Impact of the Arctic Fox Alopex lagopus on nesting success of geese in southeast Svalbard, 1989

Goose populations, with special emphasis on Light-bellied Brent Geese Branta bernicla hrota , were censured in Tusenøyane and Tjuvfjorden, southeast Svalbard, July-August 1989. A total of 425 non-breeding Brent Geese, 210 Barnacle Geese Branta leucopsis and 421 Pink-footed Geese Anser bra-chyrhynchus and 11, 2 and 3 families of the three species, respectively, were counted. Brent Geese attempted to nest on 6 of the 20 islands surveyed, and were successful on four. Barnacle Geese attempted to nest on three islands and were successful on two. Many islands known to be traditional nesting sites were entirely void of geese. Pink-footed Geese were only seen in Tjuvfjorden. The breeding failure on the islands was linked to the presence of the Arctic Fox Alopex lagopus which probably caused the geese to completely give up the attempt to nest. On one island the fox had apparently arrived after nest initiation and ravaged 45 Brent Goose and Barnacle Goose nests. It is likely that the foxes stranded on the islands during ice break-up. As a consequence of the presence of foxes on most of Tusenøyane, more than half of the potential breeding segment of the Svalbard Brent Goose population failed to nest in the summer of 1989.     

Palaeoenvironments and changes in relative sea level during the last interglaciation at Langelandselv, Jameson Land, East Greenland

Coastal cliffs and stream cut sections at Langelandselv on Jameson Land show a 22 m thick sedimentary succession reflecting the development of shallow marine and fluvial environments during the last interglaciation. The shallow marine sediments were deposited in upper shoreface, back-barrier, and delta environments during a rise in the relative sea level from 0 to 18 m. The interglacial succession ends with glaciotectonically dislocated fluvial sand, and is capped by alternating beds of lodgement till and fluvial sand, deposited during the Early Weichselian. The age is determined by palacoceanographic correlation of molluse and foraminifer faunas with isotopic substage 5e in the deep sea record, supported by luminescencs and U/Th dates and amino acid analysis.     

Climate change impacts on Namibia's natural resources and economy

Climate change is likely to exacerbate the dry conditions already experienced in southern Africa. When rainfall does come, it is likely to be in bursts of greater intensity, leading to erosion and flood damage. However, these predictions have had very little influence on policy in southern African countries. Computable general equilibrium (CGE) model simulations for Namibia indicate that over 20 years, annual losses to the Namibian economy could be up to 5% of GDP, due to the impact that climate change will have on its natural resources alone. This will affect the poorest people the most, with resulting constraints on employment opportunities and declining wages, especially for unskilled labour in rural areas. Namibia must take steps to ensure that all its policies and activities are ‘climate proofed’ and that it has a strategy to deal with displaced farmers and farm workers. The need to mainstream climate change into policies and planning is clear, and it is the responsibility of industrialized nations, who have largely created the problem of climate change, to help Namibia and other vulnerable countries cope with climate change impacts and plan for a climate-constrained future.