Bird remains from 17th century whaling stations on Spitsbergen (Svalbard)

• Main Authors: Wietske Prummel, Jørn T. Zeiler
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2002
• Subjects: Bage; Bellsund; Bergen; Gar’; Svalbard; bowhead whale; little auk; Spitsbergen
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.526.610; http://www.isez.pan.krakow.pl/journals/azc_v/pdf/45/15.pdf

Abstract. Bird remains from two 17th century whaling stations at the Bellsund on Spits-bergen (Svalbard) have been studied. Birds were fowled in summer, although presumably mainly in autumn or winter when the food supplies ran short. This seasonal fowling in autumn or winter may account for the scarcity of bones of the Little Auk, which is only on Spitsbergen during summer. Another factor that may have caused the low representation of Little Auk bones in the whalers ’ garbage pits is a possible preference for larger birds than the Little Auk. The scarcity of Little Auk bones in the studied whaling stations ’ gar-bage pits does not necessarily mean that the Little Auk was a rare bird in the 17th century. Key words: whaling stations, bird remains, bowhead whale, Little Auk, food preferences, seasonality.