The diets of common and Brünnich's guillemots Uria aalge and U. lomvia in the Barents Sea region

• Published in: Polar Research
• Main Authors: Barrett, Robert T., Bakken, Vidar, Krasnov, Juri V.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 1997
• Subjects: Barents Sea; Bjørnøya; Finnmark; Norwegian Polar Institute; Polar Research; Tromsø; Uria aalge; Spitsbergen; uria
• Online Access: https://polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/1909; https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v16i2.6626

Guillemots Uria spp. account for ca. 70% of the total harvest of prey taken by seabirds breeding in the Barents Sea region. This paper presents guillemot chick diet data collected recently at four localities (Finnmark, Murman, Bjørnøya and Spitsbergen) and collates all the data found by the authors in the literature and in the archives of Tromsø Museum, the Norwegian Polar Institute and Kandalaksha State Nature Reserve. Guillemots consume a wide variety of prey and, in comparison to the harvest by predatory fish and marine mammals, their impact on the Barents Sea ecosystem is considered to be minimal. We point out the need for more systematic collection of data from different regions and at different times of the year before a final impact assessment can be made.