Norway is home to some of Europe's most charismatic fauna and tracking them down can be a highlight of your trip. While Norway's unique settlement pattern spreads the human population thinly and limits wildlife habitat, Norway more than compensates with its variety of iconic northern European species – from polar bears, walruses and Arctic foxes in Svalbard to musk oxen, reindeer and elk on the mainland. And offshore, whales have survived the best efforts of hunters to drive them to extinction.
Once prolific throughout Arctic regions, the Arctic fox may be Norway's most endangered land mammal. Numbers of Arctic foxes have scarcely risen in the decades since it was officially protected in 1930; the species' greatest threat now comes from the encroachment of the much larger and more abundant red fox.
The Arctic fox is superbly adapted to harsh winter climates and is believed capable of surviving temperatures as low as minus 70°C thanks to its thick insulating layer of underfur. Almost perfectly white in winter, the Arctic fox can in summer have greyish-brown or smoky-grey fur. In sub-polar regions, it inhabits the sea ice, often cleaning up the scraps left by polar-bear kills.
Svalbard undoubtedly offers the best chance of seeing the Arctic fox, with sightings even possible close to Longyearbyen.
On the mainland, Børgefjell National Park, north of Rørvik and just south of the Arctic Circle, is home to one of mainland Norway's few viable populations. A small population is also believed to survive in the Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella National Park in central Norway and a tiny number have recently been reintroduced onto the Hardangervidda plateau: Europe's southernmost Arctic fox population. In the far northeast of the country, Varangerhalvøya National Park is an important Arctic fox breeding area.
If you don't see one in the wild, you're almost guaranteed to see the species at either Namsskogan Familiepark or Polar Park, both in northern Norway.
After being hunted to extinction in Norway almost two millennia ago, the downright prehistoric moskus-okse (musk oxen) were reintroduced into Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella National Park from Greenland in the 1940s and have since extended their range to the Femundsmarka National Park near Røros. Fewer than 100 are believed to survive in the two Norwegian herds, although their numbers remain more prolific in Greenland, Canada and Alaska; in North America, the Inuit word for the musk ox is oomingmaq, which means 'the animal with skin like a beard'. Wherever it is found, the musk ox is one of the most soulful of all Arctic and sub-Arctic species.
From the forests of the far south to southern Finnmark, elg (elk; moose in the USA), Europe's largest deer species, are fairly common, although given the Norwegian fondness for elk meat, they wisely tend to stay clear of people and roads.
Wild reinsdyr (reindeer) exist in large herds across central Norway, usually above the treeline and sometimes as high up as 2000m. The prime viewing areas are on the Hardangervidda Plateau, where you'll find Europe's largest herd (around 7000). Sightings are also possible in most national parks of central Norway, as well as the inland areas of Trøndelag. For a fine interpretation centre, visit the Norwegian Wild Reindeer Centre in Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella National Park.
The reindeer of Finnmark in Norway's far north are domestic and owned by the Sami, who drive them to the coast at the start of summer, then back to the interior in winter.
The smaller svalbardrein (Svalbard caribou or reindeer) is native only to Svalbard, although some Russian reindeer do occasionally wander onto the archipelago over the sea ice from Siberia.
There are dozens of wonderful wildlife encounters possible in Norway, but the following five will get even veteran wildlife-watchers excited:
APolar bears, Svalbard
AWalruses, Svalbard
AMusk oxen, Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella National Park
AHumpback or sperm whales, Andenes
AReindeer, Hardangervidda
Like many of Norway's larger mammal species, bjørn (brown bears) have been persecuted for centuries, and Norway's only permanent population is in Øvre Pasvik National Park in eastern Finnmark, although sightings do happen from time to time in Reisa, Øvre Dividal and Stabbursdalen National Parks in the far north.
A forest-dweller, the solitary and secretive Eurasian lynx is northern Europe's only large cat. It is found throughout the country but rarely seen.
Lemen (lemmings) occupy mountain areas through 30% of the country and stay mainly around 800m altitude in the south and lower in the north. They measure up to 10cm and have soft orange-brown and black fur, beady eyes, a short tail and prominent upper incisors. If you encounter a lemming in the mountains, it may become enraged, hiss, squeak and attempt to attack!
Other smaller mammal species that are more difficult to see include hare (Arctic hares), pinnsvin (hedgehogs; mainly in southern Trøndelag), bever (beavers; southern Norway), grevling (badgers), oter (otters), jerv (wolverines), skogmår (pine martens), vesel (weasels) and røyskatt (stoats).
