Fraser Island (NU024)

Hudson Strait, Nunavut

Site Description

Fraser Island is a small island located off the northwestern tip of Nottingham Island (at the western mouth of the Hudson Strait). Apart from the adjacent Nottingham Island, Fraser Island is completely surrounded by the open ocean. It is a rocky place with uneven terrain and only sparse vegetation. Neither Fraser Island nor Nottingham Island is inhabited and the closest community, Cape Dorset, is 120 kilometers to the northeast on Baffin Island.

Birds

A large number of Common Eiders breed on this remote island. Although precise estimates are unavailable, it thought that between 1,000 and 3,000 pairs were present in the early 1980s (at least 1%, to as much as 3% of the borealis population). More recent surveys have not been completed. This is the northernmost of the eastern Common Eider subspecies; the other two, dresseri and sedentaria, breed along the Atlantic coast and the Hudson Bay and James Bay coasts respectively.

Conservation Issues

There are no known threats to the eider colony on Fraser Island. This is primarily due to the isolated nature of the island. It is likely that the nesting eiders will remain undisturbed unless significant changes in human activity occur within the region. Fraser Island was identified as a Key Migratory Bird Terrestrial Habitat site in the early 1990s.

IBA Criteria Habitats Land Uses Potential or Ongoing Threats Conservation Status