Norway gives Arctic foxes a helping hand amid climate woes

A white Arctic Fox pup receives parasite medication, during a medical check-up at the Arctic Fox Captive Breeding Station run by Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) near Oppdal, Norway, July 25, 2023. As part of the state-sponsored program to restore Arctic foxes, Norway has been feeding the population for nearly 20 years, and the program has helped to boost the fox population from as few as 40 in Norway, Finland, and Sweden, to around 550 across Scandinavia today. "We've come a long way," said Conservation biologist Kristine Ulvund. "But I still think we have some way to go before we can say that we've really saved the species." REUTERS/Lisi Niesner

OPPDAL, NORWAY (Reuters) - One by one, the crate doors swing open and five Arctic foxes bound off into the snowy landscape.

But in the wilds of southern Norway, the newly freed foxes may struggle to find enough to eat, as the impacts of climate change make the foxes' traditional rodent prey more scarce.