Status muskoxen, Ivittuut, Southwest Greenland 61°N, from 1987 translocation to 2017. Technical Report No. 100

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S a us muskoxen, I i uu ,
Sou hwes G eenland 61°N,
om 1987 ansloca ion o 2017
Technical Repo No. 100, 2024
Pinngo i ale i ik – G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces
2
Ti le: S a us muskoxen, I i uu , Sou hwes G eenland 61°N, om 1987
ansloca ion o 2017.
Au ho s: Ch is ine Cuyle 1, Pe Nukaa aq Hansen2, Mo en Lybe h3 and Ka l
Zingle sen1
1 Pinngo i ale i ik - G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces, P.O.
Box 570, 3900 Nuuk, G eenland
2 G eenland Fishe ies Licensing Con ol, P.O. Box 501, 3900 Nuuk,
G eenland
3 G eenland Fishe ies Licensing Con ol, 3912 Manii soq, G eenland
Se ies: Technical Repo No. 100, 2024
Da e o publica ion: 08 Ap il, 2024
Publishe : Pinngo i ale i ik - G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces
Financial suppo : Pinngo i ale i ik - G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces &
No deco
Co e pho o: Ch is ine Cuyle : Ju enile bull (age 3-yea s) om he alley,
Qaamasunnguaq (Pa adise ), I i uu peninsula, 09 June 2015.
ISBN: 87-91214-77-7
ISSN: 1397-3657
EAN: 9788791214776
Ci ed as: Cuyle C., Hansen P.N., Lybe h M. & Zingle sen K. 2024. S a us
muskoxen, I i uu , Sou hwes G eenland 61°N, om 1987
in oduc ion o 2017. Pinngo i ale i ik - G eenland Ins i u e o
Na u al Resou ces. Technical Repo No. 100. 116 pp.
Con ac add ess: The epo is only a ailable in elec onic o ma . PDF- ile copies can
be downloaded a his homepage:
h p://www.na u .gl/publika ione / ekniske appo e
h p://www.na u .gl/publica ions/ echnical epo s
Pinngo i ale i ik – G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces
P.O. Box 570
DK-3900 Nuuk
G eenland
Phone: +299 36 12 00
E-mail: in o@na u .gl
www.na u .gl
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S a us muskoxen, I i uu ,
Sou hwes G eenland 61°N,
om 1987 ansloca ion o 2017
By
Ch is ine Cuyle 1, Pe Nukaa aq Hansen2 , Mo en Lybe h3 & Ka l Zingle sen1
1 Pinngo i ale i ik – G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces, P.O. Box 570, 3900 Nuuk, G eenland
2G eenlands Fishe ies Licensing Con ol, P.O. Box 501, 3900 Nuuk, G eenland
3G eenlands Fishe ies Licensing Con ol, 3912 Manii soq, G eenland
Technical Repo No. 100, 2024
Pinngo i ale i ik – G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces
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[Emp y page]
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Table o Con en s
Summa y (English)……………………………………… 8
Eqikkaaneq (kalaallisu ) ……………………………. .. 9
Resumé (dansk)……………………………………….. 11
In oduc ion ……………………………………………. 13
Me hods …………………………………………………. 21
Resul s…………………………………………………… 28
Discussion ……………………………………………… 48
Acknowledgemen s…………………………………….. 58
Li e a u e ci ed ………………………………………… 58
Figu es
1.
Muskox popula ions in G eenland, …
Page 14
2.
Map o he peninsula, which is he I i uu egion, an a ea o 431 km2 …
Page 15
3.
Uno icial place names in I i uu egion, o u he names see Appendix 1.
Page 16
4.
Ma u e bull muskox looking in window o summe co age, I i uu 2004.
Page 18
5.
I i uu annual quo as and epo ed numbe o muskoxen ha es ed…
Page 19
6.
To al numbe o muskoxen ha es ed legally on he I i uu peninsula …
Page 20
7.
Repo ed ha es o muskoxen on he I i uu peninsula om 1991 o 2016.
Page 20
8.
Ma ine g id map some imes used o p o ide loca ion in o ma ion o …
Page 23
9.
A ma u e cow a he A suk jo d sho e obse ed om open ou boa d boa ...
Page 24
10.
O e iew o coas line and g ound ou es used o minimum coun s o …
Page 25
11.
G id map wi h 3x3 km cells used o p o ide loca ion in o ma ion o each...
Page 26
12.
Ma u e adul cow (age ≥ 3 yea s) wi h he cal -a -heel, bo n sp ing 2017.
Page 27
13.
Boa and hiking ou es aken, plus lookou poin s (), June 2015 …
Page 28
14.
Boa and hiking ou es aken, plus lookou poin s (), in June 2016 …
Page 29
15.
Boa and hiking ou es aken, plus lookou poin s (), in June 2017…
Page 29
16.
2015 muskox dis ibu ion wi hin he g id cells (3x3 km) co e ed by ....
Page 30
17.
2016 muskox dis ibu ion wi hin he g id cells (3x3 km) co e ed by ....
Page 30
18.
2017 muskox dis ibu ion wi hin he g id cells (3x3 km) co e ed by ....
Page 31
19.
Index o changing muskox abundance and cal numbe o e ime …
Page 33
20.
Changes in cal pe cen age, cal ec ui men (cal es pe 100 cows) …
Page 35
21.
P opo ional change, inc ease/dec ease, in popula ion size be ween wo …
Page 35
22.
Demog aphics o unknown sex and/age muskoxen obse ed on...
Page 36
23.
De ailed demog aphics, speci ically cal es and cows, om da ase ...
Page 37
24.
De ailed demog aphics, speci ically bulls, om da ase o sexed and aged...
Page 37
25.
O e iew summa izing he demog aphics o he muskox popula ion on …
Page 38

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26.
2011 pho o o 25-yea -old cow, one o he o iginal ea - agged yea lings …
Page 40
27.
One o wo dead cows obse ed 10 June nea he sho e o Ikka jo d
Page 41
28.
Decomposing ca cass o ma u e bull, 9 June 2015, Ho eddal, Pa adise ...
Page 42
29.
Soli a y cows accompanied by wo cal es ha e been obse ed, which …
Page 43
30.
Ma u e bull muskoxen (age ≥ 5-yea s) appea ing o consume seaweed…
Page 44
31.
Ikka jo d sho e g asses/sedges e idencing hea y muskox g azing …
Page 45
32.
‘Bleached bones’ emains o ancien willows by i e side in Laksebund/…
Page 45
33.
In 2010, a la ge g oup o semi-domes ic eindee was obse ed …
Page 47
34.
Eigh bull semi-domes ic eindee in he Blæse en Valley, 09 June 20.
Page 47
35.
The muskox coun s, ha es s and pe cen age o he coun aken by ha es .
Page 54
36.
Place names (p ima ily Danish) o he I i uu egion, which …
Page 63
37.
Place names (p ima ily G eenlandic) o he I i uu egion, which …
Page 64
38
1987 ege a ion map o he I i uu egion. Copy igh : T yk …
Page 65
39.
English legend explana ion o he 1987 ege a ion map o he I i uu …
Page 66
40.
The 1987 map o ege a ed landco e in he I i uu egion and wo …
Page 67
41.
Map o he I i uu egion, illus a ing amoun and dis ibu ion …
Page 69
42.
Map illus a ing he amoun and dis ibu ion o wo ele a ion ca ego ies …
Page 70
43.
View no heas a he small coas al own o A suk, which is immedia ely...
Page 74
44.
The A suk Resou ce Managemen Council es ablished June 2015...
Page 75
45.
G ound coun by local expe s coo dina ing e o s wi h hun ing o ice s...
Page 76
46.
G asses/sedges g azed o g ound le el, wes sho e Ikka Fjo d, 10 June...
Page 105
47.
G assy ussocks in he lowland alley immedia ely no h o Tayle sha n...
Page 106
48.
Sho eline g ass/sedge NOT g azed o g ound le el, Tayle sha n...
Page 106
49.
Willow sh ubs s ipped o ba k in Laksebund/Laksel Valley, 08 June 2015.
Page 107
50.
Hillside willow sh ubs in Laksebund/Laksel Valley, 08 June 2015.
Page 108
51.
T ampling and ba k s ipping o willows in Laksebund/Laksel Valley...
Page 109
52.
View on 29 June 2016, no h o Hekses ed cabin in Oksedalen...
Page 110
53.
Closeup o willow sh ubs s ipped o ba k, Ikkabund, 10 June 2015.
Page 110
54.
Ri e alley no h o Hekses ed cabin in Oksedalen, willow sh ub is no ....
Page 111
55.
I i uu Hun ing O ice , Pe Nukaa aq Hansen, wi h o phaned newbo n...
Page 114
56.
Muskox hoo -p in in shallow snow.
Page 115
Tables
1.
Depa men o Fishe ies & Hun ing muskox ha es managemen a eas, …
Page 13
2.
Reco d o a ia ion o inland a eas co e ed by I i uu muskox coun s.…
Page 27
3.
Minimum coun s, densi ies, and ough demog aphics o muskoxen in …
Page 32
4.
The 2015 – 2017 de ailed demog aphics o muskoxen in he I i uu …
Page 33
7
5.
Muskox popula ion pa ame e s and demog aphic de ails om minimum…
Page 34
6.
Ele a ions whe e muskox de ec ed in la e sp ing (June h ough ea ly July…
Page 39
7
Species obse ed oppo unis ically du ing 2015-2017 I i uu …
Page 46
8.
A ea o each o he 1987 ege a ion classes occu ing wi hin …
Page 68
9.
Ha es I i uu muskox popula ion: mon hs wi h hun ing seasons...
Page 71
10.
I i uu muskox popula ion: ha es numbe s, ha es demog aphics…
Page 72
11.
Da a collec ion shee o 2015 coun and demog aphics o muskoxen.
Page 78
12.
Page 82
13.
Page 90
14.
Page 91
15.
Page 98
16.
Raw da a o one g oup o se en muskoxen obse ed in Qoo o suaq…
Page 104
17.
Page 112
Appendices
1.
Place names commonly used in he I i uu egion
Page 63
2.
Maps o I i uu ege a ion & ele a ion
Page 65
3.
Ha es s & ha es egula ion o he muskox popula ion on he I i uu ...
Page 71
4.
Minimum coun & Demog aphics da a collec ion shee used 2015 – 2017
Page 78
5.
Muskox sex & age ield guide.
Page 79
6.
Raw da a o 2015, 2016, and 2017 I i uu muskox coun s
Page 82
7.
Visible e ec s o muskox g azing/b owsing on ege a ion landscape
Page 105
8.
Raw da a o obse a ions o o he species encoun e ed on I i uu …
Page 112
9.
Muskox coun s and obse a ions pos -2017
Page 114
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Summa y (English)
The muskox (O ibos moscha us) popula ion on he I i uu peninsula (ca. 61N, 48W,
a ea 432 km2) began in 1987 when 15 yea lings we e ansloca ed om he Manii soq
popula ion a Kange lussuaq (Sønd e S øm jo d) o he emo e and op imal habi a o
he I i uu peninsula. Ini ial popula ion g ow h was unhinde ed gi en ample o age, no
la ge p eda o s, no hun ing, and absence o la ge he bi o e compe i o s. Na u al
mo ali y was low. The maximum obse ed age was a 25-yea -old cow, which was one
o he o iginal 15 ea - agged animals. Hun ing, egula ed by quo as and seasons, began
in 1995. Ini ially, sugges ed goals o maximum popula ion size anged om 150 o 300
muskoxen. Coun s o e ime illus a ed ha ha es s we e insu icien o p e en
popula ion g ow h beyond hose goals.
The peninsula a ea is ela i ely small, hus he esou ces a ailable (i.e. he ege a ion)
could apidly become a limi ing ac o o popula ion g ow h. Habi a could de e io a e
i muskox abundance became oo high. The coun s illus a e ha popula ion size g ew
each yea un il 2009 and he ea e luc ua ed, due o possible limi a ion o esou ces. In
a popula ion limi ed by esou ce a ailabili y, maximum g ow h a e, i.e. maximum
p opo ional change in popula ion size om one yea o he nex , ypically occu s a
abou hal o he po en ial ca ying-capaci y (i.e. muskox densi y a which he numbe o
bi hs equals dea hs). The maximum popula ion g ow h a e occu ed om 2004 o 2005,
when he popula ion size eached 508. This sugges s ha he ini ial ca ying-capaci y o
I i uu was wice he 508 muskoxen. This was possibly eached in 2009, when ca. 900
muskox we e coun ed and ga e a densi y o ca. 2.1 muskox/km2.
Maximum popula ion g ow h is also gene ally conside ed o coincide wi h maximum
sus ainable yield (MSY) o hun e ha es s. Gi en 2005, a muskox popula ion size o
400-500 wi h a densi y a ca. 1/km2 may be op imal and sus ainable o he I i uu
peninsula habi a , albei hal o he peninsula is domina ed by ba en g ound ha is e y
spa sely ege a ed. Since 2009, howe e , muskox densi ies ha e been 2-3 pe km2. Those
high densi ies combined wi h he hea y he bi o y obse ed in he 2015-2017 pe iod and
ha now ano he la ge he bi o e, e al eindee , inhabi s he egion, sugges s ha
damage o he ege a ion has po en ially educed he esou ces a ailable. This is
suppo ed by cal p oduc ion alues. P e-2009 cal pe cen age was om 24% o 32%, bu
his changed. In 2016, he cal pe cen age was ca. 11% and coincided wi h wha appea s
o be he beginning o a decline in popula ion size. Fo u u e managemen s a egies, a
muskox densi y ≤ 1/km2 o he en i e peninsula is wo h conside ing and migh allow
o a balance be ween ege a ion egene a ion, he bi o y, and good body condi ion
among muskoxen. Clima e wa ming may c ea e mo e plan biomass and inc ease
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ca ying-capaci y, i.e. he muskox densi y ha he I i uu peninsula can sus ainably
con ain.
A educ ion in muskox densi y migh be achie ed h ough ca e ul managemen and
supe ision o he ha es . Since pas ha es s ha e been p edominan ly ju eniles and
bulls, changing jus he annual quo a will likely be insu icien ac ion aken i a
popula ion c ash has occu ed since 2017. Fu he , e en a a muskox densi y ≤ 1/km2,
na u al luc ua ions in popula ion abundance may s ill occu and may be in esponse o
ac o s beyond managemen con ol, e.g. ca as ophic s ochas ic e en s, including
ex eme wea he and pa hogen ou b eaks.
Coun s canno de ec all muskoxen p esen , hence he name ‘minimum’ coun . Owing o
ewe unde ec ed animals, mul i-day coun s a e p e e able o apid one-day coun s.
Unde ec ed muskoxen could be 13% mo e han he numbe coun ed on he o me and
16%-28% on he la e . We encou age hese annual coun s o con inue, po en ially
augmen ed by demog aphic da a collec ed om newe echnologies, i.e. unmanned
ae ial ehicles. S eng hening he de ail and accu acy o he demog aphic da a would
assis p edic ions o popula ion ends.
Eqikkaaneq (kalaallisu )
I i uu qeqe aasa aani umimmaqassusia (A anna pasissu sip 61°N missaa i,
kippasissu sillu 48°W missaani, anne ussu simi 432 km²) 1987imi umimmannik 15inik
Manii sup eqqaani Kange lussuup eqqaannii umi I i uu eqqaanni qeqe aasamu
naggo eqisumu ingalassimasumullu nuussisoqa ma piule poq. Umimmaa
ame lia oqqaa ne a apo eqa simanngilaq, nuna naggo eqimma , uumasunillu
qaasu unik peqa anilu pinia oqa neq ajo ma , allanillu naaso o oqanngimma .
Umimmaallu iki uaqqa oqusa ma a. Umimmak a na iaq uumasimane paasoq
ukiuni 25ni uumasima oq, nuusso neqaqqaa unu 15inu ilaasimasoq.
Killile sukkamik pi issallu ilaannaani pinia oqa sinnaale poq 1995imi.
Aallaqqaammu naa so suu igineqa simagalua poq umimmaa 150inii 300nik amaani
ame lane paa eqassasu . Ukiulli inge lane ini kisi sine i paasina sisi oq umimmaa
pinia neqanngingaa amik ame lane ule sinnaallua u .
Qeqe aasap anne ussusia mikeqigami, naggo issusia killiliisinnaa oq
(naaso ugassaqa nissaa) uumasu ame lia o nissaannu apo iusinnaassalluni.
Uumasoqa igiiaa eqqugaasinnaappu umimmaa ame la allaalissagalua pa a.
Kisi sine illu paasina sisippaa umimmaa ame lia o ne a ukiu ama iisa 2009ip
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ex en in A uagagdliu i /G ønlandspos en (1987) and I i uu Kommune e al. (1996).
The ansloca ion o 15 muskoxen o he I i uu peninsula was he decision o he
I i uu municipal council (I i uu Kommune e al. 1996) and he I i uu municipali y
inanced he cap u e, anspo , and elease o he 15 yea lings. Following discussions in
1986 wi h he hen P emie o G eenland, Jona han Mo z eld , he o iginal plan was o
es ablish a muskox a m (A uagagdliu i /G ønlandspos en 1987). Ne e heless, he
Home-Rule go e nmen o G eenland, Depa men o Indus y (E h e sdi ek o a e )
e oed he a m plan bu pe mi ed he ansloca ion, i he goal was o es ablish a wild
muskox popula ion, which could p o ide hun ing oppo uni ies in he u u e.
Figu e 3. Common place names (uno icial & o icial) used in I i uu egion ( u he names Appendix 1). O icial
names ound he e: h ps://www.a cgis.com/apps/View/index.h ml?appid=c5c7d9d52a264980a24911d7d33914b5
I i uu ange be o e a i al o muskoxen
P io o he 1987 elease o he 15 yea ling muskoxen, a ege a ion map o he I i uu
peninsula was p epa ed (Appendix 2) and p o ided an assessmen o a ailable ange.
Meanwhile, local consensus hough I i uu pas u e quali y was good because, whe he
wild o domes ic, la ge mammalian he bi o es, had no o aged ha ange o abou a
cen u y. Al hough sheep a ming is ex ensi e in sou h G eenland, because high densi ies
o sheep had al eady al e ed ege a ion he e, i had ne e been pe mi ed wi hin he
neighbo ing I i uu municipali y, (I i uu Kommune e al. 1996). The newspape ,
A uagagdliu i /G ønlandspos en (1987) desc ibed he I i uu summe pas u e as lush,
al hough he e was conce n abou win e pas u es since excessi e snow alls we e
common in win e . Resul ing snow dep hs > 1m migh p e en he muskoxen om

