Franz Josef Land and snow bunting. Some ivory gulls, little auks and Brünnich's guillemots opt to spend the winter on the islands. The polar bear population of Franz Josef Land lies within the Barents Sea subpopulation, which also includes polar bears inhabiting Svalbard and the western coast of Novaya Zemlya. In 2004, the Barents Sea subpopulation was estimated at 2,650. There is also a population of Arctic fox, which typically have their territories near seabird habitats. Being declared as a marine mammal sanctuary, the island has rich biodiversity of rare marine mammals. Three species of seals habit the archipelago. Harp seal is the
Sukhoy Nos Sukhoy Nos Sukhoy Nos, also Sukhoi Nos () is a cape on Severny, the northern island of the archipelago Novaya Zemlya, belonging to Arkhangelsk Oblast of the Russian Federation, projecting into the Barents Sea. The site lies near the southwestern corner of the island, very close to the Matochkin Strait, which separates Severny from Yuzhny, the southern island of the archipelago. The cape is composed of black and reddish shale. Underwater sandbars are located off of the cape's northern shore. Numerous birds nest on the steep cliffs, particularly loons. It was known for being a site of nuclear testing for