modelling of
annual and decadal fluctuations in relation to long-term climatic data, environmental factors and
temporal variations in social and demographic parameters in the existing society. The results of
this study will model future predictions of wildlife populations under changing climate variables
and human hunting pressure.
Charlotte Moshøj
cmm@dmu.dk
Department of Arctic Environment, National Environmental Research Institute
Frederiksborgvej 399
4000 Roskilde
0045-46301952