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accessing ood esou ces in he I i uu egion. Al hough he 1987 consensus was ha
lowlands we e well ege a ed, he esul s o he ege a ion mapping illus a ed lowland
habi a was sca ce. Jus 95.3 km2 (22%) o he I i uu ange is below 200 m ele a ion (Fig.
2). Fu he , he 1987 map indica es ha hal o he 431 km2 I i uu ange is domina ed
by ba en g ound, which in ol es he egion’s highes ele a ions. Rega dless o he 1987
designa ion ha he ba ens lacked ege a ion, i is known ha a eas classi ied as ba ens
can be spa sely ege a ed (Walke e al. 2005).
Muskoxen a e cha ac e is ically seden a y and gene ally o age in low lying alleys and
coas al a eas (Nellemann & Reynolds 1997, Reynolds e al. 2002, Gus ine e al. 2011,
Nellemann 2011, Ande son & Fe gusen 2016, Schmid e al. 2016). Thus, no su p isingly,
I i uu ’s “pa en ” Manii soq popula ion, we e known o emain in a eas below 400 m
ele a ion yea - ound (Olesen 1993). Op imal muskoxen habi a appea s o be below 200
m ele a ion, wi h ele a ions below 100 m suppo ing he highes densi ies o muskoxen
(Thomas e al. 1981). Gi en he ege a ion mapping o I i uu , i appea s jus ca. 216.6
km2 is ege a ed, o which 40% is hinly ege a ed. Meanwhile spa sely ege a ed
ba ens make up he o he ca. 216.6 km2. Clea ly, om he beginning, he I i uu ange
had i s cons ain s ega ding he numbe o muskoxen i could sus ain.
Ea ly popula ion g ow h
In he beginning, gi en excellen ange condi ions in he lowlands, absence o la ge
p eda o s, lack o la ge he bi o e compe i o s and a hun ing p ohibi ion o he i s eigh
yea s, as expec ed he muskox popula ion g ew. Ini ially, muskoxen numbe s we e
moni o ed ad hoc. In 1990, jus h ee yea s a e he in oduc ion o 15 ju eniles, he
I i uu popula ion had mo e han doubled. Two g oups o aling 42 muskoxen we e
obse ed in he alleys abou he na al base, Kangilinngui (Skolemose, pe s. comm. In
Boe mann e al. 1992). This numbe was as expec ed, gi en he unce ain y in heo e ical
calcula ions o exponen ial popula ion g ow h and mo ali y (Thing 1994). Simila ly in
1995, al hough 136 was he expec ed popula ion size, a minimum o 150 muskoxen we e
obse ed. Thus, he I i uu municipal council and A suk own council became
conce ned o he gene al sus ainabili y o he na u al esou ces on he I i uu peninsula
(I i uu Kommune e al. 1996). A his ime, Pe Nukaa aq Hansen, I i uu hun ing
o ice , G eenland Fishe ies Licensing and Con ol (GFLK), no ed ha some ju enile 2-
yea -old cows p oduced cal es. This sugges s high ep oduc ion suppo ed by high
o age quali y, bo h o which ha e been documen ed in he ea ly s ages o o he
ansloca ed muskox popula ions (Alendal 1971, Jing o s & Klein 1982, Olesen 1993,
Olesen e al. 1994). On he ad ice o he Danish Pola Cen e ega ding obse ed ea ly
popula ion g ow h, he I i uu council decided ha hei muskox popula ion should no
exceed he 150 animals obse ed in 1995. Thus, hun ing began in 1995 bu only o emo e
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selec ed animals deemed “unnecessa y” o he u u e o he popula ion (I i uu
Kommune e al. 1996). Repo ed ha es om 1995 o 2000, sugges s “unnecessa y”
animals we e p ima ily ju enile and adul bulls and seconda ily, ju enile cows.
Howe e , owa ds he end o he pe iod, his became p ima ily ju eniles o bo h sexes
and seconda ily adul bulls. (No e: Ju enile bulls equi e ou yea s o ma u e, so his
g oup includes animals o ≤ 1 age < 5 yea s. Ju enile cows equi e wo yea s o ma u e,
so his g oup includes animals o 1 ≤ age < 3 yea s.) The I i uu hun ing o ice o e saw
and handpicked each animal ha es ed. Du ing his pe iod, many almos -known-by-
name ea agged muskoxen we e obse ed s ill p esen in he popula ion.
Despi e I i uu municipali y’s desi e ha hei muskox popula ion emain unde 150
animals, his was no achie ed. The ollowing yea s’ annual muskox coun s by I i uu
hun ing o ice , indica ed ha abundance ose s eadily (P.N. Hansen pe s. comm.). In
2001, he I i uu municipali y pe i ioned he Home-Rule cen al go e nmen o pe mi
a popula ion o up o 300 muskoxen, which was based on local opinion ha ege a ion
was ye unchanged (Sle ema k 2001). In la e 2003, he G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al
Resou ces (GINR) acknowledged ha a 300 muskoxen, densi y would be high, ela i e
o he a ea wi h ege a ion co e , and migh impac /al e exis ing ege a ion landscapes
(Cuyle 2003). To conse e exis ing esou ces, GINR ecommended he popula ion be
s abilized a ≤ 300 muskoxen, achie ed by ha es ing 100-160 animals annually. Annual
ha es s, howe e , gene ally emained unde 100 muskoxen o he nex i e yea s.
Meanwhile, muskox sigh ings g ew inc easingly common h oughou he I i uu egion
(Fig. 4).
Figu e 4. Recen ly ma u e bull muskox (ho ns s ill ha e sha p black ips, hus age ≥ 5-yea s) looking in window o
summe co age, I i uu 2004. Pho o Pe Nukaa aq Hansen.
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Ha es
The I i uu municipali y had a ial ha es o one bull in 1991, hen wo bulls in 1992
and h ee in 1994, bu i was i s in 1995, ha egula ed hun e ha es s began (Appendix
3). Concu en ly, h ee A suk comme cial hun e s we e ained in he ophy hun ing
indus y and began guiding o eign hun e s o ophy bull ha es . Ini ially, annual
quo as we e conse a i e (Fig. 5). In he 2006-2010 pe iod, annual ha es quo as o a
leas 200 animals we e ecommended (Chemni z 2014), and quo as ose apidly om
2005 o 2010. Un il a leas 2010, ophy hun s we e supe ised by he I i uu hun ing
o ice . Rega dless o he yea , acco ding o he epo ed ha es , quo as we e seldom
illed (Fig. 5). This di e ence be ween pe mi ed ha es quo a and epo ed numbe
killed became mo e p onounced a e 2005. This was no because muskoxen we e ew.
Fo speci ically he 2006-2010 pe iod, I i uu was desc ibed as ha ing muskoxen
e e ywhe e and ca. 200 cal es we e bo n annually (P.N. Hansen pe s. comm.).
Figu e 5. I i uu annual quo as and epo ed numbe o muskoxen ha es ed in he 1995-2016 pe iod, which
includes all legal and he known illegal ha es and muskoxen ha died a e c ippling by hun e s.
F om 1991 o 2016, a o al o 2,441 muskoxen we e legally ha es ed (Appendix 3). This
illus a es he impo ance o he I i uu muskox popula ion o mea secu i y in he
A suk communi y. Fu he , his popula ion has been a aluable sou ce o income,
h ough comme cial sale o mea , and he luc a i e ophy bull and qi iu indus ies.
Meanwhile, whe he hun e s we e locals om A suk o om ou side he I i uu egion,
ha es s we e bull-biased and p edominan ly ju eniles (Figs. 6, 7, de ails Appendix 3).
Ju enile bulls equi e wice as many yea s o ma u e han ju enile cows, i.e. ou yea s
compa ed o wo yea s, espec i ely. Thus, in Figu es 6 and 7, he sum o ju enile bulls
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Numbe o muskoxen
Yea
Ha es
Quo a
20
includes wo mo e yea s. Simila ly o adul cows and bulls, only he e i is he cows ha
include wo mo e yea s. To a oid misin e p e a ion, emembe ha he numbe o yea s
summed o e in each ca ego y (excep cal ) di e s.
Figu e 6. To al numbe o muskoxen ha es ed legally on he I i uu peninsula om 1991 o 2016. Age classes a e
gi en in yea s; cal age < 1, ju enile cow 1 ≤ age < 3, ju enile bull 1 ≤ age < 5, adul cow age ≥ 3, adul bull ≥ 5.
No e: excep ing ‘cal ’, he numbe o yea s summed o e o each age class di e s.
Figu e 7. Repo ed ha es o muskoxen on he I i uu peninsula om 1991 o 2016. The minimal ha es o cal es
and animals o unknown sex is no included. Age classes a e gi en in yea s; adul bull age ≥ 5, adul cow age ≥ 3,
ju enile bull 1 ≤ age < 5, ju enile cow 1 ≤ age < 3. No e: excep ing ‘cal ’, he numbe o yea s summed o e o each
age class di e s.
61
488
172
63
853
651
18
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Cal Ju enile Adul
Numbe o muskoxen
Age class
Cows
Bulls
Sex unknown
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Numbe o muskoxen
Yea
bull adul
cow adul
bull ju enile
cow ju enile
21
P esen s udy
This epo p esen s he s a us o he muskox popula ion in he I i uu egion om
ansloca ion o 15 yea lings in summe o 1987 h ough o June 2017. P incipally, he
epo co e s annual minimum coun s o muskoxen p esen in he egion and cal
p oduc ion. Focus is on he minimum coun s o 2015, 2016, and 2017, which o he i s
ime included de ailed demog aphics. Seconda ily, we p o ide a summa y o he ad hoc
obse a ions o mo ali y/longe i y, ep oduc ion, changing ege a ion landscape, and
ange expansion by muskoxen and semi-domes ic eindee . The e ollows a discussion
o possible muskox popula ion sizes/densi ies o he I i uu egion. Topics also
co e ed include he eliabili y o muskox coun s and he isk o s ochas ic e en s.
Me hods
S udy a ea
The I i uu egion is a peninsula wi h a land a ea o app oxima ely 432 km2, which
excludes ice and lakes (an a ea o ca. 19 km2). Ele a ions om 0 o 200 m co e 95 km2 o
he I i uu a ea. The emaining a ea, 336 km2, is abo e 200 m ele a ion. Speci ically,
ele a ions be ween 200 and 700 m co e 270 km2, while ele a ions abo e 700 m co e 66
km2 (Appendix 1). The highes poin is 1015 m ele a ion. The opog aphy o he 432 km2
peninsula is highly a ied, which p o ides di e se habi a condi ions.
The I i uu egion was mapped o ege a ion in 1987 (Appendix 2). A ha ime, jus
216.7 km2 possessed ege a ion co e , which we e di ided in o se en ege a ion
ca ego ies: sh ub hea h (41.8 km2 (19,3%)), sh ub/moss/lichen hea hs (50 km2 (23.1%)),
sh ub/g asses/ o bs (succulen s)/sedge hea hs (12.2 km2 (5,6%)), sc ub o es (3.5 km2
(1.6%)), sc ub o es wi h sh ub hea h (12.8 km2 (5.9%)), lichen and moss hea hs (8.4 km2
(3.9%)), and he la ges ca ego y, hinly ege a ed moun ains (87.4 km2 (40.3%)). The a ea
designa ed in 1987 as ha ing no ege a ion was 215 km2, which is hal he en i e
peninsula. Ba ens, howe e , can be spa sely ege a ed (Walke e al. 2005). Wha e e
spa se o age is p esen , gi en he ba ens a e all abo e 200 m ele a ion, o age quali y
may be poo .
The peninsula is bounded o he wes and no h by he Ike asaa suup Kuja aa [S ai ]
and Ilo pu (A suk) Fjo d, wi h he la e ending a he G eenland Ice Cap’s Se meq
(A suk) glacial ongue (Fig. 3). To he sou h is he Kangaa suk Løb [S ai ], and o he
eas is he G eenland Ice Cap and he Qoo noq jo d, which a e he ‘na ows’ becomes
Qinnge le si aq, which ends a he G eenland Ice Cap wi h he No d e Qoo noq B æ
glacial ongue. In win e , he ou e coas s emain ice- ee open wa e , howe e , he inne

