Mass seabird deaths signal trouble for Arctic ecosystems

After thousands of migratory seabirds died in storms this winter, it remains to be seen how many will make it back to the Arctic this summer. So-called ‘wrecks’ highlight the need for a flyway approach to seabird management.

In the Arctic, seabirds are a happy sign of spring. The quiet coasts quickly turn into a flurry of action, with gulls, murres, puffins and other species coming to breed and raise their chicks for the summer before migrating away once again.

However, in the first few months of 2026, thousands of dead or dying seabirds, many of which would have likely migrated to the Arctic this spring have washed up along the Atlantic coasts of Western Europe. Over 10,000 dead puffins have been recorded so far, but because puffins typically spend winter out at sea in the North Atlantic, it’s expected that more deaths have yet to be recorded. Their die-offs, or “wreck” as scientists call it, is being attributed to severe storms that starved and exhausted the birds.

A changing Arctic ocean challenges seabirds

Major seabird wrecks may become more common as climate change transforms oceans and ecosystems.

“Seabirds are in trouble,” said Hallvard Strøm, Head of Section and Senior Scientist at the Norwegian Polar Institute. “Of almost 11,000 species, seabirds are the most threatened bird species on the planet.”

Hallvard Strøm has been working on seabird ecology since the 1990s, both with the Norwegian Polar Institute and with the Arctic Council’s Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna Working Group (CAFF). Over three decades, he has seen how climate change has made a profound impact on seabirds.

Global warming and sea ice retreat are some of the top stressors for seabirds in the Arctic. The loss of sea ice directly affects several species that rely on it for foraging, habitat and protection. The impacts have already been dramatic. The Ivory Gull for example has declined by 80-90% in the Arctic Archipelago and Atlantic Arctic since the 1990s.

Another key impact, according to Strøm, is the availability of food. The Atlantification of the Arctic – where warmer, saltier water and biota from the Atlantic Ocean extends northward to the Arctic Ocean – is changing seabirds’ food base. Species that usually live further south are moving into Arctic waters, and Arctic-adapted species are not only having problems finding the food they have specially adapted to, but also facing competition from species that they haven’t previously had to compete with.

“High Arctic species are in trouble,” said Strøm. “In several regions, Arctic seabirds are the losers while more southern species are the winners and are expanding northwards.”

Extreme weather poses a rising threat

According to Strøm, storms have always been a threat to seabirds. However, climate change is leading to more extreme weather, and combined with the other climate stressors seabirds face, we can expect to see more mass seabird die offs in the future.

“I’m afraid seabird wrecks will be both more frequent and stronger,” said Strøm. “The storms in themselves are a problem, as the birds then need to spend much more energy being out in the open ocean. When you combine this with less food availability, then it becomes really serious for the seabirds.”

“We have roughly 54 seabird species in Norway, and half of them are on the National Red List, at risk of going extinct here.” added Strøm. “These storms and seabird wrecks are making the situation worse.”

Hallvard Strøm has been investigating another large seabird die off that occurred in February 2026. Hundreds of emaciated thick-billed murres washed up off the coast of Bjørnøya and Spitsberg, two of the Svalbard islands.

The thick-billed murre are among the most numerous and widespread of Arctic seabirds, and play an important role in Arctic marine food webs and in the lives of people in coastal communities. In summer, they nest in coastal colonies on narrow ledges of steep cliffs in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Scandinavia and Russia. They spend much of their time outside the breeding season at sea around the sea ice edge around Nova Scotia, northern British Columbia, Iceland and Greenland.

While Strøm hasn’t yet gotten the results from the autopsy, he’s convinced that the murres died of a combination of lack of food and harsh conditions.

“We have lost probably half the population of thick-billed murres in Norway over the last 10 to 20 years, which is very serious. The thick-billed murre is the backbone of many seabird colonies in Svalbard.”

Seabirds create a vital connection between sea and land

Seabirds play an important role as a bridge between sea and land. By feeding in the ocean and returning to their coastal nesting colonies, seabirds transport nutrients between marine and terrestrial ecosystems, enriching coastal areas.

