Low abundance of King eider nests during low lemming years in Northeast Greenland

ABSTRACT. Long-term surveys on Traill Island (Northeast Greenland) show that numbers of king eider (Somateria spectabilis) nests are correlated with high densities of collared lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus). These observations match other zoological records from this region and agree with simil...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Benoît Sittler, Olivier Gilg, Thomas B. Berg
Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 2000
Subjects:
Arctic
Greenland
Collier
Alopex lagopus
Arctic Fox
Arctique*
Dicrostonyx groenlandicus
Groenland
King Eider
Somateria spectabilis
Traill Island
Online Access:http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.408.8728
http://www.helsinki.fi/~ihanski/Articles_by_others/Arctic 2000 Sittler et al.pdf
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Summary:ABSTRACT. Long-term surveys on Traill Island (Northeast Greenland) show that numbers of king eider (Somateria spectabilis) nests are correlated with high densities of collared lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus). These observations match other zoological records from this region and agree with similar observations recorded elsewhere for arctic geese. Processes at work may be related to the fact that mammalian predators focus on lemmings when lemming numbers are high, but exert higher predation pressure on other prey at low lemming densities. Predators seem to increase their search effort during such low lemming years, thus increasing the likelihood that they will discover eider nests. This study highlights the importance of studying patterns at the community level in any attempt to interpret cyclic fluctuations in northern ecosystems. Key words: arctic fox, Alopex lagopus, collared lemming, Dicrostonyx groenlandicus, Greenland, king eider, Somateria spectabilis, population cycles, predation RÉSUMÉ. Une étude à long terme menée sur l’île de Traill (nord-est du Groenland) a mis en évidence que le nombre de nids d’eiders à tête grise (Somateria spectabilis) est corrélé à de fortes densités de lemming à collier (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus). Ces observations sont identiques à celles des autres relevés fauniques réalisés dans cette région et confortent des constats similaires sur le succès de reproduction des oies arctiques. Le déterminisme de ces phénomènes semble être lié au fait que les mammifères prédateurs se concentrent sur les lemmings lorsque ces derniers sont abondants, mais exercent une pression de prédation plus forte sur les autres espèces lorsque les lemmings se font plus rares. L’effort de recherche des prédateurs semble augmenter durant les

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