22
jo ds a e usually ice co e ed om No embe o May (Bucha d e al. 2001). In summe ,
icebe gs a e common in he jo ds and s ai s. Many a ise om he Se meq (A suk) glacial
ongue o he G eenland Ice Cap. O he s, o en la ge , a i e wi h he Eas G eenland
Cu en , which bends a ound he sou he n ip o G eenland and con inues no hwa d
up he wes coas passing I i uu (Bucha d e al. 2001).
Clima e on he I i uu peninsula is low a c ic and ela i e o mos o G eenland is mild
(F is up 1971). Mean summe (June, July, Augus ) empe a u e is ca. 8°C, and mean
win e (Decembe , Janua y, Feb ua y) is ca. -1°C, while summe highs a e age ca. 12°C
and win e lows a e age -10°C. Annual p ecipi a ion is 1000–1200 mm.
Cu en ly, he e a e no pe manen human habi a ions on he I i uu peninsula. The
nea es se lemen is he small illage, A suk (popula ion < 80), which is loca ed abou
14 km wes o he I i uu peninsula. A Danish na al base, Kangilinngui (G ønnedal),
decommissioned in 2012, is loca ed on he no hwes e n sho e o he I i uu peninsula,
and while uninhabi ed in 2017 all in as uc u e emained. Immedia ely sou hwes o
Kangilinngui is he abandoned communi y, I i uu , which mined c yoli e om 1854
un il 1987. Today, some homes a e s ill used as summe co ages. Fu he , he e a e a
leas h ee coas al cabins, which a e main ained and managed by he local A suk Council.
Fo a small ee, hese may be en ed and used as a base o di e se ac i i ies, e.g. hun ing,
ishing, hiking, qi iu collec ion and coun ing muskoxen. Beyond he oads inside
Kangilinngui and I i uu and hose ew wi hin hei immedia e icini y and be ween
hem, no oads exis on he I i uu peninsula. T anspo a ion possibili ies a e limi ed o
boa s, hiking, and in win e , snowmobiles. Pe mission mus be ob ained o he la e .
The e a e no nea by ai po s, so ai access is limi ed o helicop e s and seaplanes.
Aside om he now es ablished ansloca ed popula ion o muskoxen, na i e wild
mammals p esen in he I i uu egion a e he a c ic ha e (Lepus a c icus Rhoads) and
a c ic ox (Vulpes lagopus Linnaeus). Recen ly, e al semi-domes ic eindee (Rangi e
a andus a andus) ha e expanded in o he egion, om he Iso oq eindee husband y
dis ic , which is neighbo ing a ea immedia ely sou h. As wi h he es o he sou hwes
coas , la ge mammalian p eda o s a e absen .
Ikai e Tu a Towe s
Al hough no ele an o he e es ial habi a , i is wo h no ing ha he I i uu egion
con ains he only known ma ine en i onmen in he wo ld whe e he a e ca bona e
mine al “Ikai e” o ms subma ine Ikkai e (Ikai e Tu a Towe s), whose la ge columns
some imes each 18 m all (Bucha d e al. 2001). These occu only in he Ikka/Qinngua
Fjo d, and a subma ine ese e has been designa ed. P ohibi ions o p e en damage o
23
he Ikkai e include no sailing o e op o hem wi h boa s whose hull o mo o eaches
mo e han 1.30 m deep, (se ing ishing ne s o aking “sou eni s” is also p ohibi ed). Fo
hun e s using he ypical open ou boa d mo o boa s, he subma ine ese e is no a
ba ie o accessing he inne Ikka Fjo d and he Ikasle en.
Field me hods
Muskox coun s om 1998 o 2014
To p o ide an index o muskox abundance, in 1998, annual minimum coun s began.
These we e comple ed by I i uu hun ing o ice , Pe Nukaa aq Hansen, G eenland
Fishe ies Licensing and Con ol (GFLK). Mos coun s occu ed in June o he au umn
mon hs o Sep embe and Oc obe . Win e coun s we e seldom.
Figu e 8. Ma ine g id map some imes used o p o ide loca ion in o ma ion o muskox obse a ions in he 1987 o
2014 pe iod. Po ions o he I i uu egion ( ounded ed ec angle in lowe igh ) occu in only six o he g id cells.
De ec ing muskoxen was aided by binocula s (8x magni ica ion). These ea ly muskox
coun s did no always p o ide an obse a ion loca ion. When hey did, obse a ions
we e summa ized o each loca ion examined, i.e. as he o al numbe o muskoxen
obse ed in he icini y o a place name loca ion and a gene al Geog aphical Posi ioning
Sys em (GPS) coo dina e, e.g. Laksebunden (61°15.62’N; 48°04.01’W), Tayle sha n
(61°09.98’N; 48°10.40’W), Pa adise (61°09.20’N; 47°50.85’W), Blind a m (61°08.29’N;
24
47°52.17’W), Blind a m wes (61°07.36’N; 47°55.57’W), I i i a ik (61°07.01’N;
47°54.00’W), Oksedalen (61°08.11’N; 47°48.42’W), Hekses ede (61°61.06’N; 48°10.40’W),
Quassuk (61°05.10’N; 47°56.04’W) and Ikka (61°12.78’N; 47°59.16’W). Occasionally, un il
2014, muskox loca ion was designa ed using a ma ine g id cell map (Fig. 8). This map’s
la ge cell size p o ided scan in o ma ion abou muskox dis ibu ion on he peninsula.
Fo una ely, he la e was seldom used and he p ima y manne o designa e loca ion
emained place names.
Figu e 9. A ma u e cow a he A suk jo d sho e obse ed om open ou boa d boa , 4 June 2015. Pho o C. Cuyle .
C uising slowly in open ou boa d boa s alongside he en i e I i uu coas line was
s anda d p ocedu e o coun s, as he s eeply ising coas al e ain made spo ing
muskoxen possible (Fig. 9). Inland a eas we e co e ed on oo by hiking in o p incipal
alleys (Fig. 10). High ele a ion poin s we e o en used as lookou an age poin s. Which
a eas we e co e ed a ied among yea s, usually owing o poo wea he o snow on he
g ound (Table 2). Win e (Janua y-Ma ch) coun s in ol ed snowmobiles. The occasional
one-day summe coun s we e accomplished by jus c uising he coas line.
The 1998-2014 demog aphics collec ed we e simple. The e we e he ou basic ca ego ies,
i.e. cal es, cows, bulls, and unknowns. The la e occu ed when sex and age o animals
olde han cal es could no be de e mined. This was usually caused by oo g ea a
dis ance be ween muskoxen and obse e using binocula s. Cal es we e no sexed.
The e we e no age classes o cows. Bulls, howe e , we e u he sub-di ided in o h ee
age classes, i.e. age 2-3 yea s, 4-5 yea s and hose  6-yea s. Ho n de elopmen , shape
and size we e he deciding c i e ia o de e mining sex and aging (Olesen & Thing 1989).
25
Figu e 10. O e iew o ou es used o he 1998-2014 minimum coun s o muskoxen in he I i uu egion.
Muskox coun s om 2015 o 2017
Annual moni o ing om 2015 o 2017 o muskox numbe , including cal numbe ,
in ol ed se e al membe s o he A suk Resou ce Managemen Council, led by he
I i uu hun ing o ice , Pe Nukaa aq Hansen (GFLK) and collabo a ing wi h esea ch
scien is , D . Ch is ine Cuyle (G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces (GINR)).
Mo en Lybe h, also wi h GFLK, pa icipa ed on all h ee coun s. Pa icipa ing A suk
Council membe s b ough local expe ecological knowledge o he annual muskox
minimum coun s and ecei ed aining in demog aphics da a (sex, age) collec ion.
Rou es used we e like ea lie coun s and used open ou boa d mo o boa s o c uise he
en i e coas line, while p incipal alleys we e su eyed on- oo . Once again, ou es hiked
on- oo a ied among yea s (Table 2).
Since animal mo emen may occu , we made he ollowing p e en i e e o s o a oid
coun ing animals wice. The e was apid ( ela i e o no mal muskox mo emen ) e ain
co e age o e ew days, wea he pe mi ing. Te ain ea u es limi ing animal mo emen
we e used o delimi an a ea o su ey on a speci ic day. When possible, adjacen a eas
we e su eyed on consecu i e days. Muskoxen a e seldom igh ened by a mo o boa
sailing pas . When hiking, howe e , muskoxen o en led he app oaching obse e s,
unning a he in o a alley whe e hey mixed wi h o he g oups. The e o e, o a oid
32
Table 3. Minimum coun s, densi ies, and ough demog aphics o muskoxen in he I i uu egion, 1987 - 2017.
Yea
Season
/ Mon h
Da e
Densi ya
pe km2
Coun
Unknown
Bull
Cow
Cal
Cal
%
Bull/Cow
Ra io
Age
≥ 1 yea
≥ 5-yea s
3-4 yea s
≥ 3 yea s
< 7 mon hs
1987
Summe
0.0
15
1988
Sep embe
18
0.0
15
1990
Summe
0.1
42
1995
0.3
150
1998
Summe /Fall
0.4
182
35
15
20
70
42
23.6
0,21
1999
Ma ch-May
0.5
227
53
2001
Oc obe
10 - 18
0.7
287
47
20
45
99
76
26.5
0,20
2002
June
12 - 14
0.8
341
229
25
87
25.5
2003
Decembe
0.9
373
266
107
28.7
2004
July
0.8
335
2005
Sep embe
28 - 30
1.2
508
341
33
134
26.4
2006
Oc obe
22
1.3
551
329
48
174
31.6
2007
Sep embe
10 - 14
1.6
677
149
60
288
180
26.6
0,21
2008
Sep embe
4 - 7
1.8
796
526
65
205
25.7
2009
Sep embe
21 - 25
2.1
894
581
85
228
25.5
2009
Decembe
2.0
851
2010
Oc obe
4 - 7
1.7
748
163
67
307
211
28.2
0,22
2011
June
22 - 24
1.9
805
116
101
372
216
26.8
0,27
2012
Ap il
15
1.6
581b
519
62
2012
Oc obe
2,4,5
2.1
897
258
58
360
221
24.6
0,16
2013
June
26
1.7
736
487
82
167
22.7
2013
Oc obe
3 - 6
2.3
981
661
97
223
22.7
2013
Oc obe
13 - 15
2.0
846
846
2014
June
1 - 5
2.1
927
317
126
303
181
19.5
0,42
2015
June
4,6,9,10,12
2.9
1256
424c
94
95
430
213
17.0
0,22
2016
June-July
23-30/1-2
2.1
917
319 c
105
47
349
97
10.6
0,30
2016
Oc obe
6 - 11
1.4
620
521
99
2017
June
8 - 13
1.9
805
313 c
56
64
234
138
17.1
0,24
a Densi y calcula ed using he o al I i uu peninsula a ea, 432 km2.
b Al hough 581 was he Ap il 2012 coun by Pe N Hansen, he suspec ed ano he 100 muskoxen we e in he highlands whe e poo snow condi ions p e en ed su ey e o .
c In o de o 2015, 2016 & 2017 coun s o i p e-2015 able columns, all ju eniles, despi e known sex, we e included in his column o unknowns. Fo ju enile de ails see Table 4.
Sou ces: Boe mann e al. 1992, O nis Consul le e s, Pe sonal communica ion wi h Pe N. Hansen and Pe e Nielsen, Go e nmen o G eenland’s Di ec o a e o En i onmen &
Na u e (DMN) le e s and his s udy.

