Polar bear depredation of a thick-billed murre fledgling in open water at Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut

• Published in: Polar Research
• Main Authors: Martyn E. Obbard, Christopher Di Corrado, João Franco, Roger Pimenta, Boris Wise
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 2022
• Subjects: climate warming; plasticity in foraging behaviour; uria lomvia; ursus maritimus; sea-ice loss; jumplings; geo; envir; Leopold Island; Nunavut; Prince Leopold Island; Polar Research; Sea ice; thick-billed murre; Uria lomvia; Ursus maritimus; uria
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v41.8176; https://doaj.org/article/adf14fdff7ce45ffa6b9160aaef62cb2

Sea-ice distribution and duration are declining across the circumpolar range of the polar bear (Ursus maritimus), resulting in a reduced access to ice-obligate seals, its primary prey. Consequently, polar bears may have increased reliance on alternative food sources in the future. Foraging on land is well documented but foraging in open water is less understood. We report the successful depredation of a thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia) in open water near Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, and discuss implications for understanding the behavioural plasticity of polar bears and their opportunistic foraging patterns.