Ivory gull populations plummet

JOHN THOMPSON

The population of the ivory gull, a boisterous bird that inhabits regions of the upper Arctic, has plummeted over the last two decades.

Population counts done during the early 1980s found about 2,400 birds, while a survey done by the Canadian Wildlife Service this summer found only about 200 birds – a drop of 90 per cent.

“It’s an unfortunate, sad story,” said Mark Mallory, who conducted the recent counts for the Canadian Wildlife Service.

A similar count conducted last year showed about 400 birds. The surveys are part of a five-year intensive effort to determine the ivory gull’s population. The final year of counting will begin next summer.

The bird inhabits the southeastern tip of Ellesmere Island, the eastern coast of Devon Island, the Brodeur Peninsula on the northern end of Baffin Island, and Seymour Island, a tiny island just north of Bathurst Island.

“These are across the board. We’ve seen declines in all areas of Nunavut.”

Researchers aboard ships conducting seal counts also reported low numbers of the birds, strengthening the researcher’s findings. Inuit hunters have also noticed far fewer ivory gulls gather near the floe edge during the winter, or at the dumps of nearby communities.

The ivory gull isn’t actively hunted in Nunavut, although some hunters have expressed affection towards the bird for its brash behavior. It’s been known to swoop in after a polar bear or whale kill to plunder some of the fat, right in front of a hunter’s eyes.

“They’re very tenacious, and very brash.”

Although no hard numbers are available from other countries, researchers from Norway, Greenland and Russia have suggested their ivory gull populations are also in decline.

“The big kicker is, we don’t know why. We don’t have a good explanation.”

But researchers do have a few hunches. One is that an unsustainable number of gulls were hunted in Greenland during the 1980s, where migratory seabirds are eaten more often.

Researchers studying the bird found gulls with bands on their legs indicating their Canadian origin inside Greenlandic food markets during that time. The current number of ivory gulls hunted in Greenland is unknown.

Global warming could also play a factor. Ivory gulls nest on top of narrow peaks surrounded by glaciers, and spend their winters floating through the icy waters of Davis Strait on multi-year sea ice.

“It’s no surprise that we’re seeing changes. These birds are so dependent on the ice,” he said.

When the reason for their decline is found, it will likely also tell us something about Nunavut, he said.

“They don’t go very far away. They spend most their lives in Nunavut.”

Mallory said researchers are in the same position as police working on a crime file with a few anonymous tips, but little to back them up.

“We’ve got a bunch of leads, but not much evidence right now.”