33
Table 4. The 2015 – 2017 de ailed demog aphics o muskoxen in he I i uu egion, 2015 - 2017.
Yea
Mon h
Da e
Coun
Unknown
Sex & Age
Unknown Sex
Bull
Cow
Cal
Age (yea s)
Age (yea s)
Age (yea s)
1
2
1-2*
>2
1
2
3
4
≥ 5
≥ 10
1
2
≥ 3
2015
June
4, 6, 9,10,12
1256
141
283
62
33
93
1
430
213
2016
June/July
23-30/1-2
917
62
27
5
17
53
49
30
17
101
4
77
29
349
97
2017
June
8 - 13
805
139
2
1
18
49
10
41
36
28
56
0
31
22
234
138
*Ju enile, exac age no de e mined, could be ei he age 1- o 2-yea s.
Figu e 19. Index o changing muskox abundance and cal numbe o e ime in he I i uu egion, using da a om he 1987 o 2017 minimum coun s.
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Muskoxen obse ed
Yea
Coun Cal es
34
Table 5. Muskox popula ion pa ame e s and demog aphic de ails om minimum coun s in 2015, 2016, and 2017,
I i uu peninsula, an a ea o 431 km2.
Pa ame e
I i uu muskox popula ion
2015
(04-12 June)
2016
(23 June – 02 July)
2017
(08-13 June)
Minimum coun (To al obse ed)
1256
917
805
App oxima e densi y pe sq km
2.9
2,1
1,9
Numbe o g oups obse ed
227
190
191
GROUP SIZE
Mean
5.53
4.83
4.21
Con idence In e al (95%)
0.8183
0.5901
0.7056
S anda d De ia ion
± 6.26
± 4.12
± 4.94
S anda d E o
0.41
0.30
0.36
Sample Va iance
39.14
17.00
24.44
Median
4
4
3
Mode
2
1
2
Maximum
64
26
51
Minimum
1
1
1
DEMOGRAPHICS
To al numbe indi iduals sexed and aged
832
100%
806
100%
596
100%
Cow (age > 1-yea )
-
-
77
8.40%
31
3.85%
Cow (age > 2-yea )
-
-
29
3.16%
22
2.73%
Cow (age ≥ 3-yea )
433
34.24%
349
38.06%
234
29.07%
Cal (age < 3 mon hs)
213
16.9%
97
10.58%
138
17.14%
Bull (age > 1-yea )
-
-
53
5.78%
10
1.24%
Bull (age > 2-yea )
-
-
49
5.34%
41
5.09%
Bull (age > 3-yea )
62
4.94%
30
3.27%
36
4.47%
Bull (age > 4-yea )
33
2.63%
17
1.85%
28
3.48%
T ophy Bull (age 5-9 yea s)
93
7.40%
101
11.01%
56
6.96%
Bull (age ≥ 10-yea )
1
0.08%
4
0.44%
0
0%
Cal pe cen age (To al obse ed/Cal )
17 %
10.6 %
17.1 %
Rec ui men 1 (Cal /100 Cow age ≥ 2-yea )
49.5
25.7
53.9
Sex a io (Bull age ≥ 5-y /100 Cow age ≥ 2-y )
0.22
0.28
0.22
Demog aphics miscellaneous
Bo h sex & age unknown
-
-
-
139
17.27%
Adul s - unknown sex
141
11.23%
62
6.76%
49
6.09%
Sub adul s – unknown sex
283
22.53%
49
5.34%
21
2.61%
1 Any conside a ion o he abo e cal ec ui men alues, mus acknowledge ha mo e cows may occu among he
ela i ely high numbe o adul animals o unknown sex.
The 1998 and 1999 coun s obse ed 42 o 53 newbo n cal es, espec i ely. The ea e cal
numbe inc eased wi h each coun , o a maximum obse ed 228 cal es in 2009. Cal
numbe s hen basically la ened bu om 2015 began o d op (Fig. 19). Meanwhile, cal
pe cen age and ec ui men appea o decline a e 2010 (Fig. 20). This coincided wi h
ela i ely la ge luc ua ions o he bull o cow a io. No e: cal ec ui men in Figu e 20
did no accoun o possible cows among animals o unknown sex.
I is impo an o emembe ha cal numbe s among any coun can be unde es ima ed.
Owing o hei iny body size, cal es we e o en hidden by dense sh ub ege a ion, while
adul s we e isible. Cal es we e also missed when hey we e lying down in he pocke ed
e ain o behind la ge olde muskoxen. Obse ing cal es o en equi ed obse a ion
pe iods o o e 30 minu es, so ha cal es s ood up and mo ed abou .
35
Figu e 20. Changes in cal pe cen age, cal ec ui men (cal es pe 100 cows) and a io o bulls o cows in he
I i uu egion om 1998 o 2017. No e: cal ec ui men did no accoun o possible cows among animals o
unknown sex.
Figu e 21. P opo ional change, inc ease/dec ease, in popula ion size be ween wo consecu i e minimum coun s o
he I i uu muskox popula ion o he 1987-2020 pe iod, a ailable coun s o 2018 and 2020 added (Appendix 9).
0,00
10,00
20,00
30,00
40,00
50,00
60,00
70,00
80,00
90,00
1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
PERCENTAGE OR NUMBER
YEAR
Cal % Cal es pe 100 Cows Bulls pe 100 Cows
36
Typically, o ungula e popula ions, maximum popula ion g ow h is assumed o occu
when popula ion size (N) is 50%-56% o ca ying-capaci y (K); N = K/2 (McCullough
1979, 1984). I we assume ha he 2009 minimum coun o 894 muskoxen ep esen s an
app oxima e ca ying-capaci y o I i uu , hen maximum popula ion g ow h would
occu wi h a popula ion o ca. 500 muskoxen. This esul is suppo ed by he 2005 a e o
inc ease (Fig. 21), which (igno ing ini ial spike pos - ansloca ion) was he maximum
ob ained and coincided wi h a coun o 508 muskoxen o ha yea . Since maximum
popula ion g ow h is gene ally conside ed o coincide wi h maximum sus ainable yield
(MSY) o hun e ha es , a muskox popula ion size o 400-500 wi h densi y a ca. 1/km2
may be op imal and sus ainable o he I i uu peninsula habi a . Meanwhile, densi ies
pos -2009 we e ca. double 1/km2.
The coun s om 2015 o 2017 p o ided an index o de ailed demog aphics in ha pe iod
(Figs. 22, 23, 24, de ails in Appendix 6).
Al hough igu es 22, 23, 24, p o ide de ailed in o ma ion o each sex and he unknowns,
an o e iew o he obse ed a ia ion in demog aphics o he 2015-2017 pe iod a e
be e illus a ed using pie-cha s (Fig. 25).
Figu e 22. Demog aphics o unknown sex and/age muskoxen obse ed on minimum coun s in I i uu egion om
2015 o 2017.
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2015 2016 2017
Numbe coun ed
Yea
Sex & age unknown
Age 1 o 2-y sex unknown
Age 1-y sex unknown
Age 2-y sex unknown
Adul sex unknown
37
Figu e 23. De ailed demog aphics, speci ically cal es and cows, om da ase o sexed and aged muskoxen obse ed
on minimum coun s in I i uu egion om 2015 o 2017.
Figu e 24. De ailed demog aphics, speci ically bulls, om da ase o sexed and aged muskoxen obse ed on
minimum coun s in I i uu egion om 2015 o 2017.
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
2015 2016 2017
Numbe coun ed
Yea
Cal
Cow ≥3-y
Cow 2-y
Cow 1-y
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
2015 2016 2017
Numbe coun ed
Yea
Bull ≥10-y
Bull ≥5-y (T ophy)
Bull 4-y
Bull 3-y
Bull 2-y
Bull 1-y

38
Figu e 25. O e iew summa izing he demog aphics o he muskox popula ion on he I i uu peninsula, as
obse ed on minimum coun s in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Legends and pie-cha s ank he ca ego ies om la ges o
smalles p opo ion o he o al obse ed muskoxen. Animals o unknown sex/age (i.e. age > 1-yea ) a e g ey, cal es
a e g een (and always o unknown sex), colou s o cows and bulls a e pink/ ed and blue, espec i ely, and da ken
wi h age.
2015
unknown
cow ≥ 3-yea s
cal
bull ≥ 5-yea s
bull 3-yea s
bull 4-yea s
2016 cow ≥ 3-yea s
unknown
bull ≥ 5-yea s
cal
cow 1-yea
bull 1-yea
bull 2-yea s
bull 3-yea s
cow 2-yea s
bull 4-yea s
bull ≥ 10-yea s
2017 cow ≥ 3-yea s
unknown
cal
bull ≥ 5-yea s
bull 2-yea s
bull 3-yea s
cow 1-yea
bull 4-yea s
cow 2-yea s
bull 1-yea
39
Ele a ion use
Mos muskoxen, including mos cal es, de ec ed du ing he coun s o 2015, 2016 and
2017, we e a ele a ions unde 100 m (Table 6). The 2015 and 2017 coun s bo h occu ed
be o e he middle o June. The 2016 coun occu ed a he end o June and in o July, and
mo e g oups we e obse ed a ele a ions abo e 200 m. Speci ically, he e we e se e al
obse a ions o g oups a ele a ions be ween 300 and 600 m.
Table 6. Ele a ions whe e muskox de ec ed in la e sp ing (June h ough ea ly July) on I i uu peninsula, om
minimum coun s 2015, 2016, and 2017: obse ed numbe o g oups, o al numbe o muskoxen and cal pe cen age
as pe app oxima e ele a ion.
Ele a ion
(me e s)
I i uu muskox popula ion
2015
(04-12 June)
2016
(23 June – 02 July)
2017
(08-13 June)
G oups
To al
Cal %
G oups
To al
Cal %
G oups
To al
Cal %
< 100 m
179
920
17,5
52
270
14,4
176
761
16.8
< 200 m
44
330
15,8
44
176
8,5
15
44
22.7
< 300 m
2
6
0
41
242
9,1
0
0
-
300< x <600 m
-
-
-
18
90
12,2
-
-
-
No da a
-
-
-
35
139
25,2
-
-
-
To al
225
1256
190
917
191
805
1998-2017 Ad hoc miscellaneous obse a ions
Some o he ollowing ad hoc obse a ions p o ide ac s (e.g. ange expansion, longe i y,
wa ble ly in ec ion, immig a ion o semi-domes ic eindee ) ha a e no ques ioned.
O he s, howe e ele an , will equi e in es iga ion o conclusi ely documen (e.g.
mo ali y, ep oduc ion, iming o cal ing, winning, ange use & die , changing plan
communi ies, soil e osion, and cal p eda ion by a c ic ox).
Range expansion
P io o 2015, ange expansion by muskoxen, beyond he bo de s o he I i uu egion,
was obse ed by A suk locals. Du ing he 2015-2017 coun s, ange expansion was
obse ed wice. Al hough he emig a ed indi iduals we e no included in he da a
p esen ed in his s udy’s ables and igu es o he I i uu peninsula, he wo
obse a ions a e desc ibed as ollows. In 2015, i e muskoxen (3 cows, 2 ju eniles) we e
loca ed immedia ely no h o he I i uu egion. They we e nea he Se meq glacie on
he no h sho e o A suk Fjo d (Ilo pu ). The g oup was close o he coas amongs high-
g ow h dense willows, which we e unde a wa e all. I cal es we e p esen , hese we e
impossible o de ec owing o he impene able willow hicke . In 2017, se en muskoxen
we e obse ed immedia ely sou heas o he I i uu egion. They we e in he lowlands
o he Qoo o suaq i e alley, which uns ESE o Qoo sooq Fjo d. The g oup included
one adul bull (age ≥ 10-yea ), h ee adul cows (age ≥ 3 yea s), 1 cal , and wo ju eniles,
which we e a cow and a bull, bo h o age 2-yea s.
40
Mo ali y / Longe i y
P io o 1999, na u al mo ali y was seldom obse ed among he muskoxen on he
I i uu peninsula, i.e. only h ee muskoxen we e ound dead o na u al causes. These
we e a se en-yea -old in May o 1995, a wo-yea -old in May 1996 (possibly ill), and an
ea - agged 11.5-yea -old bull in Feb ua y 1998.
Since all 15 muskoxen ansloca ed o he I i uu egion in 1987 we e age 1-yea and ea -
agged, age de e mina ion was possible when he same animals we e la e obse ed.
E en 13-14 yea s la e , in 1999 and 2000, some ea - agged indi iduals we e obse ed
annually. Pe N. Hansen obse ed ha ea - agged males disappea ed om he
popula ion as e han ea - agged emales. No ea - agged bulls we e e e obse ed
ollowing he sp ing o 1998. This sugges s ha bulls in he I i uu egion do no su i e
much beyond he age 12-yea s. The oldes ea - agged bull died in he win e o 1998, age
11.5 yea s. An inciso oo h sec ioned and analyzed o cemen um ings con i med he
bull’s age a 11.5-yea s. Tha bull e idenced se e e ho n wea , i.e. ips we e dull, ounded
and o ally lacking any black pigmen . Tips we e he same colo as he es o he ho n.
Despi e ad anced age, he bull’s mandible ee h e idenced minimal oo h wea .
Figu e 26. 2011 pho o o 25-yea -old cow, one o he o iginal ea - agged yea lings ansloca ed o I i uu in 1987.
No e: li le emains o ho n on le side o head, he shoulde s a e shaggy wi h unshed old wool/qi iu , and he
co nea o he eye is opaque. Pho o by P N Hansen.
41
Rela i e o ea - agged bulls, cows migh li e up o wice as long. A leas ou ea - agged
cows su i ed o age 20-yea s, since ou ea - agged cows we e obse ed ali e bo h in
summe 2004 and 2006. In au umn 2007, wo 21-yea -old ea - agged cows we e obse ed
wi h o he muskoxen be ween Oksedalen and Qoo noq jo d. In 2009, he e we e
obse ed h ee 23-yea -old ea - agged cows, and o all o hem li le emained o hei
ho ns. 2011 was he las yea an ea - agged cow was obse ed (Fig. 26). She would ha e
been a age 25-yea s and he opaque co neas sugges possible eyesigh di icul y.
Figu e 27. One o wo dead cows obse ed 10 June nea he sho e o Ikka jo d (NW side). Lack o decomposi ion
indica ed ecen dea h o bo h cows, cause(s) unknown. Pho o C. Cuyle .
In June 2015, se en adul s, including se e al cows, we e ound o ha e died ecen ly o
unknown cause(s) (Fig. 27), i.e. h ee in Ho eddal (Pa adise ), wo a Tou is Klo en
(Ikka jo d) and wo on Ikke jo d sho eline. This was he maximum obse ed numbe o
dead muskoxen in one yea o he 1987-2017 pe iod. Obse a ions o ca casses in he
e ain ha e been ew. Unless a ecen dea h, i.e. showing li le decomposi ion (Fig. 27),
ca casses we e di icul o de ec . A decomposing ma u e bull (Fig. 28) was de ec ed by
only one o h ee obse e s, all o whom walked wi hin 10 m o he ca cass.
48
Discussion
In a nu shell, he I i uu peninsula is small in a ea (432 km2). Ul ima ely, his will limi
he numbe o muskoxen possible on he peninsula. When 15 muskoxen we e
ansloca ed o he peninsula in 1987, hal o he peninsula’s a ea was ca ego ized as
comple ely ba en (Appendix 2), which is now be e unde s ood as e y spa sely
ege a ed (Walke e al. 2005). On he emaining hal , wo hi ds consis ed o poo ly
ege a ed highlands (ca. 121 km2) and one hi d well ege a ed lowlands (ca. 95 km2). In
1987, he ege a ion had no been g azed by la ge he bi o es o abou a cen u y, so
pas u e condi ion was likely op imal. By 1998, o age condi ions emained good, as
e idenced by a bull muskox, age 11.5-yea s, ha had almos no mandibula oo h wea .
No su p isingly, he muskox popula ion g ew and so did hei densi y. By he 2008-2017
pe iod, annual coun s obse ed anywhe e om ca. 800 o 1200 animals. The ini ial lush
lowland ege a ion and ela i ely mild low a c ic clima e likely enabled he obse ed
apid popula ion g ow h. E up i e g ow h is ypical o in oduced ungula e popula ions
(McNab 1985). Again, o he 2008-2017 pe iod, gi en he coun s and o al I i uu a ea,
muskox densi ies we e ca. 2-3/km2. Elsewhe e in he A c ic, muskox densi ies ypically
a e age ca. 1 muskoxen pe km2 (Cuyle 2003), which is ma kedly lowe han he
densi ies o he I i uu peninsula.
Ca ying-capaci y
Wha is he esou ce-based capaci y o he I i uu peninsula o muskoxen? Wha is he
ca ying-capaci y K, i.e. densi y o he muskox popula ion whe e numbe o bi hs equals
he numbe o dea hs? The e is no simple answe , as i is almos impossible o de ine K,
which is a mo ing a ge owing o se e al ac o s, no ably wea he a ec ing o age
p oduc ion and a ailabili y (Macnab 1985). E up i e popula ion g ow h in ungula es
ypically o e shoo s ca ying-capaci y be o e an ob ious c ash in abundance occu s
(McCullough 1979, 1984). An o e shoo , i.e. oo many animals, can damage he
ege a ion esou ces, which b ings he ca ying-capaci y o a new, pe manen ly lowe ,
alue (McCullough 1979, 1984).
Since na u al mo ali y is common in win e , ca ying-capaci y o a c ic ungula es is
ypically egula ed by win e pas u e, speci ically accessibili y o ha pas u e bu also
pas u e quan i y and quali y. I i uu win e ange is a ele a ions abo e 200 m owing o
deep snow in he lowlands (P.N. Hansen pe s. comm.) and is 3½ imes mo e a ea han
summe ange. Al hough we lack knowledge abou ege a ion p oduc i i y in he
spa sely ege a ed highlands, o he muskox popula ions in he A c ic likely expe ience
simila condi ions. To da e, ege a ion p oduc i i y on di e en muskox pas u es

