WildArk, with the support of our partners Classic Ice Cream, is proud to be supporting WWF Finland to conserve the Fennoscandian Arctic Fox population over a two year period 2023 – 2024.

The Arctic Fox (Vulpes lagopus) is a small fox species that is adapted to the Arctic tundra of the northern hemisphere. The Fennoscandian Arctic fox population has declined significantly and at the beginning of the 2000s, only 100 individuals remained. Since then, the population has slowly recovered to some 450 adult individuals. Still, the population is critically endangered.

The Arctic Fox’s main threat is the spread of the larger and more aggressive Red fox (Vulpes vulpes), which has encroached on Arctic fox territory largely due to climate change.

While most of the Fennoscandian Arctic fox populations lives in Sweden and Norway, Arctic Foxes move long distances across the national borders. In Finland, only a handful of Arctic foxes wonder around in the mountain tundra. Even though the Arctic fox became protected in Finland in the 1940s, the species hasn’t recovered. Arctic Fox were on the verge of totally disappearing in Finland due to massive hunting for their fur at the beginning of the 20^th century. However, the positive population development in Norway and Sweden since 2005 gives us hope that the Arctic fox is returning to Finland. The first successful reproduction in Finland since 1996 was recorded in 2022!

The Arctic Fox Project will create concrete conservation actions which help the Arctic Fox settle back in Finland and will co-ordinate national conservation efforts.

The project includes the construction and maintenance of additional feeding stations exclusively for Arctic foxes, equipped with camera traps to document the visits from Arctic foxes.

WWF will also train volunteers to survey potential Arctic fox den sites in Finnish Lapland; support field surveys and control the Red fox population in potential breeding areas of the Arctic fox.

The long-term goal of the project is to help the Arctic fox population get established and grow to a level where it can survive self-sufficiently.