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SITE NAME
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East Bay, Southampton Island, Nunavut, Canada
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| Contact details
(phone/fax//e-mail//address): |
| (613)990-2384/(613)998-0458(fax) // paulallen.smith@ec.gc.ca // National Wildlife Research Centre, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0H3, Canada
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PROJECT DETAILS |
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Project name:
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Shorebirds of East Bay
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Start of survey:
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End
of survey: |
Team
size: |
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01.06
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20.07
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4
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WEATHER
CONDITIONS
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| Season phenology: |
average
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Weather conditions: |
| Snow cover was heavy upon our arrival on 1 June, but melted quickly: to 50% cover on 5 June, and completely on 10 June. We encountered a severe storm on June 24, which happens annually on or very near that day (perhaps a striking coincidence, but consistent within ñ4 days over 7 years!). As is normal for this area, winds were moderate to high throughout peak shorebird hatching. Heavy rains and high winds on July 5th and July 7th may have caused problems for newly hatched chicks.
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| Date of 50%
snow-cover: |
05.06
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| Date of ice-break on
rivers: |
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| Date of final loss of
snow: |
10.06
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BIOTIC
CONDITIONS
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| Rodents abundance evaluation: |
low
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Breeding conditions:
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| Breeding success continues to decline at East Bay; overall nest success of shorebirds was 9% this year. There has been a striking downward trend in success since 2001. The cause of this trend is unclear, however lemmings have been scarce to moderately scarce since that year. Uniparental species (Red Phalarope, Western Sandpiper and Pectoral Sandpiper) were much more common breeders in 2006 at nearby Coats Island, but this trend was not seen at East Bay.
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Rodent dynamics:
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| Abundance of Greenland Lemmings was low to moderate and Brown Lemmings low. Capture data were collected using snap-trap transects.
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Rodent species recorded:
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| Latin | Abundance |
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| Lemmus trimucronatus | rare |
| Dicrostonyx groenlandicus | rare |
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Summary
of fauna studies: |
| Detailed studies of all shorebirds species were made. We studied terns, gulls and waterfowl less intensively. All parameters of basic breeding ecology were recorded, such as nest success, nesting densities, timing of peak lay and hatch, etc.
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