49
a ound he A c ic emains a knowledge gap. Sol ing his gap would pe mi compa isons
ac oss pas u es and popula ions.
Fo he I i uu si ua ion, by 2017 he muskox popula ion did no appea o ha e
d ama ically o e sho hei ca ying-capaci y, because he e was no an ab up excessi e
c ash in abundance, i.e. compa ed o o he in oduced ungula e popula ions
(McCullough 1979, 1984). Ins ead, he e was s eady muskox popula ion g ow h om
hei ansloca ion o I i uu in 1987 un il 2009 (Table 3, Figu es 19, 21). The excep ion
was a sligh 2004 d op, which may e lec coun condi ions ha yea a he han declining
muskox numbe s. The s eady g ow h in muskox numbe s, densi y and cal numbe
s opped in 2009, when he coun obse ed 894 animals (Fig. 19). The 2010 decline and
subsequen luc ua ing popula ion sizes/densi ies (Fig. 21) combined wi h declining cal
pe cen ages (Fig. 20) sugges ha in 2009 muskox abundance had eached a po en ial
ca ying-capaci y. The densi y was hen ca. 2/km2.
Today, ca ying-capaci y may be lowe . Al eady in la e 2009, wo n down ege a ion was
obse ed a he mou h o Qoo noq jo d and a ound Nuuk Sø (P.N. Hansen pe s.
comm.). Since hen, muskox he bi o y appea s o ha e impac ed/changed he
ege a ion co e (Figs. 31, 32, and Appendix 7). Damaged o age esou ces esul in a
long-las ing educ ion o ca ying-capaci y (McCullough 1979, 1984). To complica e
ma e s, muskoxen now sha e he peninsula’s o age esou ces wi h a po en ial
compe i o species, e al semi-domes ic eindee . Two la ge he bi o es on he same
pas u e can be expec ed o dec ease he ca ying-capaci y o each species. Thus, we
ecommend a muskox densi y ≤ 1/km2 o he I i uu peninsula because i migh allow
o a balance be ween ege a ion egene a ion and esou ce a ailabili y o muskoxen.
All he abo e no wi hs anding, luc ua ions in ungula e popula ion abundance a e
na u al and hei speed and ampli ude highly a iable. O en, abundance luc ua ions
a e in esponse o ac o s beyond managemen con ol. In gene al, expec ing en i ely
s able ha es yields o e he long e m is un ealis ic o wild popula ions.
To be e unde s and wha is cu en ly happening, a new muskox coun is equi ed as i
is se en yea s since he las de ailed coun . A coun o he eindee is also ecommended
o aid asce aining hei possible impac on he muskox popula ion. Fu he , because i
likely in luences muskox su i al, he win e snow condi ions (e.g. amoun , ice,
snowmel /sp ing onse ) should be documen ed. Since snow dis ibu ion may impac he
iming o muskox mo emen e.g. om highland pla eaus in o lowlands, u u e coun s
should documen o a leas summa ize snow condi ions, and no e excep ional/unusual
yea s.
50
Ca as ophic s ochas ic e en s
Cuyle (2019) d ew a en ion o he g owing possibili y ha cu en clima e wa ming in
G eenland could p oduce ca as ophic s ochas ic wea he e en s, which wi hin a single
season ha e a s ong nega i e in luence on animal abundance. Recen ly, s ochas ic
e en s in ol ing pa hogen ou b eak/epidemics among Canadian muskoxen we e
associa ed wi h subsequen ab up popula ion decline (Tomaselli e al. 2023). Fo he
I i uu egion, concei able s ochas ic e en isks would include no jus ex eme
wea he bu also pa hogen ou b eak/epidemics. Bo h a e densi y dependen , so hei
e ec is ampli ied a high animal densi y (Hansen e al. 2019).
Wea he e en s
The cu en wa ming o he A c ic may ha e bo h posi i e and nega i e oles ega ding
u u e ege a ion quali y, quan i y, and a ailabili y. On he posi i e side, a longe and
wa me g owing season could c ea e mo e plan biomass he eby inc easing o e all
ca ying-capaci y, no jus o muskox bu o all he bi o es. In a wa me clima e, a c ic
und a plan s may g ow ea lie and as e , and inc ease in abundance (Elmendo e al.
2012a, 2012b). Al eady inc eased sh ub abundance has been obse ed (Mye s-Smi h e
al. 2011, 2015) as well as g eening o he A c ic eco ded om sa elli e-de i ed ege a ion
indices (Zhu e al. 2016) in mos o he A c ic. Since he bi o es educe ege a ion
p oduc i i y, speci ically o sh ubs (Go ied e al. 2012), a highe densi y o he bi o es
may somewha coun e ac hese esponses o a changing clima e (Pos & Pede sen 2008,
Pos 2013).
On he nega i e side o a wa ming A c ic, d ough may educe and damage plan
biomass, wi h se e i y depending on equency, du a ion, in ensi y, and a ea a ec ed.
Simila ly nega i e, i wa me we e win e s occu hen o age a ailabili y could be
pa ially o comple ely obs uc ed by e en s deposi ing excessi e snow dep hs and/o
hick laye (s) o ice, which esul s om haw/ eeze ain-on-snow (ROS). E en se e i y
will be de e mined as abo e o d ough . E en s ha limi ege a ion/ o age quan i y
and a ailabili y, may cause s a a ion, and ul ima ely educe su i al and ep oduc ion.
Pa hogen e en s
A c ic wa ming c ea es u he conce ns beyond he o age supply o muskoxen. These
include ho e summe s ampli ying insec ha assmen esul ing in cows unable o a ain
he a ese es equi ed o o ula ion and ep oduc ion (Adamczewski e al. 1998).
Fu he , ho e summe s may acili a e he a i al o new pa hogen ec o s (e.g. insec s,
bi ds) and suppo imme gence o diseases/pa asi es new o he a c ic. Simila ly, longe
wa me summe s may elease long do man pa hogens.
51
Al hough ca casses a e oo o en ex emely di icul o de ec , unusual mo ali ies ha e
been obse ed in muskox popula ions in he Canadian A ic (Tomaselli e al 2023). Fo
example, an ou b eak o E isypelo h ix husiopa hiae (a bac e ium no no mally ac i e in
he A c ic) has been ac i e on Vic o ia and Banks Island since 2010 (Ku z e al 2015), and
mo e ecen ly on se e al High-A c ic Islands. As ei he he p ima y o seconda y
pa hogen, i may ha e played a s ong ole in he ecen p ecipi ous decline o Sou h
Vic o ia (85%) popula ion (Tomaselli e al 2023). Fu he , he e ha e been inc easing
disease ends o endemic and ( e)eme ging diseases in declining muskox popula ions.
Among hese, B ucella suis bio a 4, O i us can ha e popula ion le el impac s
(Tomaselli e al 2013, 2014, 2018).
I is common knowledge ha high animal densi y exace ba es he sp ead o pa hogens.
Meanwhile, he I i uu peninsula now has a his o y o high muskox densi y. Allowing
high densi y o pe sis in a wa ming A c ic may be coun e p oduc i e o a heal hy
popula ion in he u u e.
A se e e s ochas ic e en , whe he by wea he o pa hogen ou b eak, could decima e
muskox abundance on he I i uu peninsula. I ha occu s, hen ha es can con ibu e
o u he popula ion decline (Cuyle 2020 in supplemen a y ma e ials). In he u u e,
mi iga ing managemen measu es o alle ia e he nega i e impac o ex eme e en s may
be equi ed. The ex en o a se e e e en will de e mine whe he one o mo e
egions/popula ions a e a ec ed and consequen ly also equi e mi iga ing managemen .
Cal p oduc ion
Muskox cal es a e usually bo n mid-Ap il h ough June, wi h pa u i ion (bi h) da es
as ea ly as 05 Ap il and as la e as 19 June (Len 1988). This ca. 2½-mon h pe iod con as s
sha ply o ca ibou, which ac oss he A c ic ha e highly synch onous b eeding wi hin
popula ions (Len 1966, Be ge ud 1975, Skogland 1989, Adams & Dale 1998). As wi h
o he uminan s, bo h he onse o pube y and p obabili y o success ul b eeding
inc eases wi h emale body mass and he e o e a ies ac oss he A c ic (Rowell e al.
1997; Whi e e al. 1997). Fi s cal p oduc ion a age 3-yea s is common in mos habi a s
(Schmid e al. 2015; Tessa o e al. 1984; La ou 1987; Reynolds 2001). Howe e , unde
a o able condi ions, cows can p oduce cal es a age 2-yea s, e.g. in cap i i y (Rowell
1991), bu also in he wild, which can esul in apidly expanding popula ions (Alendal
1971; Jing o s and Klein 1982; Tessa o e al. 1984; Olesen 1993; Reynolds 1998). The la e
has been obse ed in Wes G eenland. Du ing he 1980s expansion o he ecen ly
ansloca ed Manii soq muskox popula ion, ju enile yea ling cows a ained he body
weigh necessa y o o ula e in hei second au umn and a age 2-yea s, p oduce a cal ,
and u he o b eed e e y yea he ea e (Olesen 1993). By con as , in no h-eas
52
G eenland, muskox cows b ed in al e na e yea s (Thing e al. 1987). In he A c ic, poo
cow body condi ion can esul in non-annual b eeding (Whi e e al. 1997), and in many
muskox popula ions cows cal e a in e als o 2-3 yea s, p obably because hey did no
egain enough body ese es du ing a single summe season a e p egnancy and milk
p oduc ion (Reynolds 2001). O cou se, popula ion densi y, lac a ional s a us and o age
(quan i y, quali y, and a ailabili y) also a ec he likelihood o p egnancy in la ge
he bi o es (Pachkowski e al. 2013).
Muskox cows ypically p oduce a single cal and winning has a ely been documen ed
(Alendal 1971; Wilkinson 1971; Rowell e al. 1997). On he I i uu peninsula, howe e ,
cows gi ing bi h o wins was possible. Muskox cows, equi e 22% body a o ha e a
50% p obabili y o p egnancy (Adamczewski e al. 1998). Fo pe spec i e, ca ibou cows
need only ca. 7% body a o p egnancy (C ê e e al. 1993; Pachkowski e al. 2013). This
sugges s winning in muskoxen may equi e > 22% body a , and we suspec ha o a
cow o be able o a ain ha amoun o a would equi e op imal ange condi ions and
likely also low animal densi ies. In he pas , he I i uu peninsula appea s o ha e
p o ided hose condi ions. This is likely no longe be ue. A e 2009, he cal p oduc ion
a e slowed down (Figs. 19, 20) and he yea 2016 coincided wi h wha appea s o be he
beginning o a 2-yea decline in popula ion size, as pe he 2015-2017 coun s (Fig. 21).
Good cow body condi ion is equi ed o imp o e hei cal p oduc ion.
Changing plan communi ies
Th oughou he A c ic, la ge he bi o es a e known o in luence plan communi y
s uc u e (Be nes e al. 2015, Suominen & Olo sson 2000), and ecosys em p ocesses and
unc ions (Cahoon e al. 2012, Vowles e al. 2018). Speci ically, inc eased he bi o e
densi ies in a eas ha had his o ically low he bi o e densi ies can apidly change he
ege a ion because g azing in ole an plan s a e quickly e adica ed, and g azing ole an
species can colonize he gaps (Olo sson e al. 2013). Fu he , he e is solid e idence ha
la ge he bi o es educe he abundance o sh ubs, and ha highe densi ies and di e si y
o he bi o es speed up ha p ocess (Olo sson & Pos 2018).
Since he ansloca ion o muskoxen o I i uu in 1987, he e has been no moni o ing o
he habi a . Muskoxen, being a la ge hea y bodied b owse /g aze , can be expec ed o
al e ecosys ems hey en e , speci ically when hese a e ini e like he I i uu peninsula.
We know ha a c ic ecosys ems espond quickly o changes in he abundance o
muskoxen, owing o modi ied ege a ion dynamics and nu ien cycling, e.g. ampling
by la ge numbe s o muskoxen can educe plan biomass (Mosbache e al. 2018).
53
While comple ing he 2015-2017 coun s, muskox g azing impac on o age plan s was
sugges ed by anecdo al obse a ions (Figs. 31, 32, Appendix 7). We obse ed ha
al hough alley lowlands s ill possessed ex ensi e a eas o willow sh ub landscape,
en i e swa hs we e s ipped o ba k and o en also ampled. Typically, lea de elopmen
was lacking e en by ea ly July, al hough a cold sp ing may ha e in luenced he la e . In
ea ly June 2015, he Ikka jo d g asses/sedges on he no h sho eline we e g azed o he
g ound. Simul aneously and nea by on he same no h sho eline, se en ecen ly
deceased adul muskoxen we e obse ed. Al hough cause o dea h was no examined,
pe haps in June 2015 muskox densi y in he Ikka a ea was highe han could be
suppo ed by he habi a .
The hea y ba k s ipping and ampling o willow sh ub landscapes in mos alley
lowlands sugges s he muskoxen a e cu en ly in he p ocess o al e ing he plan
communi y landscape in he I i uu egion. While hea ily g azed g asses and sedges
may egene a e annually, he damaged ma u e (ancien ) willow sh ub will likely equi e
yea s o decades o eco e , i e e unde con inued he bi o y and ampling. Acco ding
o pas u e scien is s in Alaska, he abo e is no conside ed o e g azing since changing
plan communi ies is expec ed and no mal when la ge he bi o es en e an ecosys em,
and his al e a ion is no conside ed o e g azing un il soil e osion occu s (J. Rowell pe s.
comm.). In June 2017, muskox g azing o gouging/ ubbing had exposed soil on he
ege a ed slopes o Blind a men, indica ing o e g azing had begun. The I i uu egion
wa an s examina ion wi h well-designed s udies o in es iga e and documen
ecosys em/plan communi y change unde muskox he bi o y.
Ele a ion use
O e all, mos muskox obse a ions du ing he coun s o 2015, 2016 and 2017 we e a
ele a ions unde 100 m. Two o he coun s occu ed be o e mid-June and we e be o e he
insec season. The 2016 coun , howe e , occu ed a he end o June and in o ea ly July.
In e es ingly, in 2016 g oups we e a ele a ions abo e 200 m, including se e al g oups
a ele a ions om 300 o 600 m. I is possible ha he la e iming o he 2016 coun
esul ed in highe ele a ion use by he muskoxen o educe insec ha assmen .
Ha es
Con ol o ha es managemen has been a pa chwo k o local and/o cen al au ho i ies
(Appendix 3). Un il he 2009 amalgama ion o municipali ies, he small I i uu
municipali y egula ed and alloca ed he muskox ha es quo as independen ly o , bu
in discussion wi h he G eenland cen al adminis a ion, and he quo as we e ypically
conse a i e (Figs. 5). Hun ing seasons a ied widely ac oss yea s, and could include
sepa a e summe , au umn, win e and sp ing seasons o spo and comme cial hun ing

