NUNAVUT — BIRDING, WILDLIFE AND WHALE WATCHING

Story and photos by Barb & Ron Kroll

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A blizzard of pudgy black and white birds spilled from the 285-metre cliffs. Black feet spread like rudders, they clumsily splash-landed on their bellies around us. Hundreds more jostled on rocky ledges for the best spots to protect their aquamarine eggs from hungry glaucous gulls. Here, at the eastern entrance to Hudson Bay, we're awe-struck by the 800,000 thick-billed murres nesting on Digges Island.

Polar bear. Nunavut.

We approached the island on Zodiacs (motorized rubber rafts) from the Lyubov Orlova. The ship explores Nunavut (pronounced Noo-na-vut) in July and August. The eastern 60 per cent of the Northwest Territories, Nunavut covers one-fifth of Canada. About 45 per cent is mainland. The rest is an archipelago.

Arctic wildlife

Besides thick-billed murres, we spotted falcons, gulls, terns, geese, loons and other birds. We focused our binoculars on twittering snow buntings and their chicks, a rough-legged hawk swirling above the cliffs, and common ravens scavenging a caribou carcass.

Walrus Island is a rocky outcrop at the western mouth of Hudson Bay. Its gently sloping edges are worn smooth from the hundreds of walruses who've hauled their massive bodies (adult males can weigh up to 1,400 kilos) up on shore to bask in the sun. More than 200 of them snuggle together to keep warm. Rousing occasionally, they swivel their flippers to scratch their wrinkled bodies. We drifted close enough to photograph the walruses without disturbing them.

Man examines walrus vertebrae. Nunavut.

Although eager to see polar bears, we soon learned that Nunavut's largest land-based carnivores must be treated with respect. When our ship's scouts spotted the white predator loping along Coats Island, the captain aborted his scheduled landing. Our admiration for their strength and endurance grew further, as we watched a polar bear swimming off the port side, more than 145 kilometres away from the nearest land.

Wildlife sanctuary

On Shaftsbury Inlet, we noticed a caribou on the horizon. Soon, three, then eight, trotted by us in a tawny tide. Like apparitions, they vanished over the hills, leaving only tulip-shaped tracks in their wake.

Purple saxifrage. Nunavut.

Sometimes we observed the presence of musk ox, caribou, Arctic fox, hares and lemmings by clues they left behind: tufts of fur caught on branches, fallen antlers, burrows and dens, piles of scat, footprints, and even carcasses and skeletons. On and off the ship, we kept our cameras and binoculars handy. If the captain announced: “Seals at 3 o'clock!” we’d dash to the upper deck to watch them pop their inquisitive whiskered heads above the water line.

Edible plant

From a distance, Nunavut's tundra looks devoid of life. Up close, however, it abounds with miniature plants. We discovered this Lilliputian garden by looking down — way down — on our knees and bellies.

There are more than 200 species of flowering plants in the Baffin Region. Within the area covered by a broad-brimmed hat, you can find 12 to 13 species.

Bird watching. Nunavut.

Brilliant pinky-purple splotches attracted us to clumps of fireweed. The young shoots make a delicious salad. (Cooked, they taste like asparagus.)

Whale watching

In the Canadian Arctic, the most common whale species are the bowhead, the beluga, the orca (killer whale) and the narwhal. The narwhal's spiraled ivory tusk, which is longer than a human male, incited 19th-century whalers to bring home rumors of unicorns. Most narwhals congregate in Lancaster Sound, around Bylot Island and along the eastern coast of Baffin Island.

On our more southerly route, we saw no narwhals, orcas or bowheads, but we did see pods of white belugas in Hudson Bay. These friendly and curious mammals have strange and complicated vocalizations, earning them the nickname: canaries of the sea.

It was a privilege to glimpse the plant, mammal and bird life in this pristine and harshly beautiful land. We look forward to returning to Nunavut, where the latitude lines converge, the summer sun never sets and the sea canaries sing.

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TRAVEL INFORMATION

Nunavut Tourism: www.NunavutTourism.com

Adventure Canada: www.adventurecanada.com

More things to see and do in Nunavut:

Arctic Cruise – Adventure Canada Expedition to Nunavut and Greenland

Nunavut - What to See and Do in East Arctic Canada

Lonely Planet Greenland and Arctic