The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is the largest terrestrial predator, famously adapted to the harsh conditions of the Arctic sea ice. In contrast, the puffin, such as the Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica), is a small, agile seabird that spends most of its life at sea, only coming ashore to breed in large coastal colonies. This size difference and habitat specialization often lead to curiosity about whether these two iconic Arctic residents interact as predator and prey.
The Short Answer
Polar bears do consume puffins and their eggs, but this is a rare and opportunistic occurrence, not a regular or significant part of their diet. Predation usually involves the bear raiding large seabird nesting colonies, consuming eggs or flightless chicks. Adult puffins are highly mobile and spend much of their time at sea, making them poor hunting targets for a land-based predator. This type of feeding provides very little caloric gain for a bear that can weigh between 350 and 700 kilograms.
The consumption of puffin eggs or chicks is a behavior displayed by bears that are food-stressed. It represents a fallback food source utilized during times of scarcity when their preferred, high-fat prey is unavailable.
Polar Bear Primary Diet
The survival of the polar bear is linked to the consumption of high-fat marine mammals, primarily the ringed seal and the bearded seal. These prey provide the energy and thick blubber necessary to endure long periods of fasting and the Arctic cold. The bear’s digestive system is optimized to process the high-lipid content of marine mammal blubber.
Polar bears utilize the sea ice as a hunting platform, employing specialized techniques to capture seals. Still-hunting involves waiting patiently near a seal’s breathing hole, or aglu, in the ice for the seal to surface. They also use a stalking method to ambush seals that are basking near the edge of the ice or breaking into the snow dens, or lairs, where ringed seals give birth to their pups.
The bear’s immense size, strength, and short, thick claws are adaptations for capturing and holding large, slippery prey, not for chasing small, quick animals. A single large seal can provide a polar bear with the caloric equivalent of hundreds of thousands of calories, which can sustain them for over a week.
Habitat Intersection and Opportunistic Predation
The interaction between polar bears and puffins is dictated by the geographical overlap of their habitats in coastal regions, such as Svalbard and parts of Greenland. Puffins nest in dense colonies on islands and sea cliffs, digging burrows to lay a single egg. This breeding season, which occurs during the summer months, coincides with the time polar bears are increasingly forced onto land.
The primary driver of this dietary shift is the reduction of Arctic sea ice, the bear’s primary hunting ground. As the ice melts earlier and freezes later, bears are stranded ashore for longer periods without access to their seal diet. Driven by hunger, these bears search coastal areas for available calories, leading them directly to seabird colonies.
When a food-stressed bear encounters a puffin colony, it systematically raids the nesting burrows, consuming the eggs and young chicks. While this provides temporary nutrition, studies show that polar bears are inefficient at this kind of foraging. The energy expended consuming small items does not effectively replace the energy lost from missing out on seals. This behavior is a sign of environmental pressure and food stress, rather than a natural dietary preference.