Thick-billed Murre Hunting in West Greenland, 1988-89

Abstract

Thick-billed murre (Uria lomyia) hunting by Inuit of West Greenland was surveyed during the winter and spring of 1988/89. Kill toll levels and age structure of the kill were determined for districts between Upernavik (73 degrees N) and Nanortalik (60 degrees N). Based on counts of the numbers of birds available for purchase at markets and on information from processing companies, an estimated 100,000 murres were killed for commercial trading purposes in 1988/89. Non-commercial hunting is harder to assess, but estimates based on the number of licences issued and the mean number of murres killed per day by non-commercial hunters indicate that between 190,000 and 293,000 murres are killed per annum. Thus the total kill toll is estimated to be between 283,000 and 386,000 murres annually. In Central West and Southwest Greenland the peak hunting period was November and December, but hunting continued to 15 March or until ice conditions prevented sailing. Age distribution of the kill was determined by classifying 6278 murres as "first-year" or "older" by the development of the cranium. In Southwest Greenland the proportion of older birds in the kill was always below 9%, whereas in Central West Greenland (Nuuk) the value increased from 27.5% in October to 75.8% old birds in March. About 90% of the murres killed in spring near major breeding colonies in Upernavik were adult breeding birds, and hunting near the breeding grounds is considered the major cause for population reductions. Murres shot in winter are mostly birds from colonies outside Greenland, but though it has yet to be proved, the immense kill of murres during the winter hunt probably affects the populations involved.

Key words: thick-billed murre, Uria lomvia, Greenland, Inuit, hunting, seabirds, population structure, resource management, hunting legislation