Reindeer are apparently getting smaller in size due to starvation in the North Pole. Scientists revealed that climate change is affecting the ecosystems of the Arctic region, specifically reindeer populations in Svalbard.

In this new study by the British Ecological Society, scientists suggest that food supply shortage is causing reindeer to be smaller and lighter.

Like Us on Facebook

A yearly survey by scientists from the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research and Norwegian University of Life Sciences revealed that reindeer weight have decreased by 12 percent in the last 16 years. Reindeer born in 1994 weigh an average of 55 kilograms while those born in 2010 possess an average of 48 kilograms.

According to the lead author of the study, ecologist Steve Albon of the James Hutton Institute in Scotland, this dramatic decline of weight in reindeer can be attributed to three factors linked to climate change which are increasing summer temperatures, warmer winters, and increasing populations leading to more competition for resources.

Albon explained that since the archipelago of Svalbard, between Norway and the North Pole, is covered in snow for eight months every year, grass growth is only limited to June and July. However, summer temperatures have increased by 1.5 degrees Celsius. Female reindeer gained more weight in autumn and were able to conceive more calves.

Winters have also become warmer leading to more rainfall, making it difficult for reindeer to reach plants and other food sources. The reindeer starve due to this change in weather and female reindeer give birth to stunted calves.

Increasing reindeer populations will result in a highly competitive environment among the creatures, and this will cause their size to shrink.

Albon predicts that in the next few decades, reindeer will become even much smaller and will be at risk of dying due to increasing ice formation in the region.