AIce Bear: A Natural and Unnatural History of the Polar Bear (Kieran Mulvaney; 2011)
AIce Bear: The Cultural History of an Arctic Icon (Michael Engelhard; 2016)
APolar Bears International (www.polarbearsinternational.org)
AArctic Fox: Life at the Top of the World (Garry Hamilton; 2008)
Isbjørn (polar bears), the world's largest land carnivore, are found in Norway only in Svalbard, spending much of their time on pack or drift ice. Since the ban on hunting came into force in 1973, their numbers have increased to around 3500, although they remain extremely difficult to see unless you're on a cruise around Svalbard – sightings close to Longyearbyen are extremely rare. Despite weighing up to 720kg and measuring up to 2.5m long, polar bears are swift and manoeuvrable, thanks to the hair on the soles of their feet, which facilitates movement over ice and snow and provides additional insulation.
A polar bear's diet consists mostly of seals, beached whales, fish and birds, and only rarely do they eat reindeer or other land mammals (including humans). Polar-bear milk contains 30% fat (the richest of any carnivorous land mammal), which allows newborn cubs to grow quickly and survive extremely cold temperatures.
The seas around Norway are rich fishing grounds, due to the ideal summer conditions for the growth of plankton. This wealth of nutrients also attracts fish and baleen whales, which feed on the plankton, as well as other marine creatures that feed on the fish. Sadly, centuries of whaling in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans have reduced several whale species to perilously small populations. Apart from the minke whale, there's no sign that the numbers will ever recover in this area. Given this history, the variety of whale species in Norway's waters is astonishing.
Minkehval (minke whales), one of the few whale species that is not endangered, measure around 7m to 10m long and weigh between 5 and 10 tonnes. They're baleen whales, which means that they have plates of whalebone baleen rather than teeth, and migrate between the Azores area and Svalbard.
Between Ålesund and Varangerhalvøya, it's possible to see knolhval (humpback whales), baleen whales that measure up to 15m and weigh up to 30 tonnes. These are among the most acrobatic and vocal of whales, producing deep songs that can be heard and recorded hundreds of kilometres away.
Spekkhogger (killer whales), or orcas, are the top sea predators and measure up to 7m and weigh around 5 tonnes. There are around 1500 off the coast of Norway, swimming in pods of two or three. They eat fish, seals, dolphins, porpoises and other whales (such as minke), which may be larger than themselves.
The long-finned grindhval (pilot whales), about 6m long, may swim in pods of up to several hundred and range as far north as Nordkapp. Hvithval (belugas), which are up to 4m long, are found mainly in the Arctic Ocean.
The grey and white narhval (narwhal), which grow up to 3.5m long, are best recognised by the peculiar 2.7m spiral ivory tusk that projects from the upper lip of the males. This tusk is in fact one of the whale's two teeth and was prized in medieval times. Narwhal live mainly in the Arctic Ocean and occasionally head upstream into freshwater.
The endangered seihval (sei whales), a baleen whale, swim off the coast of Finnmark and are named because their arrival corresponds with that of the sei (pollacks), which come to feast on the seasonal plankton. They can measure 18m and weigh up to 30 tonnes (calves measure 5m at birth). The annual migration takes the sei from the seas off northwest Africa and Portugal (winter) up to the Norwegian Sea and southern Barents Sea in summer.
Finhval (fin whales) measure 24m and can weigh 80 tonnes. These whales were a prime target after the Norwegian Svend Føyn developed the exploding harpoon in 1864 and unregulated whaling left only a few thousand in the North Atlantic. Fin whales are also migratory, wintering between Spain and southern Norway and spending summer in northern Norway.
Spermsetthval (sperm whales), which can measure 19m and weigh up to 50 tonnes, are characterised by their odd squarish profile. They subsist mainly on fish and squid and usually live in pods of 15 to 20. Their numbers were depleted by whalers seeking whale oil and the valuable spermaceti wax from their heads. The fish-rich shoals off Vesterålen attract quite a few sperm whales and they're often observed on boat tours.
The largest animal on earth, blåhval (blue whales) measure around 28m and weigh in at a staggering 110 tonnes. Although they can live to 80 years of age, 50 is more common. Heavily hunted for its oil, the species finally received protection, far too late, from the International Whaling Commission in 1967. The blue whale is listed as Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which estimates blue whale numbers worldwide to be somewhere between 10,000 and 25,000; 341,830 blue whales were recorded as killed in the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic in the 20th century. Recent evidence suggests that a few hardy blue whales are making a comeback in the northeast Atlantic and blue whales are occasionally sighted in the waters surrounding Svalbard.
