CONSERVATION OF MARINE BIRDS IN THE DANISH MONARCHY 



273 



As stated above, Denmark has (in relation to 

 its size) the largest number of sportsmen of 

 any nation in the world and the most inten- 

 sive shooting. The number of sportsmen 

 shooting ducks and shorebirds per 100 km 2 is 

 278 in Denmark, 28 in Sweden, 37 in Finland, 

 10 in Poland, 83 in Holland, 164 in Britain, 

 and 129 in Western Germany; the number of 

 ducks shot per 100 km 2 is 1,856 in Denmark, 

 39 in Sweden, 68 in Finland, and 129 in West- 

 ern Germany (Nowak 1973). This shooting is 

 undoubtedly of importance to dabbling duck 

 populations, which are popular as shooting 

 objects everywhere in Europe. 



Insofar as marine ducks are concerned, it 

 can be seen in Table 2 that appreciable num- 

 bers are shot in Denmark. The same is true for 

 other Scandinavian countries, whereas shoot- 

 ing on the high seas is rather modest in most 

 other European countries. The Danish bag un- 

 doubtedly makes up a significant proportion 

 of the total number of marine ducks killed 

 each year, but when the total number of ducks 

 in European waters is considered, the shoot- 

 ing pressure in Denmark appears to be of only 

 minor importance. However, the shooting, 

 particularly when undertaken from motor- 

 boats, is so noisy and makes such a dis- 

 turbance over large areas that the time for 

 seabirds to rest and forage is significantly re- 

 duced. It must also be noted that the number 

 of pleasure craft is steadily increasing in the 

 present period of prosperity, and that increas- 

 ing numbers of sportsmen will probably make 

 use of the free shooting in territorial waters, 

 since it is becoming more and more expensive 

 to lease hunting areas. 



To restrict seabird shooting, the Danish 

 Ornithological Society has recently (1975) 

 submitted a proposal to the Danish Govern- 

 ment, of which the following points are 

 relevant: 



The open season for dabbling ducks and 

 geese should begin 15 September except for 

 pintail (Anas strepera), shoveler (A. clypeata), 

 wigeon, and pochard species which should 

 not be hunted until 1 October; 



the open season for all diving ducks, as 

 well as for coot, should end 31 December; 



the open season for the great cormorant 

 should be restricted to the period between 15 

 September and 31 October; 



murres, razorbill, great-crested grebe 

 (Podiceps cristatus), and all species of loon 

 should be fully protected; 



it should be prohibited to shoot from 

 motorboats less than 1 km from the shoreline, 

 as well as in certain narrow sounds and fjords; 



it should be prohibited to shoot from 

 shooting-punts less than 100 m from the 

 shoreline; 



it should be prohibited to sell waterfowl 

 and shorebirds shot, except for eider ducks 

 and mallards (Anas platyrhynchos); and 



no shooting should be allowed between 

 sunset and one hour before sunrise. 



Oil Pollution 



Oil pollution incidents constitute one of the 

 greatest dangers to seabird populations in 

 Danish waters. The enormous masses of sea- 

 birds present in these waters throughout the 

 year, combined with the fact that Danish 

 waters contain some of the heaviest shipping 

 traffic in the world would give rise to anxiety 

 for oil disasters. The majority of all tanker 

 traffic from the Atlantic and the North Sea to 

 the Baltic passes through the Cattegat and 

 the narrow straits of the Sound, the Great 

 Belt, and the Little Belt, to supply a popula- 

 tion of about 100 million people. Up to 

 100,000 ships pass through these waters each 

 year, half through the Sound. 



There have been severe oil pollution disas- 

 ters every year since about 1935, accom- 

 panied by enormous mortalities of seabirds, 

 particularly marine ducks. The Danish Game 

 Biology Station, which has studied these 

 disasters (Joensen 1972o, 19726, 19736), has 

 noticed that the number of seabirds involved 

 has increased in recent years, in spite of in- 

 creased control by Danish authorities. 



Unfortunately, it appears that small 

 amounts of oil in the sea, originating from 

 cleaning the tanks of vessels, or from the re- 

 lease of a few tons of oil, are enough to create 

 mass mortality of seabirds when large concen- 

 trations of birds are present in the vicinity. 

 Such incidents have passed unnoticed in spite 

 of control measures. In no case has the source 

 of the pollution been traced (Joensen 

 19726:27). There has not yet been a real "oil 

 disaster" in the Danish waters similar to the 

 Torrey Canyon catastrophe. If such a disaster 



