Evidence of Population Declines among Common Eiders Breeding in the Belcher Islands, Northwest Territories
Information regarding the status of common eiders Somateria mollissima breeding in the Canadian Arctic is lacking. In 1997, we surveyed five island archipelagoes in the Belcher Islands in Hudson Bay (56 00'-57 30'N, 79 30'-80 00'W) from 3 - 23 July 1997. Our results were compared with eider surveys of the same islands completed between 1985-89 using a standard protocol. This study represents the first population trend data of any common eider population breeding in the eastern Canadian Arctic. 1416 nests were found on 431 islands; most (94.1%) while the female was still incubating.