#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. In the northern Russian regions it is possible to raise up to two million musk oxen. Such a population will not harm the ecosystem, says Taras Sipko, a researcher at the RAS Ecology and Evolution Institute named after A.N. Severtsov.
According to him, today about 14 thousand musk oxen live in Russia, TASS reports.
“According to our calculations, the entire Russian North can accommodate approximately two million musk oxen. This number will not have negative consequences for the ecosystem. For example, on Canada’s Banks island the animal density is one musk ox per square kilometer. We took this figure as a basis, reducing it tenfold”, the expert shared.
The exception, according to the scientist, may be Western Siberia, where there are many deer, and an excessive concentration of herbivores can lead to the depletion of vegetation, especially reindeer moss.
The main threat to musk oxen is not only hunters, but also reindeer herders and workers of industrial companies. The development of technology has made accessible the most remote areas where these animals could previously remain safe.
In the Krasnoyarsk region, at least one hundred musk oxen are illegally hunted annually, Taras Sipko specified.
“Animals become easy prey for hunters because they do not run away, but defend themselves. The musk ox first warns: it rubs its head on its leg. And if it attacks, it doesn’t pursue for long – about 100 meters. However, it has immense strength, and its horns are sharp, so the blow can end in disaster. I would like to note that musk oxen, as a rule, do not pursue humans”, the scientist noted.
Musk oxen were brought to Taimyr from another continent. First, in 1974, ten musk oxen from Canada were delivered to the mouth of the Bikada river on the eastern shore of lake Taimyr, and a year later another 20 from the USA. After 35 years, the Taimyr population grew to ten thousand animals. Musk oxen were also brought to Chukotka: in 1975, 20 individuals from the United States were brought to Wrangel island, and now about 1.2 thousand musk oxen live there.
The Taimyr population has now become a donor population for breeding musk oxen in other regions. 289 animals captured here in 1996–2020 are settled in the Polar Urals, in the Magadan and Kaluga regions, in many regions of Yakutia, in nurseries and zoos.
Earlier, we told how the female musk ox Alana, rescued in Taimyr, was doing.
Follow us on Telegram, VKontakte.
Text: Victor Borodin, Photo: Denis Kozhevnikov
