Polar bear threat to Solway geese
An Arctic expedition has confirmed fears that polar bears are preying on the eggs of barnacle geese which migrate to the Solway Firth each winter. Scientists recently discovered evidence of the bears eating thousands of
eggs. The polar bears are being stranded on land in the summer months because of the receding ice. They’ve turned to eggs as they’re unable to reach the seal colonies on which they usually feed. Brian Morrell, of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Centre at Caerlaverock on the Solway coast, recorded the increased polar bear activity while monitoring a barnacle goose colony on the Arctic island of Svalbard. He and other scientists from the Netherlands saw 10 polar bears roaming the
colony, with one bear eating more than 1,000 eggs in one sitting. Fewer than 40 out of more than 500 nests on the island were successful, and most of them had very small clutch sizes of only one or two goslings. The entire population of Svalbard barnacle geese fly south to winter on the Solway Firth before returning to breed in Svalbard each summer. Last winter, only half the expected number of goslings were seen as the flocks returned to the Solway, and reports from Svalbard indicate that the situation may be similar this winter. “The geese are very long-lived birds,” commented Brian Morrell, “and ironically their survival rate is increased if they don’t actually breed, especially the females. But, if their breeding continues to be affected in this way, the population will quickly age, which threatens its stability and the future conservation of this bird. “The situation is made all the more sad because the barnacle goose’s revival has been a conservation success story. In the 1940s, numbers had slumped below 300, but today up to 30,000 birds at a time can be seen on the Solway.” Historically, the geese have been relatively safe nesting on islands that are out of the reach of the Arctic fox, which has been the main nest predator. As increasing numbers of polar bears are foraging on the islands, researchers hope that the geese will adapt in time to reduce the damage to the total population. “Some of the goose colonies in Svalbard use cliffs to nest,” added Brian.
“Although that has its own problems for fledgling chicks, it does put the nests out of reach of marauding bears. It seems this will eventually be the only breeding strategy left to the geese.”
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The Nature of Scotland
NEWS
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