Long-term monitoring dataset on seabirds at Coats Island (Akpatuurjuaq,ᐊᑲᐸᑑᕋᔦᕋᑲ), with a focus on thick-billed murres (Uria lomvia). Data were collected annually from 1981, with exceptions in 1982, 1983, 2012, 2014, 2020, and 2021, making it the second-longest individual-based monitoring program for any Arctic bird. The dataset was initiated by the Canadian Wildlife Service and is authored by Kyle Elliott from Borealis Harvested Dataverse.
Use Cases
- Modeling population survival rates based on long-term banding records of adults and chicks.
- Analyzing shifts in seabird diet composition as an indicator of Atlantification in the Arctic.
- Studying the effects of environmental change on reproductive success and chick growth rates.
- Informing harvest management policies for thick-billed murres under the Migratory Birds Convention Act.
Strengths
- Over 40 years of data collection, starting in 1981.
- Focus on thick-billed murres, described as one of the most well-studied seabirds globally.
- Includes multiple biological metrics: banding, population counts, chick diet, growth rate, adult mass, and reproductive success.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Data collection was interrupted for several years (e.g., 2012, 2014, 2020, 2021).
Provenance
- Source
- Canadian Wildlife Service, project launched in 1981.
- Collection Method
- Annual field monitoring involving banding, population counts, and biological measurements.
- Time Range
- 1981 to present, with annual collection and noted gaps.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-05-02 04:11:26; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Coats Island (Akpatuurjuaq), northern Hudson Bay, Nunavut, Canada.