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Abundance and energy requirements of eiders (Somateria spp.) suggest high predation pressure on macrobenthic fauna in a key wintering habitat in SW Greenland

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Abstract

The number of common eiders (Somateria mollissima borealis) in west Greenland declined dramatically during the twentieth century, supposedly because of human activities. However, their sensitivity to alternative drivers of variation, such as climate conditions, diseases or food availability, remains unstudied. In this study, we describe prey availability and assess the trophic coupling between eiders and their macrobenthic prey in a shallow inlet, Nipisat Sound; a key wintering habitat in the south-west Greenland Open Water Area. Macrobenthic species abundance and biomass were studied, and annual production was estimated by an empirical model, including environmental characteristics, fauna composition and individual biomass. In spring 2008, average macrozoobenthic abundance and biomass were 6,912 ind m−2 and 28.4 g ash-free dry mass (AFDM) m−2 (647 kJ m−2), respectively. Annual production was estimated at 13.9 g AFDM m−2 year−1 (317 kJ m−2 year−1). During the winters of 2008–2010, we monitored the number of common eiders (S. mollissima borealis) and king eiders (Somateria spectabilis) and observed a distinct peak in abundance during winter with up to 15.000 birds in Nipisat Sound. Based on physiological costs of different activities in combination with the observed behavioural pattern, we obtained an estimate of the energy required for eiders to balance their costs of living, which amounted to 58% of the estimated total annual production of macrobenthos in Nipisat Sound. This result suggests that eider predation affects macrobenthic species composition and biomass and demonstrates the potential importance of variations in prey availability for the population dynamics of eiders in Greenland.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to A. Haxen for linguistic corrections. We thank L. Heilmann and F. Heinrich for technical assistance. The authors were financially supported by The Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland (KVUG), The Ministry of Culture, Education and Churches (KIIP) and the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation. The project has received financial support from the Danish Energy Agency as part of the climate support programme to the Arctic and is a contribution to the Greenland Ecosystem Monitoring Program. The study was supported by the Danish Agency for Science, technology and Innovation and was a part of the Greenland Climate Research Centre.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Greenland Climate Research Centre, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Kivioq 2, Box 570, 3900, Nuuk, Greenland

    Martin Emil Blicher, Lars Maltha Rasmussen & Søren Rysgaard

  2. National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University, Vejlsøvej 25, 8600, Silkeborg, Denmark

    Martin Emil Blicher & Mikael Kristian Sejr

  3. National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark

    Flemming Ravn Merkel

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  1. Martin Emil Blicher
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Correspondence to Martin Emil Blicher.

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Blicher, M.E., Rasmussen, L.M., Sejr, M.K. et al. Abundance and energy requirements of eiders (Somateria spp.) suggest high predation pressure on macrobenthic fauna in a key wintering habitat in SW Greenland. Polar Biol 34, 1105–1116 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-011-0968-3

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