Figures & data
FIGURE 1. The study area: Plurdalen valley, Siegelfjellet, Burmeisterfjellet, and Grunnlinjesletta on Edgeøya, Svalbard, in July-August in 2006.
FIGURE 2. Lead author disguised as a polar bear approaching a group of Svalbard reindeer. Limited supplies of white clothing left the back of the observer uncovered. Photos by M. Kardel.
TABLE 1 Summary of the linear models for predicting start, sight, alert, flight initiation, and escape distances of Svalbard reindeer groups disturbed by an approaching person (N = 11) or person disguised as polar bear (N = 5) in Edgeøya, Svalbard, in July-August 2006. Reference levels for approacher is person disguised as a polar bear. Fixed effect values for start distance and sight distance were centered around the mean.
FIGURE 3. Predicted values ( ± SE) of sight, alert, flight initiation, and escape distances of Svalbard reindeer groups disturbed by an approaching person or person disguised as a polar bear (N = 5) in Edgeøya, Svalbard, in July—August 2006. Person I denotes 11 encounters where model fixed effects (herd structure, terrain, wind, etc.) were similar to those when reindeer were encountered by a person in polar bear disguise. Person II denotes all person encounters excluding those of females with calf at foot. Polar bear denotes an approach by a single polar bear towards a mixed group of 4 reindeer (three females and one male). Polar bear response distances were estimated from GPS positions and maps.
TABLE A1 Flight behavior data from Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus Vrolik, 1829) disturbed by a polar bear (Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774), persons in polar bear disguise, and persons in dark hiking gear on Edgeøya, Svalbard, in 2006.