Den attendance by Arctic foxes experiencing 10 years of increasing tourism

Wildlife tourism is a growing industry, and an increasing number of people seek to observe and interact with wild animals in their natural surroundings. In Iceland, the native Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) is widespread and has been under heavy hunting pressure for centuries. However, in Hornstrandir nature reserve (66° 44'N, 22° 42'W), foxes have been protected from hunting since 1994. These foxes are relatively tame and have become popular amongst tourists who want to observe and take close-up photos of young cubs. Breeding foxes, therefore, face increasing human disturbance within their active den area. In this study, parental visits to fox dens and tourist activities in the area were monitored in 2008 and then annually for a ten-year period (2010-2019). The data demonstrated an increase in tourism near fox dens, and a decrease in the frequency with which fox parents visit the den. The results further suggest that foxes visited the den less often when tourists were present (reducing from 0.23 visits per hour by females in the peak time of day without tourists, to 0.18 visits per hour with tourists present). This study gives support to our hypothesis that tourist activity disturbs the frequency of parental visits to their offspring, but at current levels of tourism, this may not be affecting the frequency of parental feeding.