A brown bear population estimate for Finnmark County, North Norway

Lichen is a major forage resource for reindeer and may constitute up to 80% of a reindeer's winter diet. The reindeer grazing area in Sweden covers almost half of the country, with reindeer using mountainous areas in the summer and forested areas in the winter. Knowledge about the spatial distribution of ground lichens is important for both practical and decision-making purposes. Since the early 1980s, remote sensing research of lichen cover in northern environments has focused on reindeer grazing issues. The objective of this study was to use lichen information collected in the Swedish National Forest Inventory (NFI) as training data to classify optical satellite images into ground lichen cover classes. The study site was located within the reindeer husbandry area in northern Sweden and consisted of the common area between two contiguous Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT)-5 scenes and one Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) scene. Three classification methods were tested: Mahalanobis distance, maximum likelihood and spectral mixture analysis. Post-classification calibration was applied using a membership probability threshold in order to match the NFI-measured proportions of lichen coverage classes. The classification results were assessed using an independently collected field dataset (229 validation areas). The results demonstrated high classification accuracy of SPOT imagery for the classification of lichen-abundant and lichen-poor areas when using the Mahalanobis distance classifier (overall accuracy 84.3%, kappa = 0.68). The highest classification accuracy for Landsat was achieved using a maximum likelihood classification (overall accuracy 76.8%, kappa = 0.53). These results provided an initial indication of the utility of NFI data as training data in the process of mapping lichen classes over large areas.

An attempt to decentralize and sectorize the psychiatric out-patient service in a rural area in northern Sweden is described and the theoretical background is discussed. A psychiatrist and a specially trained nurse visit the district health centers in the area once every other week to see some patients and to have a conference with the district doctors, district nurses and social workers. The experiences are so far encouraging and the experiment will continue.

Potato mop‐top virus (PMTV; genus Pomovirus; family Virgaviridae) is transmitted by the soil‐borne Spongospora subterranea f.sp. subterranea, a protoctist that causes powdery scab on potato. PMTV is distributed widely in the potato growing areas in South and North America, Japan and northwestern Europe. This article reviews the current knowledge on detection, distribution and control of PMTV with focus on the Baltic Sea region. Since the 1980s, PMTV has caused great economic losses to potato production in the Nordic countries (Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland), but its occurrence in other countries of the Baltic Sea region remained unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, harmonised sampling and virus detection procedures including bioassays and serological and molecular methods were employed by 21 research institutions to detect PMTV in potato tubers and soil samples in 2005–2008. Potato growing areas were widely contaminated with PMTV in the Nordic countries. Only the main seed potato production area in northern Sweden and the High Grade seed potato production zone in Finland were negative for PMTV. Intensive and systematic surveys in Poland in 2004–2008 found no evidence of PMTV, except a single PMTV‐infected tuber detected in 2008. Surveys in the Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia) and northwestern Russia (Leningrad province) were negative for PMTV, except infection of minitubers in a screenhouse in Latvia in 2005. Varying percentages of tubers expressing spraing symptoms in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Poland were infected with Tobacco rattle virus, and bioassays indicated similar results for Russia. Incidence of symptomless infections with PMTV was high in tubers of many potato cultivars. Here, we discuss the contrasting patterns of distribution of PMTV in the Baltic Sea region, factors playing a role in dispersal and establishment of PMTV in new fields and means for controlling PMTV and its spread to new areas. We emphasise the use of the current virus‐specific methods for the detection of PMTV in symptomless potato tubers and the high risks of disseminating PMTV to new fields and areas in viruliferous resting spores of S. subterranea in the soil adhering to seed tubers. PMTV‐resistant potato cultivars will provide the only sustainable means for preventing yield losses in the infested fields and the prospects of resistance breeding are summarised.

A zircon study has been made on folded, conformable gneisses and an intrusive igneous rock from the northeastern part of Sweden. U-Pb ages of size and colour fractions of zircon concentrates from the gneisses show complex distributions on the concordia plot. This is related to varying degrees of secondary overgrowth on zircon cores and the formation of new zircons during the Svecokarelian (early Proterozoic) orogeny. Detrital zircons from a very pure quartzite have a maximum age of about 2700 Ma. They almost completely lack overgrowth textures and indicate an age close to that of the Archaean, conceivably igneous, source material. Zircons from the mica and amphibole gneisses have subhedral and rounded cores which, together with the observed layering, imply a sedimentary origin. They have apparent ages of less than 2063 Ma and close to the main metamorphic event, about 1850 Ma ago. Because of the low overgrowth/core volume ratios observed, one may suspect that the zircon core material in the mica ...