54
ha di e ed om he iming o ophy seasons (Appendix 3). Rega dless, annual
ha es s ell sho o ha needed o p e en popula ion g ow h.
Figu e 35. The muskox coun s, ha es s and pe cen age o he coun aken by ha es in he 1998-2016 pe iod.
By 2010, I i uu , along wi h se e al o he municipali ies, was amalgama ed in o a huge
new municipali y, Kommuneqa ik Se me sooq, which ook o e ha es egula ion and
alloca ion in collabo a ion wi h he G eenland cen al adminis a ion. Rega dless, and
despi e sha ply inc eased ha es quo as pos -2009 (Fig. 5), annual ha es s s ill ell sho
o he numbe s necessa y o p e en popula ion g ow h (Fig. 35), which was exace ba ed
by he con inuing oo ew cows ha es ed (Figs. 6, 7).
The p e ious sec ions sugges he e has been, and pe haps s ill a e, a high densi y o
muskoxen inhabi ing he I i uu peninsula. Igno ing possible nega i e s ochas ic
e en s, his alone bodes ill o he u u e size o heal h o his muskox popula ion.
Conside ing he nea by A suk communi y, a concei able goal would be o educe he
popula ion size o acili a e mea secu i y and income (e.g. om comme cial sale o mea ,
and he ophy bull and qi iu indus ies). A educ ion migh be achie ed h ough well
hough ou managemen and supe ision o he ha es . Since pas ha es s ha e been
p edominan ly ju eniles and bulls (Figs. 6, 7; Tables 9, 10 in Appendix 3), changing jus
he annual quo a will likely be insu icien ac ion aken. Speci ically, i a popula ion c ash
has occu ed since 2017, as sugges ed by he na u al mo ali y obse ed in 2018 and he
low 2020 coun (Appendix 9).
0
20
40
60
80
100
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
Pe cen age
Numbe o muskoxen
Yea
Coun Ha es Ha es %
55
Coun s – how many muskoxen we e missed?
Fo he I i uu peninsula, how well do he minimum coun s e lec he ue numbe o
muskoxen? Minimum coun s eco d only hose animals obse ed and acknowledges ha
no all animals a e de ec ed. Whe he c uising along he sho eline o hiking in he e ain,
muskoxen could be hidden om iew by e ain ( a ines, hills, e c.) and ege a ion. On
he I i uu peninsula willow sh ub can g ow > 2 m in heigh and whe e willow densi y
is igh , hese can comple ely hide e en la ge adul bull muskoxen and speci ically small-
bodied sp ing cal es. Fu he , supine cal es in pocke ed e ain, among ussocks, o
behind o he muskoxen a e o en comple ely hidden om iew, un il hey s and up and
mo e abou . Snow can cu ail coun e o . Owing o di icul ies walking h ough snow,
sp ing and ea ly summe coun s seldom include ele a ions abo e 200 m. Any muskoxen
emaining a high ele a ions a e no coun ed. The Sep embe 2005 coun was he i s
ime o e 500 muskoxen we e coun ed. This was a ibu ed o all animals being a low
ele a ions whe e hey we e easy o de ec . In 2007, he Sep embe coun was 637
muskoxen. None o he known emaining ou ea - agged cows we e obse ed and a
leas 30 o 50 mo e animals we e suspec ed in a eas no co e ed by ha Sep embe coun .
La e ha same au umn, wo ou o he ou ea - agged cows we e obse ed. Coun s
las ing se e al days co e mo e a ea and de ec mo e muskoxen han one-day coun s.
All he abo e begs he ques ion; How many muskoxen do coun s miss? Below a e wo
examples o coun s, a mul i-day, and a 1-day, o which ha es da a was a ailable o
he pe iod un il he nex coun . This pe mi ed calcula ion o an app oxima e alue o
missed muskoxen.
• In 2009, be ween he Sep embe and Decembe mul i-day coun s, hun e s
ha es ed 183 muskoxen. The Sep embe coun was 894, while he Decembe
coun was 851. Clea ly, he Sep embe coun could ha e obse ed a leas 1034
muskoxen. Howe e , 13.5% o he Sep embe minimum numbe o muskoxen
p esen on he I i uu peninsula wen unde ec ed.
• In 2012, a 1-day ea ly Ap il coun obse ed 581 muskoxen. Unable o ge in o he
high ele a ions owing o snow condi ions, an addi ional 100 animals we e
suspec ed. No cal es we e seen a ha ime. Subsequen ly, om he 15 h o Ap il
un il he beginning o Oc obe , hun e ha es sho 132 muskoxen. (No e. In 2012,
he e we e u he animals sho be o e and a e hose da es). The 05 Oc obe
coun obse ed 897 animals, which included 221 cal es. A e emo ing cal es
bu adding ha es , simple a i hme ic e eals ha he 1-day Ap il coun missed
227 animals (age > 1-yea ), which is 28%. Al e na ely, i Ap il’s suspec ed 100
missing animals a e added o he o al coun , hen only 127 animals we e missed
(age > 1-yea ), which is 16%.
56
Unde ec ed muskoxen we e ca. 13% o he mul i-day coun bu ca. 16% - 28% o he
apid 1-day coun . As expec ed, mul i-day coun s, which co e a g ea e a ea, be e
e lec he ue muskox numbe .
He bi o e ange expansion
The muskoxen ha e expanded hei ange beyond he bo de s o he I i uu peninsula.
Range expansion was obse ed bo h no h and sou h o he I i uu egion. The p esence
o mixed sex and age, including cal es, sugges s i likely ha muskoxen ha e al eady o
will es ablish iable popula ions beyond he I i uu peninsula.
Muskoxen a e no longe he only la ge he bi o e on he I i uu peninsula. Since he
ea ly 2000’s, semi-domes ic eindee ha e wande ed no hwa d om he Iso oq
Reindee He ding Dis ic , expanding in o he I i uu egion, becoming e al. By 2015,
pe haps ea lie , hese had es ablished a esiden popula ion. Thus, o se e al yea s now,
I i uu has been designa ed he 11 h ca ibou/ eindee ha es managemen egion in
G eenland, which includes he e al eindee in he go e nmen egula ed annual
ca ibou ha es . In he nea by A suk communi y, some welcomed he ad en o e al
eindee and exploi ed his addi ional ophy hun ing oppo uni y, while o he s
ega ded he e al animals as in ude s.
Demog aphics 2015-2017
De ailed demog aphics we e a ailable o h ee yea s, 2015, 2016 and 2017 (Tables 4, 5).
Animals o unknown sex and age (i.e. age > 1-yea ) we e a la ge p opo ion o any coun
(Figs. 22, 25), which con ounds in e p e a ion o he esul s. Possible changes om 2015
o 2017 a e ende ed inconclusi e owing o he numbe o unknowns. Reducing he
numbe o unknowns will equi e pe haps new me hods, o a he leas , alloca ing mo e
ime o asce ain sex and age while using high-powe ed spo ing scopes. Binocula s (10x
magni ica ion) p o ed insu icien o he ask. Rega dless, o he 2015-2017 pe iod
ma u e cows (age ≥ 3-yea s) and hei cal es made up app oxima ely hal o all
obse a ions on any coun . Fu he , he p opo ion o cal es e sus all o he animals
obse ed emains eliable and can be compa ed wi h cal p opo ions on all p e-2015
coun s.
Recommenda ions o u u e muskox demog aphics & minimum coun s
G ound coun s in I i uu a e usually accomplished by hiking in o he alleys and sailing
along he coas line. Like he es o G eenland, I i uu e ain is ugged. Thus, a g ound
coun can only obse e a po ion o he muskoxen p esen in he a eas iewed and he
amoun o he I i uu a ea co e ed is limi ed o he coas s and he ew alleys whe e
57
hike s walk. Coun e o is basically lacking in he highlands abo e 200 m ele a ion,
which cons i u e ca. 78% o he I i uu peninsula. Hence he name ‘minimum’ coun .
D ones migh acili a e accu acy o coun s & knowledge o he d s uc u e
The ela i ely small alleys o he I i uu peninsula migh lend hemsel es o he
ange capaci y o some mode n unmanned ae ial ehicles, i.e. UVAs/d ones, albei
expensi e ones. D ones migh assis and augmen he collec ion o demog aphics da a
om g oups al eady de ec ed and coun ed, bu only i he ollowing a e ue. The e is
an al i ude (de e mined by ield expe ience) o d one p esence o e head ha does no
make muskoxen agg ega e igh ly hiding cal es benea h he la ge animals. The sex
and age da a a e collec ed om di ec obse a ion on an ope a o sc een in eal- ime,
speci ically because pos -p ocessing o images is ime-consuming and double coun ing
indi iduals may occu .
Coun accu acy
Whe he sailing he coas line o hiking on land, e ain ea u es and dense ege a ion
can hide muskoxen om obse e s. An assis ing d one, being o e head, could de ec
muskoxen ha we e o he wise hidden om iew. This would imp o e accu acy o
minimum coun s.
Demog aphics knowledge
Accu a e muskox he d s uc u e da a is di icul o ob ain. One o he p oblems is
dis ance. Muskox g oups a e o en oo a away om he obse e . Al hough use o 60x
elescope can pe mi coun ing he numbe o animals, dis ance can make de e mina ion
o sex and age di icul o impossible. D ones migh make dis ance o an obse ed
g oup i ele an . Posi ioning a d one abo e a g oup o muskoxen may make i possible
o dis inguish emale om male ho ns and pe haps e en ho n mo phology o pe mi
ageing. Reducing he numbe o animals lacking sex and age da a would inc ease he
accu acy o bull o cow a io and he cal ec ui men alue (i.e. cal es pe 100 cows).
Rega ding he la e , ano he p oblem is unde ec ed cal es. Owing o hei small size,
cal es es ing among ussocks and ege a ion can be comple ely obscu ed om iew.
Cal pe cen age and ec ui men alues become less accu a e when cal es ha a e
p esen a e hidden and hus unde ec ed. Obse e s hiking h ough he e ain may
mo e on be o e hose cal es become ac i e and isible. Sending a d one o econnoi e
al eady obse ed bu oo a dis an muskox g oups would likely imp o e abili y o
eliably asce ain sex and age composi ion and speci ically he numbe o cal es
p esen . S eng hening demog aphic da a would assis p edic ions o popula ion end.
64
Figu e 37. Place names (p ima ily G eenlandic) o he I i uu egion, which is inhabi ed by he I i uu muskox popula ion.

65
Appendix 2: Maps o I i uu ege a ion & ele a ion
The ege a ion classi ica ions a e om 1986 and he
wo k o Icelandic Ins i u e o Ag icul u al Resea ch
and G eenland Expe imen al S a ion Upe na ia suk.
The Danish Geode ic Mapping Ins i u e p o ided he
unde lying map o G eenland 1:250 000. The map was
published in 1987 by he Co-ope a i e Sheep Fa ming
Associa ions in G eenland wi h he pe mission
(A.395/86) om he Danish Geode ic Mapping
Ins i u e. Copy igh belongs o T yk O se myndi s .
See igu e 39 o English ansla ion o he abo e
legend o classi ica ion o ege a ion.
Figu e 38. 1987 ege a ion map o he I i uu egion.
Copy igh : T yk O se myndi s .
66
Sh ub hea h
Sh ub hea h – Moss hea h – Lichen hea h
Sh ub hea h – G asses – Succulen s – Sedge hea h
Sc ub Fo es
Sc ub Fo es – Sh ub hea h
Lichen hea h – Moss hea h
Thinly Vege a ed Moun ains
No ege a ion
Figu e 39. English legend explana ion o he 1987 ege a ion map o he I i uu egion Figu e 38. Copy igh : T yk O se myndi s . The ca ego y “No ege a ion”
e e s o he ba ens, which a e cu en ly be e unde s ood o ha e e y spa se ege a ion co e (Walke e al. 2005), and succulen s a e unde s ood o be ‘ o bs’.
67
Figu e 40. The 1987 map o ege a ed landco e in he I i uu egion and wo immedia ely adjacen a eas, cons uc ed by Icelandic Ins i u e o Ag icul u al
Resea ch and G eenland Expe imen al S a ion Upe na ia suk. A eas o ege a ed landco e ha comp ise possible ange pas u e o muskoxen a e, No h o
Ilo pu /A suk Fjo d (pink), I i uu egion (g een) and sou h o No d e Qoo noq B æ (pu ple). See Table 8 o he a ea co e ed by speci ic ege a ion class wi hin
each o he h ee ege a ed a eas abo e.
68
Table 8. A ea o each o he 1987 ege a ion classes occu ing wi hin he h ee a eas o ege a ed landco e illus a ed in igu e 40. Succulen s a e unde s ood o be
‘ o bs’.
Colou on Figu e 40
Ligh G een
Dusky Pink
Pu plish Blue
Vege a ion Classi ica ion
I i uu egion
(km2)
No h o
Ilo pu /A suk Fjo d
(km2)
Sou h o Nd .
Qoo noq B æ
(km2)
Sum A ea
(km2)
Sh ub hea h
41.8 (19.3 %)
18.0 (22.4 %)
12.0 (16.9 %)
71.8 (19.5 %)
Sh ub hea h – Moss hea h – Lichen hea h
50.6 (23.4 %)
6.1 (7.6 %)
27.0 (38.1 %)
83.7 (22.7 %)
Sh ub hea h – G asses – Succulen s – Sedge hea h
12.2 (5.6 %)
6.6 (8.2 %)
0.7 (1.0 %)
19.5 (5.3 %)
Sc ub o es
3.5 (1.6 %)
4.1 (5.1 %)
NA
7.6 (2.1 %)
Sc ub o es – Sh ub hea h
12.8 (5.9 %)
0.9 (1.1 %)
5.3 (7.5 %)
19.0 (5.2 %)
Lichen hea h – Moss hea h
8.4 (3.9 %)
3.0 (3.7 %)
0.7 (1.0 %)
12.1 (3.3 %)
Thinly ege a ed moun ains
87.4 (40.3 %)
41.8 (51.9 %)
25.2 (35.5 %)
154.4 (41.9 %)
Sum ege a ed a ea (km2)
216.7 (100 %)
80.5 (100 %)
70.9 (100 %)
368.1 (100 %)
Ba en ( e y spa se ege a ion)
215.0
NA
NA
NA
Sum a ea (km2)
ca. 432
NA
NA
NA
69
Ele a ion Legend
0-200 m, 95 km2
200-700 m, 270 km2
> 700 m, 66 km2
Lakes co e 19 km2
Figu e 41. Map o he I i uu egion,
illus a ing amoun and dis ibu ion
o h ee ele a ion ca ego ies.
Al hough island Quia o ik ea u es
on his map, i s a eas a e no
included in he a eas p o ided.

