Prey transects will be performed to survey and census the seasonal density of prey in the area. The aim of this project is to carry out the first study of the activity budget and feeding behaviour of Great Cormorants wintering in Greenland north of the Arctic Circle and to identify the behavioural adaptations which may allow these poorly insulated endotherms to cope with severe weather conditions. This type of information is necessary to understand how current predation, and its loss and restoration, shapes prey systems. Caribou responses to potential predators and scavengers will be evaluated by gathering data on foraging rates when exposed to simulated sounds of wolves, ravens, and novel and neutral stimuli projected through a speaker.
Comparisons are to be made with data already gathered on wolf-savvy caribou in Alaska.
Since 1991, ground-based surveys have been conducted throughout northeastern Greenland every spring or summer. Because wolf packs in the High Arctic undergo large perturbations, long-term baseline data are essential to accurately describe temporal and spatial distributions, to identify key habitats, and to monitor population trends. During the project's 9th field season, data on distribution, densities, pack sizes, and prey availability will be collected in a number of areas hypothesized to constitute key wolf habitat. At present, it is not known how global change will affect the carbon balance in Greenalnd. The overall objective of this project is to get abetter understanding of the microbial carbon dynamics in selected terrestrial and coastal ecosystems in Greenland.