The establishment of a breeding population of Smew Mergellus albellus in an atypical habitat on the Atlantic coast of Norway
Original version
Ornis Svecica 2015, 25:59-64Abstract
In recent years, the Smew Mergellus albellus has establisheda breeding population of minimum 15 pairs on thecoastal islands in Vikna municipality (65° N, 11° E) inCentral Norway. As a result, the current breeding distributionof Smew extends throughout northern Eurasia,from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. The habitatin Vikna is quite different from that of the coniferous taigazone, and the population is probably ground-nesting.We suggest that the westward range expansion, and theability to adapt to another habitat than the coniferous taigazone, can make the Smew better able to cope withfuture impacts of global climatic change than predictedby present models.
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