Author: Isabel Barrio

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NordBorN meeting in Aarhus 2025

The second NordBorN meeting was held in Denmark on March 25-27, 2025, hosted by our colleagues from Aarhus University. Twenty NordBorN members participated in the meeting in person, and others joined online for parts of the meeting. All the nine NordBorN partners were represented at the meeting.

One of the highlights of the meeting was the visit to the to the Mols Laboratory rewilding center, where we had the chance to learn more about rewilding efforts in Denmark and discuss borealization under the sun.

This year, we had the honour to host some guest researchers from Anglia Ruskin University who are studying the social implications of borealization. As well, during the meeting we had the opportunity to hear more about the research being done by our early career scientists, and to discuss future opportunities for collaboration.

Thanks again Niels, Efrén and Gala for a superb organization on the ground, and of course Mariana V for the endless support.

You can find relevant meeting documents here:

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Large herbivore and carnivore populations in boreal and tundra ecosystems are highly variable in time and space

NordBorN researchers have estimated and mapped historic biomass densities of large herbivores and carnivores across Norway. The current high densities of wild ungulates, especially moose and roe deer, contrast with historically high densities of livestock. Carnivores show a low level of recovery from near absence in the mid 20th century. However, densities are far below where they were in the 19th century.

These findings have implications for borealization: Previous studies have shown that herbivory can prevent the spread of boreal species into the tundra, yet it is clear that the trophic interactions involving large herbivores and carnivores are highly dynamic in both time and space.

Reference: Speed, J.D.M, Sobocinski, A., Kolstad, A. L., Linnell, J. D., Solberg, E. J., Mattisson, J., & Austrheim, G. (2025). The trophic distribution of biomass in ecosystems with co-occurring wildlife and livestock. Scientific Reports, 15(1), 1474. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-85469-2

Photo: Lynx (Erik F. Brandsborg, CC BY-SA)

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Biotic components influence feedback loops between the tundra and the atmosphere

This paper published by NordBorN researchers in Frontiers in Environmental Science as part of the research topic Climate Change Impacts on Arctic Ecosystems and Associated Climate Feedbacks highlights the role of biota in feedback loops from tundra ecosystems to the atmosphere.

Ecosystem modelling has greatly improved or understanding of ongoing and future changes in the Arctic, but beyond vegetation and to some extent microbes, most ecosystem models still do not consider the influence of biotic components on feedback loops between biosphere and atmosphere. This article provides an overview of the influence of three key ecosystem compartments (vegetation, decomposers and herbivores) on three key feedback loops between tundra and atmosphere
(carbon dynamics, albedo and permafrost thaw). Including these dynamics
into ecosystem models will likely improve the magnitude, accuracy and credibility of model projections.

Reference: Schmidt, N.M., Barrio, I.C., Kristensen, J.A., López-Blanco, E. and Van Beest, F.M., 2024. Highlighting the role of biota in feedback loops from tundra ecosystems to the atmosphere. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 12, p.1491604. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1491604

Photo: diagram of feedback loops mediated by biota from tundra ecosystems to the atmosphere (credit: Niels Martin Schmidt)