During five springs, 1964-68, small mammal populations in the Ammarnds mountain area in northern Sweden were examined for density, reproduction, age, weight and food. Increase, peak and decrease in numbers were observed to be accompanied by a gradual deterioration in physiological condition. The frequencies of food items during the spring, mainly mosses and invertebrates, did not show any pronounced differences between years but differed between species. The barking of trees and bushes during the peak winters was examined regarding plant species and abundance. With the aid of earlier investigations in the same area three cycles of about three years can be established since 1959. The population peaks were terminated, at least indirectly, by food shortage whereas spring declines are best explained by predator influence. Pe3loMe

Barbro Gretener, , Fluvioglacial Landforms and Ice Margin Characteristics. An Example from the Torneträsk Area in Northern Sweden, Geografiska Annaler. Series A, Physical Geography, Vol. 63, No. 3/4 (1981), pp. 161-168

Gastropod diversity in aspen stands in coastal northern Sweden

Recent studies suggest that trends in cardiovascular risk may result in a decrease in age-specific prevalence of dementia. Studies in rural areas are rare. To study cohort effects in dementia prevalence and survival of people with dementia in a Swedish rural area. Participants were from the 1995-1998 Nordanstig Project (NP) (n = 303) and the 2001-2003 Swedish National study on Aging and Care in Nordanstig (SNAC-N) (n = 384). Overall 6-year dementia prevalence and mortality in NP and SNAC-N were compared for people 78 years and older. Logistic regression analyses were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for dementia occurrence using the NP study population as the reference group. Cox regression models were used to analyze time to death. The crude prevalence of dementia was 21.8% in NP and 17.4% in SNAC-N. When the NP cohort was used as the reference group, the age- and gender-adjusted OR of dementia was 0.71 (95% CI 0.48-1.04) in SNAC-N; the OR was 0.47 (0.24-0.90) for men and 0.88 (0.54-1.44) for women. In the extended model, the OR of dementia was significantly lower in SNAC-N than in the NP cohort as a whole (0.63; 0.39-0.99) and in men (0.34; 0.15-0.79), but not in women (0.81; 0.46-1.44). The Cox regression models indicated that the hazard ratio of dying was lower in the SNAC-N than NP population. Trends toward a lower prevalence of dementia in high-income countries seem to be evident in this Swedish rural area, at least in men.

95/05424 Transfer of radiocaesium from soil to vegetation and to grazing lambs in a mountain area in Northern Sweden

Summary The pattern of responses of adult trees of Mountain Birch (Betula pubescens ssp. czerepanovii) to an outbreak of a folivorous insect (Epirrita autumnata) causing ≈90% defoliation was studied over 8 years in a subarctic area in northern Sweden. Tree recovery was monitored in terms of the numbers, area, mass and nitrogen content of leaves, the numbers of leaf‐carrying long and short shoots, and the widths of annual tree rings in stems. The most prominent characteristic of defoliated trees was a threefold increase in the proportion of long shoots 1 year after defoliation. These shoots subsequently produced many new leaf‐carrying short shoots, resulting in shoot populations ≈50% larger than those of control trees. Thereafter the most strongly defoliated trees showed decreasing leaf area. Defoliated trees produced more female catkins but fewer male catkins than control trees. Released apical dominance did not result in any overcompensation in terms of growth or leaf area production. However, it presumably increased the rate of recovery from herbivory. For the most strongly defoliated trees, the benefits from increased production of long shoots was not sustainable.

The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with a positive outcome of vocational rehabilitation, and to identify groups that have been successfully rehabilitated in a Swedish rural area. In this study vocational rehabilitation is defined as medical multidisciplinary, psychological, social and occupational activities aiming to re-establish, among sick or injured people with previous work history, their working capacity and prerequisites for returning to the labour market. The study was based on 732 people on registered long-term sick-leave who, in a rural area in northern Sweden during 1992-94, became objects for vocational rehabilitation. Bivariate and stepwise logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with the outcome. By successful vocational rehabilitation is meant reporting well (no economical benefit) at all three time-points 6, 12 and 24 months after termination of rehabilitation, or lowered benefit levels. The results indicate that younger, male, employed persons, with an early start on rehabilitation, in a programme entailing education, and partly sick-listed before the start of this programme, had the greatest chance of successful rehabilitation. In contrast, older, female, unemployed people, with a delayed start on rehabilitation, without education, and fully sick-listed before the start, greatly risked being unsuccessful with vocational rehabilitation. The results indicate how to improve the rehabilitation process: several process-related factors shown to be connected with successful vocational rehabilitation include time before the start of rehabilitation, partial instead of full sickness benefit, and education programmes.