Grønlandshval (bowhead whales), or Greenland right whales, were virtually annihilated by the end of the 19th century for their baleen, which was used in corsets, fans and whips, and because they are slow swimmers and float when dead. In 1679 Svalbard had around 25,000 bowheads, but only a handful remains and worldwide numbers are critically low.
Late May to August These are ideal whale-watching months, coinciding as they do with the more hospitable summer temperatures. Sperm whales are the real prize at this time, although pilot whales are also possible. Andenes and Stø both have excellent whale-watching outfits.
Late October to mid-January or February Orcas (killer whales), humpback and fin whales are all possible in whale safaris from Tromsø.
The hvalross (walrus; Odobenus rosmarus) is one of the most charismatic and sought-after marine mammals for wildlife-watchers. In Norway, they live only in Svalbard, most notably on the islands of Prins Karls Forlandet and Moffen Island ( GOOGLE MAP ); summer safaris from Longyearbyen to the former are the best chance you'll ever get to encounter these behemoths of the sea.
Walruses measure up to nearly 4m and weigh up to 2000kg (most weigh between 800kg and 1700kg); their elongated canine teeth can measure up to 1m long in males. They spend much of their lives in shallow water at sea looking for molluscs, coming to land to rest and bask in the weak Arctic sun. Walruses can live up to 30 years in the wild, and may not breed until they reach 15; gestation lasts 15 to 16 months. Apart from humankind, the only natural predators able to kill walruses are polar bears and orcas (killer whales).
Although once heavily hunted for their ivory and blubber, the Svalbard population has increased to around 1000 since they became a protected species in 1952. The Atlantic walrus subspecies numbers an estimated 25,000 (compared with 10 times that number for Pacific walruses), but the great colonies of up to 8000 walruses are very much a thing of the past. The walrus is universally regarded as a keystone species for the health of the Arctic environment and remains Vulnerable according to the IUCN (www.iucnredlist.org).
Norway's waters shelter reasonable populations of bottlenose, white-beaked, Atlantic white-sided and common dolphins.
Seals are also commonly seen near the seashore throughout Norway and some inland fjords. The main species include steinkobbe (harbour seals), havert (grey seals), ringsel (ringed seals), grønlandssel (harp seals), klappmyss (hooded seals) and blåsel (bearded seals). Summer seaborne safaris that take you out to see seal colonies include from Stø and Tromsø.
AMarine Mammals of the North Atlantic (Carl Christian Kinze; 2003)
AA Field Guide to North Atlantic Wildlife: Marine Mammals, Seabirds, Fish, and Other Sea Life (Noble S Proctor & Patrick J Lynch; 2005)
ANorth Atlantic Right Whales: From Hunted Leviathan to Conservation Icon (David W Laist; 2017)
Norway is an excellent destination for ornithologists, with 473 species recorded here. The greatest bird populations are found along the coastline, where millions of sea birds nest in cliff faces and feed on fish and other sea life. The most prolific species include terns, havsule (gannets), alke (razorbills), lundefugl (puffins), lomvi and teist (guillemots), havhest (fulmars), krykkje (kittiwakes), tjuvjo and fjelljo (skuas) and alkekonge (little auks). Lovers of the humble puffin should head for Runde, Bleik, Gjesvær or Svalbard.
The standout species among Norway's host of wading and water birds include the storlom (black-throated wading birds), smålom (red-throated divers; called 'loons' in North America), horndykker (horned grebes), åkerrikse (corncrakes) and Norway's national bird, the fossekall (dippers), which make their living by diving into mountain streams.
Norway is also home to at least four species of owl: jordugle (short-eared owls), spurveugle (pygmy owls), snøugle (snowy owls) and hubro (eagle owls).
The most dramatic of Norway's raptors is the lovely havørn (white-tailed eagle), the largest northern European raptor, with a wingspan of up to 2.5m; there are now at least 500 nesting pairs along the Nordland coast, Troms and Finnmark. Around the same number of kongeørn (golden eagles) inhabit higher mountain areas. The rare fiskeørn (ospreys) have a maximum population of 30 pairs and are seen only in heavily forested areas around Stabbursdalen and Øvre Pasvik National Parks, both in the far north. Stabbursdalen is also good for the endangered lesser white-fronter goose.
For Arctic species, both resident and migratory, the Varanger region of northeastern Norway is deservedly popular among birders. Signature species include Steller's eider, red-necked phalarope, tundra swan and eagle owl.