70
Figu e 42. Map illus a ing he amoun and dis ibu ion o wo ele a ion ca ego ies: Ele a ions o 0-200 m co e 95.3 km2, and ele a ions abo e 200 m
co e 336.4 km2.
71
Appendix 3
Ha es s & ha es egula ion o he muskox popula ion on he I i uu peninsula
Table 9. Ha es I i uu muskox popula ion: mon hs wi h hun ing seasons and quo a alloca ion o 1987 – 2016 pe iod. Blank cells indica e alues unknown.
Yea
Comme cial / Spo
Season1
T ophy Bull
Season1
QUOTA
Comme cial / Spo
T ophy
To al
1987-1993
none
none
0
0
0
1994
Jul/Sep/Dec
Jul/Sep/Dec
0
0
5
1995
Aug/No /Dec
Aug/No /Dec
18
5
23
1996
Aug/No /Dec
Aug/No /Dec
15
5
20
1997
Ma /Jun/Jul/No
Ma /Jun/Jul/No
25
5
30
1998
Jun/Jul
Jun/Jul
15
5
20
1999
Ma /Jun/Jul/No
Jul
30
2000
Ma /Jun/No
Ma /Jun
30
5
35
2001
Jul/Aug/No
Jul/Aug/No
30
10
40
2002
Ma /Jul/Aug/No
Jul/Aug
45
2003
Ma /Jul/Aug/No
Jul/Aug/No
70
15
85
2004
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug
87
18
105
2005
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Ma /Jul
50
2006
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug
140
20
160
2007
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul
130
25
155
2008
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug
160
2009
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug
170
30
200
2010
Ma /Jul/Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug/Sep/Oc
260
2011
Ma /Aug/No /Dec
Jul/Aug/Sep/Oc
300
2012
Feb/Ma /Aug/Sep/Oc /No
Jul/Aug/Sep
300**
2013
Feb/Ma /Aug/Sep/Oc /No
Jul/Aug/Sep
225
78
303
2014
Ma /Aug/Sep/Oc /No
Jul/Aug/Sep/Oc
225
78
303
2015
Ma /Aug/Sep/Oc /No
Feb/Jul/Aug/Sep
2016
Aug/Sep/Oc /No /Dec
Aug/Sep/Oc
* 1991 T ial hun by I i uu municipali y ook one adul bull. Fu he , 1992 ial hun by I i uu municipali y ook wo adul bulls, and a hi d was sho illegally a A suk.
**Assumed, gi en alues in p e ious and subsequen yea s.
1 Ha es may o may no apply o en i e mon h and may ha e been es ic ed o speci ic da es wi hin a gi en mon h.
Sou ce: G eenland go e nmen Depa men o Fishe ies & Hun ing o illed-in epo o ms.
72
Table 10. I i uu muskox popula ion: ha es numbe s, ha es demog aphics (as pe special epo o ms), and o he sou ces o mo ali y.
Yea
HARVEST
OBSERVED MORTALITY
TOTAL
known
dea hs
Unknown sex
Cow
Bull
TOTAL
Sho
Cal
Ju enile
Cal
Ju enile
Adul
Cal
Ju enile
Adul
Illegal
Sho
C ippling
Sho
Na u al
AGE (yea s)
< 1
> 1 & < 3
< 1
> 1 & < 3
> 3
< 1
> 1 & < 5
≥ 5
1991
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1*
1992
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
1
0
0
3**
1993
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1994
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
3
1
0
0
4
1995
0
0
0
4
0
0
8
9
21
0
0
1
22
1996
0
0
0
2
0
0
9
6
17
0
0
1
18
1997
0
0
0
2
0
0
19
9
30
0
0
0
30
1998
0
0
0
3
0
0
6
6
15
0
0
1
16
1999
0
0
0
9
0
0
16
2
27
0
0
1
28
2000
0
0
0
8
0
0
8
5
23
0
0
0
23
2001
0
0
0
4
1
0
12
17
34
0
0
0
34
2002
0
0
0
8
5
0
23
7
45
0
0
1
46
2003
0
0
0
18
0
0
33
12
79
0
0
1
80
2004
0
0
1
37
1
0
47
16
102
0
0
0
102
2005
0
0
0
26
4
0
40
14
84
0
0
0
84
2006
0
0
0
45
3
0
65
13
126
0
0
0
126
2007
0
0
0
22
2
0
35
21
80
0
1
0
81
2008
0
5
0
28
0
0
40
26
99
0
0
0
99
2009
0
0
17
23
13
13
53
29
148
0
0
4
152
2010
0
0
21
23
21
17
55
57
194
2
9
0
205
2011
0
0
3
32
16
5
28
70
154
1
0
0
155
2012
0
2
0
6
3
3
14
48
200
1
0
0
201
2013
1
1
17
38
22
22
107
56
264
0
0
0
264
2014
0
0
2
56
7
3
85
62
215
0
0
2
217
2015
0
0
0
44
6
0
80
84
214
1
0
6
221
2016
0
0
0
50
68
0
69
77
264
0
0
0
264
SUM
1
8
61
488
172
63
853
651
2441
7
10
18
2,476
* 1991 T ial hun by I i uu municipali y ook one adul bull.
** 1992 T ial hun by I i uu municipali y ook wo adul bulls, and a hi d was sho illegally a A suk.
Sou ces: Special epo o ms (sæ meldingsskemae ) o each animal sho , no es and obse a ions by Pe Nukaa aq Hansen, and obse a ions du ing muskox coun s.
73
In 2003, he G eenland Ins i u e o Na u al Resou ces (GINR) ad ised ha he muskox
densi y was high ela i e o he a ea wi h ege a ion co e and migh impac /al e
exis ing ege a ion landscapes. To conse e exis ing o age esou ces, GINR
ecommended he I i uu popula ion be s abilized and kep a ≤ 300 muskoxen
(Cuyle 2003).
In 2008, I i uu municipali y pe i ioned he Home-Rule go e nmen o G eenland o
local owne ship o he I i uu muskox popula ion (P.N. Hansen pe s. comm.).
Following a mee ing wi h he go e nmen o G eenland’s Depa men o Fishe ies,
hun ing and Ag icul u e (DFFL), I i uu municipali y cla i ied hey wan ed
managemen con ol o he I i uu muskoxen, whose ansloca ion hey had inanced
in 1987. DFFL suppo ed he idea o a locally managed muskox popula ion in I i uu
and began in es iga ing possibili ies oge he wi h he I i uu municipali y and
se e al o he go e nmen en i ies.
Un il 2009, he I i uu municipali y egula ed annual muskox ha es quo as
independen ly o , bu in discussion wi h, he Home-Rule go e nmen o G eenland’s
cen al adminis a ion. In 2009, his was hen named Depa men o Fishe ies,
Hun ing and Ag icul u e (DFFL) and he Depa men o En i onmen and Na u e
(DMU). La e names al e ed somewha , and hei ac onyms became APN and DIM,
espec i ely. Fu he , he municipali y also alloca ed he ha es quo a among spo ,
comme cial and ophy hun ing, and all hun ing was s ill o e seen by he I i uu
hun ing o ice . The Decembe 2009 minimum coun obse ed ca. 900 muskox (P.N.
Hansen pe s. comm.). Gi en o al I i uu land a ea is 432 sq km, muskox densi y was
ca. 2 pe km2. The GINR ad ice o he 2010-2011 pe iod in I i uu (Cuyle e al 2010)
emained unchanged ela i e o ha gi en in 2003 (Cuyle 2003).
In 2009, Sel -Rule was es ablished o G eenland. Tha same yea , G eenland me ged
i s exis ing 18 municipali ies in o jus i e. I i uu was amalgama ed in o he la ge
Se me sooq Municipali y, wi h con ol o ha es egula ion and alloca ion
ans e ed o Se me sooq and he Sel -Rule go e nmen o G eenland. Bo h a e in
G eenland’s capi al ci y, Nuuk. A e ha es , he Decembe 2009 muskox coun o ca.
900 was iple ha GINR had ecommended in 2003 and again in 2010. Fu he , ange
de e io a ion (no speci ied) was no ed in he Nuuk/Nuuk Sø a ea o he I i uu
peninsula, which aised conce n abou po en ial p oblems o he muskox popula ion
(P.N. Hansen pe s. comm.). Fu he , he numbe o old bulls (age > 9-yea s, well pas
ophy-p ime) was deemed oo high, because unwan ed by ophy hun e s.
80

81
Muskox
Sex & Age Field Guide
, a
s implemen ed by MOXNET - muskox expe ne wo k
unde e es ial Ci cumpola Biodi e si y Moni o ing P og am (CBMP) o
Conse a ion o Flo a & Fauna (CAFF). A ailable om CAFF websi e and C. Cuyle ,
e-mail: [email p o ec ed]. A ailable in six o he languages: Kalaallisu , Dansk,
F ançais, Inuinnaq un, Inuk i u , and Pycckий ( espec i ely; G eenlandic, Danish,
F ench, Inui No hwes Te i o ies Canada, Inui Nuna u Canada, and Russian).
82
Appendix 6:
Raw da a o 2015, 2016 and 2017 I i uu muskox coun s
2015 Coun
Table 12.
Raw da a 2015 muskox coun (04– 12 June) in I i uu egion. Ze os a e da a. Blank cells a e lack o da a.
2015
Da e
G id
Cell
G oup
Size
Ele a ion
(m)
Unknown
sex/age
2015
Cal
Unknown sex
Cow ♀♀
Bull ♂♂
Age (yea s)
1 o 2
≥ 3
3
4
≥ 5
≥ 10
4 June
B8
5
<100
0
2
1
2
0
0
0
0
4 June
B8
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
4 June
B8
4
<100
0
0
2
1
0
0
1
0
4 June
B8
13
<100
5
1
3
2
0
0
2
0
4 June
B8
7
>200
0
1
3
3
0
0
0
0
4 June
B8
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
4 June
B7
10
<100
0
1
4
3
0
2
0
0
4 June
B7
7
<100
0
0
0
0
2
0
5
0
4 June
B7
4
>200
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
4 June
B6
4
<100
0
0
0
0
1
1
2
0
4 June
B6
8
<200
0
3
0
4
0
0
1
0
4 June
B7
3
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
4 June
B6
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
4 June
B6
3
<100
0
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
4 June
B6
3
<100
0
0
0
0
0
2
1
0
4 June
B7
10
<100
7
3
4 June
B6
3
<100
0
0
0
0
0
2
1
0
4 June
B6
7
<100
0
0
0
0
1
1
5
0
4 June
B6
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
4 June
A6
8
<100
0
0
2
1
1
2
2
0
83
4 June
A6
5
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
4
0
4 June
B5
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
4 June
C5
7
<100
0
1
0
1
3
1
1
0
6 June
D4
2
<100
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
6 June
D4
5
<200
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
6 June
D4
12
<100
0
1
1
2
3
1
4
0
6 June
D4
26
>200
0
3
7
10
3
0
3
0
6 June
D4
3
>200
0
1
0
2
0
0
0
0
6 June
D5
4
>200
0
0
0
0
2
0
2
0
6 June
D4
5
>200
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
6 June
D4
5
>200
0
0
2
3
0
0
0
0
6 June
D4
5
>200
0
0
1
2
1
1
0
0
6 June
D4
1
>200
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
6 June
D3
6
>200
6
0
0
6 June
D3
2
>200
2
0
0
6 June
D4
10
>200
0
2
3
3
2
0
0
0
6 June
D4
5
<100
0
1
1
3
0
0
0
0
6 June
D4
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
6 June
D4
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
6 June
D4
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
6 June
D5
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
6 June
D5
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
8 June
D3
6
<100
0
2
2
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
10
<100
0
1
6
3
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
2
<100
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
8 June
E3
5
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
1
0
8 June
E3
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
8 June
E3
10
<100
0
2
4
4
0
0
0
0
84
8 June
E3
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
E3
7
<100
0
1
2
4
0
0
0
0
8 June
E3
7
<100
5
1
0
1
8 June
E3
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
E3
3
<100
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
E3
3
<200
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
E3
2
>300
2
0
0
8 June
E3
4
>300
4
0
0
8 June
D3
7
<100
0
2
2
3
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
5
<100
0
1
2
1
1
0
0
0
8 June
D3
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
D3
5
<100
0
1
2
1
1
0
0
0
8 June
D3
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
C3
3
<100
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
8 June
C3
8
<100
0
3
2
3
0
0
0
0
8 June
C3
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
D2
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
8 June
E3
8
<200
8
0
0
9 June
C9
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
9 June
C9
5
<100
0
0
1
3
0
0
1
0
9 June
D8
4
<100
0
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D9
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D8
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D8
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D8
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D8
5
<100
5
0
0
9 June
D8
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
85
9 June
D8
2
<200
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D9
5
<100
3
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D8
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
C9
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D9
3
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
9 June
D9
6
<100
0
1
3
1
1
0
0
0
9 June
D9
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
F10
6
<100
0
1
2
3
0
0
0
0
9 June
F9
1
<200
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
G9
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
9 June
I6
4
<200
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
<200
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
9 June
I6
1
<200
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
5
<200
1
0
2
1
1
0
0
0
9 June
I6
2
<200
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
2
<200
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
10
<200
0
1
3
6
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
<200
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
<200
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
4
<200
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
37*
<200
4
7
9
15
1
1
0
0
9 June
I6
11
<100
0
1
1
6
1
1
1
0
9 June
I6
16*
<100
6
2
6
2
9 June
I6
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
<100
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
>200
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
2
<100
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
9 June
I6
3
>200
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0

86
9 June
I6
4
>200
0
0
1
0
3
0
0
0
9 June
I6
1
>200
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
I7
7
<100
0
2
2
2
1
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
11
<100
0
2
6
3
0
0
0
0
9 June
I6
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
9 June
I6
7
<100
5
1
0
1
9 June
I7
10
<100
0
1
4
5
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
4
<100
0
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
1
<100
1
0
0
0
9 June
H7
6
<100
4
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
9 June
I7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
I7
8
<100
0
2
1
5
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
9 June
I7
9
<100
0
1
1
1
3
1
2
0
9 June
I7
7
<100
2
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
7
<100
0
2
1
2
1
1
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
I7
2
<100
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
4
<100
0
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
6
<100
2
0
3
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
2
<200
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
87
9 June
H7
4
<100
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
9 June
H7
9
<100
4
2
0
3
9 June
H7
10
<200
3
1
3
3
9 June
H7
6
<100
0
1
2
3
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
12
<100
2
2
2
5
1
9 June
H7
20
<100
0
4
5
11
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
11
<100
0
2
4
5
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
4
<200
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
H7
1
<200
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
H7
11
<200
11
0
0
9 June
H8
5
<200
0
1
1
2
1
0
0
0
10 June
E9
17
<100
0
3
4
4
4
0
2
0
10 June
E9
5
<100
0
1
0
1
0
1
2
0
10 June
E8
3
<200
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E8
7
<200
0
1
2
4
0
0
0
0
10 June
D9
6
<200
0
1
1
1
2
1
0
0
10 June
E9
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E9
7
<100
6
0
0
1
10 June
E9
8
<100
4
2
0
2
10 June
E9
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E10
10
<100
0
2
4
4
0
0
0
0
10 June
E10
3
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
10 June
C9
2
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
10 June
C9
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
10 June
D8
4
<100
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
D8
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D8
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
88
10 June
D7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
10 June
E6
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
5
<100
0
0
2
3
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
10 June
F5
4
<100
0
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
3
<100
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
10 June
F5
4
<100
0
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
7
<100
0
0
2
3
0
0
2
0
10 June
F5
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
4
<100
0
0
2
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
F5
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E5
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E5
2
<100
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E5
14
<100
0
3
6
5
0
0
0
0
10 June
E5
22
<100
0
5
10
6
1
0
0
0
10 June
E5
14
<100
0
2
7
5
0
0
0
0
10 June
E5
27
<100
0
4
11
11
1
0
0
0
10 June
E5
27*
>200
17
4
0
6
10 June
E5
14*
<100
6
2
0
6
10 June
E5
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
10 June
E5
5
<100
0
1
0
4
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
6
<100
0
2
1
3
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
9
<100
0
2
3
3
1
0
0
0
10 June
E6
5
<100
0
1
2
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
2
<100
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
10 June
E6
10
<100
0
1
4
4
0
1
0
0
10 June
E6
14
<100
0
2
6
4
1
1
0
0
89
10 June
E6
7
<100
0
1
1
3
0
2
0
0
10 June
E6
6
<100
0
2
2
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
7
<100
2
1
0
2
2
0
0
0
10 June
E6
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
6
<100
0
1
3
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
3
<100
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
4
<100
1
1
0
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
8
<100
0
2
3
3
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
4
<100
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
4
<100
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
3
<100
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
7
<100
0
1
4
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
E6
7
<100
0
3
0
3
0
0
1
0
10 June
D6
2
<100
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
10 June
D6
3
<100
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D6
5
<100
0
2
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
5
<100
0
2
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
5
<100
0
1
3
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
3
<100
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
2
<100
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
1
<100
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
10 June
D7
15
<100
0
3
6
5
1
0
0
0
10 June
D7
9
<100
0
1
4
4
0
0
0
0
10 June
D7
9
<100
0
1
5
3
0
0
0
0
10 June
C8
3
<100
0
1
0
2
0
0
0
0
10 June
C8
8
<100
0
2
3
3
0
0
0
0
10 June
C8
4
<100
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
96
1 July
E9
5
<50
2
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
E9
3
<100
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
F9
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
G9
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
H8
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
F9
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
F9
4
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
F9
8
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
4
1
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
H7
7
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
3
0
1
0
0
0
0
1 July
H7
5
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
H7
15
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
8
0
1
1
0
3
0
1 July
H7
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1 July
H7
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
H7
4
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
1 July
H7
5
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
H7
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
H7
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
I7
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
10
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
2
1
2
0
0
4
0
1 July
I7
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
0
3
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
6
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
1
0
1 July
I6
5
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
1 July
I6
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
1 July
I7
2
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
5
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
1 July
I7
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
2
1
0
0
0
0
2 July
I7
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
2 July
I7
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2 July
I6
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
2 July
I6
7
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
2
2
0
0
0
0
0

