Data from: Caribou, water, and ice – fine-scale movements of a migratory arctic ungulate in the context of climate change

Freshwater lakes and rivers of the Northern Hemisphere have been freezing increasingly later and thawing increasingly earlier during the last century. With reduced temporal periods during which ice conditions are favourable for locomotion, freshwater bodies could become impediments to the inter-patch movements, dispersion, or migration of terrestrial animals that use ice-covered lakes and rivers to move across their range. Studying the fine-scale responses of individuals to broad-scale changes in ice availability and phenology would help to understand how animals react to ongoing climate change, and contribute to the conservation and management of endangered species living in northern environments. Between 2007 and 2014, we equipped 96 migratory caribou Rangifer tarandus caribou from the Rivière-aux-Feuilles herd in northern Québec (Canada) with GPS telemetry collars and studied their space use. We measured contemporary (digital MODIS maps updated every 8 days, 2000–2014) and historical (annual observations, 1947–1985) variations in freshwater-ice availability and evaluated the concurrent responses of caribou to these changes.

近一个世纪以来，北半球淡水湖泊与河流的结冰期愈发延后，融冰期愈发提前。由于适宜冰面通行的有效时段缩短，淡水水域或会阻碍依赖覆冰湖泊与河流开展跨范围移动的陆生动物的斑块间移动、扩散与迁徙。研究个体对冰面可获得性与物候变化的精细响应，有助于理解动物如何应对当前的气候变化，同时可为北方生境中的濒危物种保护与管理提供科学支撑。2007年至2014年间，我们为加拿大魁北克北部Rivière-aux-Feuilles种群的96头迁徙性北美驯鹿（Rangifer tarandus caribou）佩戴了GPS遥测项圈，并对其空间利用模式展开研究。我们量化了当代（2000–2014年，每8天更新一次的MODIS数字影像地图）与历史（1947–1985年年度观测）的淡水冰面可获得性变化，并评估了驯鹿对这些变化的同步响应。