Reindeer herders in the Mongolian mountains are paying the "first price" for climate change, with ice patches meant to remain intact even in the summer now thawing at an unprecedented rate.

Scientists say the livelihood of locals in the Khovsgol province of northwest Mongolia is under increasing threat, as the people there rely on the so-called "eternal ice" for clean drinking water and to cool down in warmer seasons.

Temperatures in the east Asian country, between Russia and China, are rising faster than the global average, with it having already been 1.5C (34.7F) warmer in the summer of 2001 than it was throughout the 20th century.

Image: Reindeer saddled for riding outside a Tsaatan camp in the Khovsgol province of Mongolia

William Taylor, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado Boulder, has led a study into how climate change is impacting the Tsaatan tribe, who he said are "literally at the front lines of climate change".

Mr Taylor added: "These are folks that contributed nothing to the problem that we find ourselves in globally, but they're the ones paying the first price."


Herders who spoke to the team of researchers said a number of ice patches had melted between 2016 and 2018, contributing to a decline in pasture quality that had inflicted sickness and death upon their reindeer.

Losing the animals will have a huge impact on their way of life, as they rely on them to travel.

Study co-author Jocelyn Whitworth, a veterinary researcher who owns an animal hospital in Colorado Springs, said the melting of the ice "compromises reindeer health and hygiene and leaves them more exposed to disease".

She said access to ice patches had been "critical" for the health and welfare of the reindeer over the years.

Image: An almost completely melted patch of of ice in the Ulaan Taiga Special Protected Area in northern Mongolia last year

Beyond the environmental and human impact of the ice melting, there are also concerns that it could affect archaeological records in the region.

An ancient willow fishing pole is among the items to have been obtained after being preserved inside snow and ice, which can safely protect artefacts for tens or even hundreds of years.

Thawing ice means such items are at risk of rapid degradation as a result of being exposed to the elements, which is a worry for archaeologists involved in the study, published in the journal Plos One.

Project co-director Dr Julia Clark, from Flinders University in Australia, said: "Archaeology is non-renewable.

"Once the ice has melted and these artefacts are gone, we can never get them back."