The role of wild reindeer as a flagship species in new management models in Norway

Abstract

Wild reindeer are under pressure from human development projects throughout their habitat. Norway is currently making a significant move to establish a new management model based on national reindeer regions and regional management plans. A focus on wild reindeer as a flagship species allows the species to be included as a broad conservation objective in complex land-use plans. The authors surveyed a representative sample of residents in the Rondane and Setesdal regions to examine their perceptions of the current status of reindeer and how management relates to other social and development issues. Local actors and institutions, including hunters, were perceived as more responsible and suited to make decisions about reindeer population sizes and management objectives than non-local actors. There was little local consensus on the role of human impacts on wild reindeer, and residents rated local knowledge higher than scientific knowledge for management purposes. Rondane residents attached more importance to reindeer than Setesdal residents, but the latter saw reindeer as more threatened by human development. New management approaches will need to take a social-ecological perspective and recognize that the inclusion of reindeer can enhance broader conservation goals at regional, national, and international levels, but may also escalate local social conflicts. flagship species, local participation, regional management, wild reindeer