The animal world is full of surprises and the ability of an arctic fox to walk 2000 miles came as a major discovery. It was a research carried out by the Norwegian Polar Institute. They installed a tracking device on a young female in July 2017. Subsequently, in March next year, they set it loose from Norway. A researcher Eva Fuglei was tracking it and it entered Canada in 76 days. Eva’s initial reaction was “We first did not believe it was true.”

The Guardian reports about this unbelievable feat of the animal. It was alone and its purpose was to survive against all odds.

That is what egged it on. The research team was monitoring its movements and found that after 21 days it landed in Greenland and finally came to Canada on 1 July. The collar mounted on the animal transmitted data each day for a three-hour period.

This exercise revealed unknown facts about arctic fox

The research team deserves full credit for unearthing hitherto unknown facts about these animals. Its journey of 2000 miles across sea ice was one of the longest ever recorded. The researchers had doubts about whether someone removed the collar and gave it a lift in a boat. However, they dismissed the idea because boats are rare in those areas.

On some days, it covered more distance compared to other days. They attribute this to the arctic fox using the sea ice as a raft to move from point to point. It shows its ability to adapt to situations.

The Guardian goes on to add that researcher Eva Fuglei explains how these animals might be using sea ice.

In her opinion, they used it instinctively as a platform to move about between areas, interact with others of their species and search for food. This study also brings out the importance of sea ice vis-à-vis Climate change because its presence is necessary for survival of wildlife in the Arctic. Norway’s climate and environment minister, Ola Elvestuen says - “We must cut emissions quickly to prevent the sea ice from disappearing all summer.” The other side of the coin is the growing popularity of the Arctic as a travel destination.

Tourists arrive regularly to enjoy the sights as the ice melts due to global warming and reveals the secrets.

The extraordinary arctic fox

According to ABC AU, the remarkable journey of an arctic fox from Norway to Canada has left scientists "thunderstruck." It was a young female released into the wild in March last year. Nearly three weeks later, the team of researchers tracked it to Greenland. It then traveled to Canada's Ellesmere Island and the total journey lasted for slightly less than three months. It took two breaks while passing across northern Greenland. At some points its speed dropped, probably due to bad weather. Overall, its speed was 1.4 times faster than the previous record set by an adult male Arctic fox tracked in Alaska. The ultimate fate of this animal remains a mystery because its GPS tracker stopped functioning in February this year.
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