The status of grey seals Halichoerus grypus in North Norway and on the Murman Coast, Russia

This Research Communication presents preliminary results of an ongoing Russian-Norwegian research project about volunteer work in two border regions in the Arctic –– Troms and Finnmark county in Norway and Murmansk oblast in Russia. Here, we aim to provide a deeper understanding of the ways in which volunteer work with vulnerable groups was organized during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in two national and regional settings, the role and scope of volunteer work during the pandemic in the two regions, and how this activity is framed by structural and political differences between Norway and Russia. The study adds knowledge to the field of implementation of national COVID-19 strategies in diverse regional settings and understanding the role of volunteerism in crisis response in providing for the health and well-being of vulnerable groups in the Arctic. Our study reveals that both in Norway and Russia responses to the pandemic include mobilization of volunteers and the rise in the volunteer movement, but volunteerism has different traditions and scopes in Norway and Russia. Well-established NGOs in Troms and Finnmark county were mobilized to act when the pandemic hit, and they took on new responsibilities for vulnerable groups. Such organizations were less developed in Murmansk oblast, and in order to effectively respond to the pandemic, new voluntary structures were quickly established in the form of united regional and municipal volunteer centres in addition to existing organizations. Our research shows that volunteerism is one of the most efficient tools for crisis response and that it adds an indispensable value to reducing the workload of public health and social care institutions in promoting health and well-being for vulnerable groups. Voluntary structures on the Norwegian side appear to be resilient and flexible to meet the needs of the target groups, while volunteerism in Murmansk oblast shows exceptional strength to grow, formalize, and mobilize during a very short period within crisis response.

The acidification status of forest soils in seven counties in Norway was studied on the basis of chemical analysis of 3 000 humus samples collected in a regular grid pattern. In samples with more than 70% organic matter the base saturation decreases gradually from 25% in the northernmost county Nord‐Tr⊘ndelag to 10% in the Agder counties far south. Base saturation shows a slight increase with increasing organic matter content in southern and southwestem Norway, but a strong decrease in more northerly areas. In southeastern Norway there is a regular decrease in pH and base saturation from north to south, and these differences have apparently increased between 1962–64 and 1984, indicating enhanced soil acidification in the south possibly related to acid deposition from the atmosphere. Key words: Forest soilssoil acidificationhumuspHbase saturationregional differencesorganic matter contentacid deposition.

Ozone a short-lived pollutant contributing to the warming of the lower atmosphere. Increased level of ozone can lead to local warming and may impose adverse effect on human and ecosystem health. Although Sweden is not a major source of ozone precursors, its surface ozone levels can be influenced by long-range transport, climate-driven feedbacks, and changes in local anthropogenic and biogenic emissions. Over past decade Sweden has experienced a significant rise in temperature, consistent with the broader Arctic warming trends. Therefore, aim of the present study is to investigate long term trends of surface ozone in Sweden using CAMS reanalysis dataset from 2004 to 2023. Present study utilized the CAMS Formaldehyde (HCHO) and Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) at surface to analyze the ozone sensitivity. The ratio of secondary HCHO to NO2 used as the tracer to analyze O3-NOx-VOC sensitivities in Swedish region. HCHO/NO₂ ratio acts as a diagnostic tool because it reflects the relative abundance of VOC-derived radicals versus NOx. This ratio enables identification of ozone formation regimes NOx-limited, VOC-limited, or transitional. From results a statistically significant increasing trend is observed for the surface ozone with a magnitude greater than 0.3 ppbv per year across the Northern Sweden. Decreasing trend for NO2 and increasing trend for HCHO across the Northern Sweden is not statistically significant at 5% significance level. HCHO/NO2 ratio less than 1 across the southern and central part of Sweden indicates that the surface ozone production is more sensitive to VOCs levels, whereas along the Norland region ratio lies between 1 and 2 that suggests that the ozone sensitivity along the Northern Sweden region lies in a transitional regime. Present study findings suggest that surface ozone production in majority of the urban areas in Sweden is sensitive to VOC-limited regime, only rural areas of Northern Sweden lies in transitional regime shift from VOC-limited to NOx-limited. Increasing level of surface ozone results from increased anthropogenic and biogenic emissions that indicates production of surface ozone in Sweden becoming more sensitive to VOCs levels. This study offers information corresponding to ozone production sensitivities to support the strategic management decisions.