97
2 July
I6
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
1
0
0
0
2
0
2 July
I6
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
2 July
I6
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
2 July
I6
4
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
2 July
I6
4
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
98
2017 Coun
Table 15.
Raw da a 2017 muskox coun (08–13 June) in I i uu egion. Ze os a e da a. Blank cells a e lack o da a.
2017
Da e
G id
Cell
G oup
Size
Ele a ion
(m)
Unknown
sex/age
2017
Cal
Unknown sex
Cow ♀♀
Bull ♂♂
Age (yea s)
1
2
1- 2
≥ 3
1
2
≥ 3
1
2
3
4
≥ 5
≥ 10
8 June
B6
7
< 50
1
2
0
3
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
6
< 50
0
0
1
3
0
2
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
4
< 50
3
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
4
< 50
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
4
< 50
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
8 June
B6
5
< 50
0
0
0
2
0
2
1
0
0
0
8 June
B7
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
A6
1
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
B6
4
30
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
B6
2
< 50
2
9 June
A6
3
3
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
9 June
B5
1
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
B5
3
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
9 June
B5
3
< 50
1
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
B5
3
< 50
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
B5
2
< 50
2
9 June
B6
2
10
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
9 June
B6
8
10
2
0
0
2
0
2
2
0
0
0
9 June
D4
5
10
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
1
1
0
9 June
D4
3
10
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
0
9 June
D4
1
20
1
9 June
D4
3
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
9 June
D4
6
< 50
2
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
99
9 June
D4
4
< 50
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
9 June
D4
4
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
2
0
0
9 June
D4
10
< 50
5
0
0
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
5
< 50
1
1
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
1
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
1
< 50
1
9 June
D4
3
< 50
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
1
< 50
1
9 June
D4
4
< 50
1
2
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
9 June
D4
3
< 50
0
0
2
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
6
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
3
0
9 June
D4
3
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D4
1
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D4
1
10
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
D3
6
10
2
0
0
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
4
< 50
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
9 June
D3
3
< 50
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
3
< 50
1
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
1
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
2
< 50
2
9 June
D3
3
< 50
3
9 June
D3
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
9 June
D3
4
< 50
1
0
0
2
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
D3
2
< 50
2
100
9 June
D3
16
< 50
3
6
6
1
9 June
D3
2
< 50
2
9 June
D3
6
< 50
2
0
1
2
0
0
1
0
0
0
9 June
E2
4
< 50
4
9 June
F2
4
< 50
2
1
1
9 June
D2
3
< 50
3
11 June
B8
3
< 50
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
B8
6
< 50
6
11 June
B8
2
< 50
2
11 June
B8
5
< 50
1
1
0
2
0
0
0
1
0
0
11 June
C8
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
11 June
C8
16
< 50
2
4
1
5
1
2
1
0
0
0
11 June
C8
5
< 50
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
11 June
C8
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
11 June
C8
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
C8
3
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
11 June
C8
10
< 50
2
1
0
4
1
0
2
0
0
0
11 June
C8
5
< 50
0
1
0
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
11 June
C8
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
11 June
C8
3
< 50
0
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
C8
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
11 June
C8
1
<100
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
C8
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
11 June
D7
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
11 June
D7
4
<100
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
D7
17
< 50
4
1
1
8
1
1
1
0
0
0
11 June
D6
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
11 June
D6
3
< 50
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
D6
7
< 50
3
0
0
3
0
0
1
0
0
0
11 June
D6
2
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
11 June
E6
13
< 50
2
1
0
5
0
1
0
4
0
0
11 June
E6
6
< 50
1
2
2
1
101
11 June
E6
6
< 50
6
11 June
E6
8
< 50
2
2
1
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
E6
2
< 50
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E5
6
< 50
1
1
0
3
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E5
6
< 50
1
0
0
4
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E5
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
11 June
E5
5
< 50
5
11 June
E5
6
< 50
1
1
1
0
1
0
0
2
0
11 June
E5
6
< 50
1
2
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
E5
3
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
11 June
E5
4
< 50
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E5
23
< 50
11
6
6
11 June
E5
22
< 50
20
1
1
11 June
F5
1
< 50
0
1
11 June
F5
4
<100
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
F5
4
< 50
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
F5
3
< 50
0
3
11 June
F5
2
< 50
0
2
11 June
F5
2
< 50
0
2
11 June
F5
5
< 50
1
2
2
11 June
E5
3
< 50
1
1
1
11 June
F6
12
< 50
8
2
2
11 June
E6
5
< 50
2
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
E6
4
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
0
11 June
E6
6
< 50
1
1
4
11 June
D7
12
< 50
2
2
4
2
1
1
11 June
D8
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
11 June
C9
2
<100
2
11 June
C9
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
11 June
C9
9
< 50
1
1
0
4
0
1
1
1
0
0
11 June
C9
3
< 50
0
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
C9
5
< 50
1
1
2
1

102
11 June
C9
5
< 50
5
0
11 June
D10
3
< 50
3
0
11 June
D10
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
11 June
E9
6
< 50
2
0
1
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E9
6
0
1
0
4
1
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
E9
3
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
11 June
E9
3
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
1
0
11 June
E9
12
2
1
1
6
0
1
1
0
0
0
11 June
E9
2
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E9
3
0
0
0
1
0
0
2
0
0
0
11 June
E9
6
2
4
11 June
E9
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
11 June
E9
2
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
11 June
E8
2
2
12 June
E9
6
< 50
3
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
12 June
E9
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
12 June
E9
6
< 100
6
12 June
F9
3
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
12 June
F9
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
12 June
F9
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
12 June
F9
4
< 100
1
2
1
12 June
F9
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
12 June
H8
5
< 50
1
0
1
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
4
< 200
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
13 June
I6
2
< 200
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
2
< 200
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
4
< 200
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
6
< 200
2
1
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
1
< 200
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
13 June
I6
1
< 200
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
I6
1
< 200
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
9
< 150
4
1
0
4
0
0
0
0
0
0
103
13 June
I6
2
< 200
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
13 June
I6
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
I6
6
< 150
2
0
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
4
< 50
1
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
4
1
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
9
2
1
1
4
1
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
2
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
3
< 50
1
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
1
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
13 June
I6
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
13 June
I6
3
< 50
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
1
< 50
1
13 June
I6
3
100 m
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
I6
1
100 m
1
13 June
H7
16
< 50
5
4
1
6
13 June
H7
2
< 50
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
H7
2
< 50
2
13 June
H7
7
< 100
5
1
1
13 June
H7
6
< 50
0
1
2
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
H7
2
< 200
2
13 June
H7
10
8
1
1
13 June
H7
4
< 50
0
0
0
2
0
1
1
0
0
0
13 June
H7
1
< 50
1
13 June
H7
1
< 200
1
13 June
H7
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
13 June
H7
2
< 200
2
13 June
H7
1
< 50
1
13 June
H7
2
< 50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
13 June
H7
5
< 50
1
1
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
13 June
H7
4
< 50
2
1
1
13 June
F9
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
F9
3
3
104
13 June
F9
4
4
13 June
F9
3
3
13 June
F9
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
G9
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
H8
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
13 June
I7
51
26
9
9
7
Table 16. Raw da a o one g oup o se en muskoxen obse ed in Qoo o suaq alley and he e o e emig a ed ou o I i uu egion, muskox coun
08–13 June
2017.
2017
Da e
G id
Cell
G oup
Size
Ele a ion
(m)
Unknown
sex/age
2017
Cal
Unknown sex
Cow ♀♀
Bull ♂♂
Age (yea s)
1
2
1- 2
≥ 3
1
2
≥ 3
1
2
3
4
≥ 5
≥ 10
12 June
H10
7
< 50
1
0
1
3
0
1
0
0
0
1
105
Appendix 7
Visible e ec s o muskox g azing / b owsing on ege a ion landscape
Figu e 46. G asses/sedges g azed o g ound le el, wes sho e Ikka Fjo d, 10 June 2015. Top: ex en o hea y
g azing, wi h dead muskox cow in backg ound and ano he nea by (no in pho o). Bo om: closeup o g azed o
g ound ege a ion a he sho eline. Pho os C. Cuyle .
112
Appendix 8
Raw da a o obse a ions o o he species encoun e ed on I i uu peninsula du ing 2015, 2016, & 2017
muskox minimum coun s
Table 17.
Raw da a o o he species encoun e ed in I i uu egion du ing he 2015, 2016, and 2017 muskox minimum coun s. Blank cells a e lack o
obse a ions.
Da e
G id
Cell
Reindee
A c ic
ha e
A c ic
ox
Whi e- ailed
eagle
Falcon
Seal
Ha lequin
duck
Common
Eide
Commen
04-jun-15
8B
2
Among boulde s along sho eline
04-jun-15
8B
4
Some amids he muskoxen
04-jun-15
7B
2
Nea sho eline
04-jun-15
7B
1
Bull, la ge an le s, ele a ion >300 m
04-jun-15
6B
1
2
Hun ing he idal zone
06-jun-15
4D
2
Among boulde s nea muskoxen
09-jun-15
9C
8
1
1
Bulls, la ge an le s in el e
09-jun-15
9D
1
Ele a ion > 100 m
09-jun-15
9D
3
Ele a ion < 200 m
09-jun-15
9D
36
Including 12 cal es (age <3 mon hs)
09-jun-15
9D
7
Including 4 cal es (age < 3 mon hs)
09-jun-15
9D
1
BLUE phase, nea sho e cabin
09-jun-15
9G
1
BLUE phase, among sho e boulde s
09-jun-15
7I
3
Lying elaxed on pans o ice
09-jun-15
6I
3
1
09-jun-15
7H
1
Qinnge ia si aq
09-jun-15
7H
2
09-jun-15
8H
2
Feeding in he ‘na ows’
09-jun-15
8H
1
Rocky s eep slope nea sho e
09-jun-15
8H
10
No h side o he 'na ows'
10-jun-15
9E
1
10-jun-15
9E
10
Nea he saddle o second alley
10-jun-15
10C
3
Nea sho eline
TOTALS 2015
81
11
5
6
1
4
2
0

113
23-jun-16
G2
1
5
25-jun-16
D5
1
Inne G ønnedal, snow pa ches
27-jun-16
C8
9
27-jun-16
C9
1
Flying a ound o e head, ‘ba king’
27-jun-16
C9
1
Bull, age ca. 3-yea
29-jun-16
D9
1
Flying a ound o e head, ‘ba king’
29-jun-16
E8
10
01-jul-16
E9
6
01-jul-16
E9
1
02-jul-16
I7
8
Nea Pa adise Cabin
TOTALS 2016
27
8
2
7
0
0
0
0
07-jun-17
B6
1
Whi e phase, moul ing
07-jun-17
B6
1
Ci cling o e head
08-jun-17
B6
1
Whi e phase, moul ing
11-jun-17
B7
6
Bulls all in one g oup
11-jun-17
E6
8
High moun ainside, snow pa ch
11-jun-17
C9
2
Flying abou Kangaa suk Løb
11-jun-17
D9
3
Ju enile males
12-jun-17
E10
23
Included ≥10 cal es, Nuuk poin
12-jun-17
E10
8
Included 4 cal es, Nuuk poin
12-jun-17
F10
many
Could NOT ge ai bo ne, a bellies
12-jun-17
H8
2
Bulls, glacial ill on o glacie
12-jun-17
I7
2
Heads popped up, Qinnge le si aq
13-jun-17
H8
1
Bull, glacial ill on o glacie
13-jun-17
I7
2
NE end o Qinnge le si aq bay.
14-jun-17
B7
2
nea Tayle sha n summe cabin
TOTALS 2017
51
2
4
3
0
2
0
many
114
Appendix 9
Muskox coun s & obse a ions pos -2017
The ollowing pa ag aph is om he coun epo and P.N. Hansen (pe s. comm.).
The Ap il 2018 coun obse ed only 650 muskoxen and 50-60 cal es. Me hods
included hiking o snowmobiling in o he e ain, and as usual, c uising he coas line,
bu a eas co e ed we e no speci ied. La e in June, 16 muskoxen we e ound dead
om na u al causes (10 cows, 6 bulls). All ca casses we e emacia ed. The six bulls we e
adul s, i.e. all had ophy sized ho ns. Mos o he cows we e adul s. One dead adul
cow had a su i ing newbo n cal nea by (Fig. 55). E o s we e made o eed he cal ;
howe e , i died aising he mo ali y coun o 17. I is possible mo e ca casses we e
p esen bu wen unde ec ed. Mos ca casses we e ound in he Laksel and Pa adise
alleys. These a e on opposi e sides o he I i uu peninsula and sugges s mo ali y
was widesp ead h oughou he egion. Ne e had so many dea hs by na u al causes
been de ec ed in one yea since muskox ansloca ion o I i uu in he summe o
1987. Addi ionally, 2018 snowmel was la e han no mal as was muskoxen shedding
hei qi iu wool, and adul cows appea ed ma kedly hin wi h li le o no milk o
hei newbo n cal es. All he abo e sugges s he possibili y o a c ash yea as migh
be expec ed om high densi y combined wi h limi ed win e /sp ing o age esou ces.
Figu e 55. I i uu Hun ing O ice , Pe Nukaa aq Hansen, wi h o phaned newbo n cal , which la e died.
Pho o P. N. Hansen.
115
In 2018, he en i e A suk ha es quo a was illed, i.e. 76 muskoxen (36 T ophy bulls,
40 ju enile cows (age 1-2 yea s)), and nema ode ound wo ms we e obse ed.
Al hough he en i e ophy quo a was illed, i was ha d o ind bulls wi h ophy-
sized ho ns. 2018 was he i s yea , ophy guides used an en i e day o ind a sui able
ophy bull o he o eign hun e s o ake and guided hun s in Sep embe ook bo h
ophy muskoxen and eindee (F. Feldmann pe s. comm.). Impo an ly o 2018, he
A suk Resou ce Managemen Council los a key membe , Ejna Jakobsen, due o an
un o una e a al acciden . Thus, ophy agen numbe s d opped om ou o h ee in
he communi y and he local eam conduc ing annual minimum coun s los an
expe ienced and alued membe .
In he i s week o May 2020, snow on he moun ains b ough mos o he muskoxen
in o he lowlands whe e hey we e easy o de ec . The hun ing o ice , P.N. Hansen,
coun ed 556 muskoxen (a eas co e ed no speci ied). The coun included 40 ophy
bulls, 82 young bulls, 156 adul cows and 278 muskoxen o unde e mined sex o age.
No newbo n cal es we e obse ed du ing he coun , which could be expec ed gi en
he iming o he coun .
Figu e. 56. Muskox hoo -p in in shallow snow. Pho o C. Cuyle .
116
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