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

Martyn E. Obbard; Christopher Di Corrado; João  Franco; Roger Pimenta; Boris Wise

doi:10.33265/polar.v41.8176

Martyn E. Obbard Wildlife Research and Development Section, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Peterborough, ON, Canada https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2064-0155
Christopher Di Corrado Garibaldi Highlands, BC, Canada
João Franco Bombarral, Portugal
Roger Pimenta Vancouver, BC, Canada
Boris Wise Durango, CO, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v41.8176

Keywords: Climate warming, plasticity in foraging behaviour, Uria lomvia, Ursus maritimus, sea-ice loss, jumplings

Abstract

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.

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