I would love y'alls opinion on this argument essay. Thanks a bunch!

Arctic deer live on islands in Canada's arctic regions. They search for food by moving over ice from island to island during the course of the year. Their habitat is limited to areas warm enough to sustain the plants on which they feed and cold enough, at least some of the year, for the ice to cover the sea separating the islands, allowing the deer to travel over it. Unfortunately, according to reports from local hunters, the deer populations are declining. Since these reports coincide with recent global warming trends that have caused the sea ice to melt, we can conclude that the purported decline in deer populations is the result of the deer's being unable to follow their age-old migration patterns across the frozen sea.

Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.

The author of this scientific reports argues that the decline of arctic Canada's deer population is due to changes in the weather pattern caused by global warming. However, the author needs to examine this logic, and consider several pieces of evidence before we can accept the claim as true.

First, the author needs to consider the impact of the hunters on the deer population. As the claim notes, it is the hunters who are reporting that the deer population is in decline, which could indicate that these arctic deer are coveted by these hunters. Before the hunters can be ruled out as a catalyst for the declining deer population, their role needs to be understood. For example, a study should examine the number of deer hunting permits issued over the past five years to rule out the possibility of over-hunting. If there is an increased number of hunting permits, it could be an indication that over-hunting could be a contributing factor to the declining deer population. Only by understanding how the hunters impact the population of the deer, can a definitive statement be made on the cause of the deer population’s decline.

Furthermore, the author needs to study the impact of global warming on the region, and not rely on the overall global trends of climate change. While the author is correct in asserting that the overall impact of climate change has had deleterious effects on the world’s arctic regions, the author needs to provide specific data on the region referenced in the claim. The claim merely notes “trends that have caused the sea ice to melt,” and does not explain whether these trends are applicable. The author failed to provide specific information on climate change’s impact to the deer’s habitat, and instead relied on generalities about climate change. Results from a longitudinal study over the region’s climate and ice levels would provide the evidence necessary to indicate that global warming is to blame for the declining deer population. However, without specifically explaining climate changes’ impact on the region in question, it cannot be definitively argued to what extent climate change played a role.

Finally, the argument rest specifically on the belief that an inability for the deer to follow old migration patterns caused the dip in the deer population. However, this belief ignores the possibility of other more immediate factors that could explain the declining number of deer. Any number of changes to the ecosystem could have negatively impacted the wildlife of Canada’s arctic region. One potential cause could be an increase in commercial activity in the area. Drilling for natural resources, trucking, or any other uptick in commercial activity could have caused the deer to leave the region or negatively impacted the deer’s food source. The increased presence of motor vehicles could result in a number of deer being killed in traffic incidents. Overall, the author needs to provide a longitudinal study of activity in the area to rule out any factors besides global warming.

In conclusion, the author argues that climate change disrupted the deer’s migration patterns which precipitated a decline in the number of deer in Canada’s arctic region. Unfortunately, with the information currently presented, it is unclear how much, if any, climate change is to blame for this situation. Only after several longitudinal studies which examine other potential causes-- such as the role of hunters, increased human activity, and the specific changes to the climate of arctic Canada-- can the true reason(s) for the decline in deer be sussed out.