The decline in seabirds therefore has a dramatic effect on the overall health of coastal ecosystems.

“Foxes usually have their den around seabird colonies. Geese, reindeer, waders – they are all dependent on this energy transfer from the sea to land. And when you have species like the thick-billed murre declining, it’s a serious problem for the entire terrestrial system.”

Strøm emphasized that seabirds have a very important yet complex relationship with the ecosystem, and their declines will have widespread consequences – although it’s difficult to pinpoint what all the implications will be.

Thick-billed murres are also an important food source for Arctic Indigenous Peoples and people living in Greenland, Canada and Iceland. Their sustainable harvest is therefore a key concern across borders.

Migratory seabirds link regions across the globe

Strøm points out that beyond creating a bridge between sea and land, seabirds also draw connections between regions across the world as they migrate between their breeding and wintering grounds. When it comes to seabird population monitoring and management, a lot of focus has been placed on breeding colonies rather than considering their entire migration route.

“Seabirds in Svalbard stay there two to three months out of the year and then they migrate to other areas. The Arctic tern for example winters down in Antarctica, and migrates along the coast of Africa. The conditions in their wintering areas are equally important, sometimes even more important than what happens in the breeding colonies during summer,” said Strøm.

To protect Arctic breeding seabirds means that conservation efforts can’t only take place in Svalbard or other countries they nest. It requires a coordinated approach and cooperation across state boundaries.

“I feel that this concept of connectivity has been a black box or forgotten in the discussion around the conservation of seabirds,” said Strøm. “We need to look at them as migratory species with many countries having a responsibility to protect them.”

Coordinating an international approach to conservation is an important role that the Arctic Council plays, according to Strøm. Through its Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna Working Group, the Circumpolar Seabird Expert Group (CBird) facilitates seabird conservation, management and research among circumpolar countries. One of its aims is to improve communication between seabird scientists, Indigenous Knowledge Holders, managers and the public inside and outside the Arctic.

Strøm is currently working with scientists, managers and Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Greenland, Iceland and Norway on a coordinated multinational approach to harvest management of thick-billed murres within the framework of the Arctic Council.

“Hunting thick-billed murres is an important cultural activity. As murre populations are declining, we are working together on how to regulate the hunt so that we both protect the murres and at the same time have a sustainable harvest. This is one consequence of declining populations that we have to adapt to.”

Uncertain outlook for this year’s breeding season

In terms of the outlook for this year, Strøm is curious how the recent mass seabird deaths may impact the breeding season in the Arctic.

“Are the birds back? Or will we have lost a massive amount during this winter? It will be very interesting to see in Svalbard this June,” said Strøm.

Strøm will travel to Svalbard in June to conduct field work on the seabirds.

“Another thing to keep an eye on is bird flu. We have had an outbreak again in Western Europe including Norway this winter and spring. So it might be that we get outbreaks in Svalbard this coming summer as well.”

Strøm points out that amidst all the rapid changes taking place in the Arctic and beyond, seabirds are trying to adapt.

“Seabirds are long lived. They are used to a tough environment. They can adjust, and that is the first thing they will do.”

The problem is that the changes are becoming so numerous, occurring so rapidly and creating different challenges in different places along migration routes, that it’s becoming harder for seabirds to adapt.

This is another reason to take a flyway approach to management, according to Strøm. Coordinating conservation across migration routes rather than relying only on national measures may help secure the best outcomes for the seabirds.

Reducing threats to seabirds

According to Strøm, the most effective way we can help seabirds is to reduce climate change and global warming. While this is the overarching long-term goal, there are other measures that can be done to reduce negative impacts on seabirds.

“Reducing bycatch of seabirds in fishery activities will improve mortality. Reducing contaminants in the ecosystem and pollution such as plastics and marine litter will improve both health and mortality,” said Strøm. Avian flu is another challenge that scientists are working to mitigate.

“The key point is that we can act on reducing some of these negative factors while we work on more long-term goals of mitigating climate change and pollution.”