Rare Siberian wapiti spotted in Finland — YLE News
A rare Siberian wapiti was spotted in Viitasaari, central Finland, in mid-September. This is the westernmost observation of the species in the country, YLE News reports.
Over the past ten years, species of deer new to Finland have repeatedly been recorded in the country. Wapiti had previously been seen in the southeast and east of the country. The Finnish Wildlife Centre has also recorded sika deer and red deer.
For now, these are individual animals
Mikael Wikström, a specialist at the Finnish Wildlife Centre, noted that the number of these animals in the country remains small: it involves several individuals rather than breeding populations. To establish a stable population, not only males but also females must reach Finland, and offspring must appear in the herds.
Wapiti and sika deer reached Finland from russia, while red deer came at least from northern Sweden. The Central Asian subspecies of red deer, the maral, is also found in russia. Earlier observations of deer in South Savo and southeastern Finland were considered possible cases of marals appearing.
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Scientists are clarifying the animal's species
Heikki Henttonen, a professor of forest animal zoology, said he had received confirmation from Russian colleagues that the animal seen in Viitasaari is a wapiti. According to him, there are farms in Karelia on the other side of the border where these animals are bred.
Henttonen believes that earlier observations attributed to marals should be reconsidered and classified as observations of Siberian wapiti. According to him, the confusion arose because the name “maral” is often applied in russia to various animals related to red deer.
The wapiti is not included on the list of huntable species in Finland, so hunting it is currently not permitted, Henttonen noted. The red deer is protected by law. The scientist called the wapiti an alien species, since it was introduced to areas near Finland, and warned that relocated animals may carry parasites and diseases dangerous to local species.
Wikström allows that there may now be more wapiti than red deer in Finland. At the same time, the range of red deer is expanding in northern Sweden and Norway. According to camera-trap data, only males of this species have so far been observed in Finland.
