Status of the common eider breeding in the municipality of Avanersuaq (Thule), north-west Greenland

Abstract

Late in the summers of 1997 and 1998 surveys of common eider (Somateria mollissima) colonies were conducted throughout Avanersuaq Municipality in north‐west Greenland. Although old information from eider colonies was available, these surveys provided the first almost all colonies in the district, thereby improving the baseline data for assessing future population changes. The surveys were based on nest counts, and all but two colonies in the district were counted, In total, 3800 nest were counted and an educated guess for the total population in Avanersuaq Municipality, including the two inaccessible colonies, would be around 5000 pairs. Average clutch size was 3.74 similar to or higher than in other areas of Greenland and high Artic Canada suggesting favourable conditions for eiders in the survey area. Comparison with older data suggests that the breeding population in Avanersuaq is stable. This observation contrasts with the declines ocserved in other parts of Greenland. Further studies into possible population specific mirigation routs and wintering areas as well as the direct and indirect effects of the intensive winter hunting in south‐west Greenland are warranted.

Evidence of Recent Population Recovery in Common Eiders Breeding in Western Greenland

“…However, this explanation is purely speculative, because I have no direct information about recruitment in the study area and because it is unclear how nest parasitism influenced the analysis of clutch sizes. The overall mean clutch size of 3.7 eggs/nest is higher than previously reported for this area (3.3 eggs/nest; Joensen and Preuss 1972), but it was similar to clutch sizes reported further north (3.7 eggs/nest; Christensen and Falk 2001) and further south (3.8 eggs/nest; Frich et al 1998) in West Greenland and also in Labrador (3.5-4.2 eggs/nest; Chaulk et al 2004Chaulk et al , 2005b.…”

“…The common eider is a common breeder in West Greenland, and Greenland probably sustained L 150,000 eiders at the turn of the 19th century (Müller 1906). However, apart from some stable colonies in the most northern breeding area (Qaanaaq; Christensen and Falk 2001), a large decline in breeding numbers occurred during the 20th century (Salomonsen 1967, Boertmann et al 1996. The most recent and best documented decline is from the central-northern part of West Greenland (69uN-74uN), where an 80% reduction in breeding numbers occurred during 1960-2000 (Merkel 2004a).…”

Evaluating the Sustainability of Harvest Among Northern Common Eiders Somateria Mollissima Borealis in Greenland and Canada

“…Mean harvest estimates in Greenland (H af and H aw ; see Table 2), were based upon eight years of data from surveys of hunters (1993-2000Piniarneq 2003). However, female eiders are rarely identified 19600 1998Frich et al 1998, Christensen & Falk 2001, Merkel 2004b - to species by hunters so that both female common and king eiders Somateria spectabilis are reported as common eiders. To address this, we applied a correction factor developed by examining eiders at the community market in Nuuk, Greenland, in the winters of 1988/89, 1995/96 (Frich & Falk 1997) and 2000/01 (Merkel 2004b).…”

“…The number of females wintering in Greenland (231,500) was half the number of wintering eiders surveyed in 1999 (463,000 birds, 95% CI: 342,000-627,000; Merkel et al 2002, Boertmann et al 2004). Limited ground surveys during the past 25 years produced a minimum estimate of 10,000 breeding pairs of common eiders in west Greenland (Boertmann et al 1996), although more extensive surveys in 1997-2001 suggest a breeding population of 15,000 pairs (Frich et al 1998, Christensen & Falk 2001, Merkel 2002. Eiders breeding in northeast Greenland winter in Iceland, whereas the wintering area of the relatively few eiders breeding in southeast Greenland is unknown (Lyngs 2003).…”

Composition of Eiders Harvested in Newfoundland

“…The breeding population of dresseri in Newfoundland is currently depressed but is showing signs of recovery, while borealis birds breeding in Canada and Greenland are showing different regional trends and face different harvest pressures (Chaulk et al 2005, Christensen and Falk 2001, Gilliland et al 2009, Merkel 2004a). It is also not possible to distinguish subspecies during aerial surveys, so estimates of subspecies composition are essential for determining the size of these wintering populations from aerial survey data.…”