MEPS 630:215-225 (2019)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13136

ABSTRACT: Diets of apex predators can be used to understand the effects of environmental changes within an ecosystem and to monitor shifts in community dynamics. Using stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon (δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C) in polar bear Ursus maritimus guard hairs, we examined their diet in the Canadian Beaufort Sea from 2003 to 2011. We investigated how δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C were related to population demographics, sea ice dynamics, climate indices, air temperatures, and ringed seal Pusa hispida ovulation rates. Bayesian stable isotope models were used to determine annual variation in prey contributions and niche widths. Diet contributions from ringed seal, bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus, beluga Delphinapterus leucas, and bearded seal Erignathus barbatus varied by sex, reproductive status, and year. Polar bear ringed seal consumption was lowest and niche widths were highest in 2004 following ringed seal reproductive failure in the early 2000s, and polar bear δ¹⁵N decreased when ringed seal ovulation rate was high. Polar bear δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C were linked to capture locations, which may reflect geographic gradients in stable isotopes within the Beaufort Sea. Climate indices were not related to polar bear δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C. Sea ice dynamics were related to polar bear δ¹³C, suggesting that the bears’ diets shift in response to environmental change. Overall, these results highlight the biological link between polar bears and ringed seals, as well as sea ice dynamics, and the importance of considering geographic location in stable isotope studies.

KEY WORDS: Ursus maritimus · Polar bear · Beaufort Sea · Sea ice dynamics · Environmental change · Stable isotopes · Diet · Niche width