Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.2001, Side 129

ÚTBREIÐSLA OG TAL AV MÚSABRÓÐUR (TROGLODYTES) í FØROYUM
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pairs (Tab. 1). The 5 largest islands, togeth-
er constituting about 80% of the total area,
hold about 50% of the population. The 8
smallest islands (each < 11 km2), corre-
sponding to 3-4% of the total area, hold
about 25% of the total population. Mykines
stands out as perhaps the mosl prominent
island for wrens in the Faroes.
Fluctuations in breeding numbers be-
tween years were observed in the four plots
monitored for 5-10 years (Tab. 2). No sig-
nificant differences between the plots were
found and the pooled number of pairs var-
ied between 18 and 26 (variation being
17%) in those 5 years when all four plots
were censused, and CV ranged from 15 to
28% in the individual plots. Increases in
1985, 1987, and 1989 were in the order of
18-37% and the decrease in 1988 was 27%.
Discussion
Breeding wrens are widespread in the
Faroes occupying all islands and found
along all coasts or not far from the shore-
line, at and around settlements, on sea bird
cliffs, in puffin colonies, in crevices and
gullies (gjáir), on screes and among rocks
and boulders below cliffs, and in ravines
along the small water-courses descending
the sloping grasslands. They also breed, al-
though more scattered, inland in the same
crannied environments just described,
where damp, sheltered conditions and fre-
quently luxuriant vegetation at altitudes up
to 300 m a.s.l. (occasionally higher), pre-
vail. Nearly 25% of the pairs are estimated
to breed in the sea cliffs and about 50% in
the outfields (the remaining 25% being
found at the settlemets and in infields)
which, in its habitat-use, makes the Faroese
wren very much a rock bird. Interestingly
enough, the small plantations found on
some of the islands have attracted several
other woodland species of birds that do not
normally breed (or have just started to do
so) in the Faroes, e.g. robin (Erithacus
rubecula), goldcrest (Regulus regulus), and
Table 2. Numbers ofbreeding pairs ofwren infour plots censused over 5-10 yr in the Faroes. Calculations
based on <4 plots are given in brackets and ? refers to lack ofdata.
Year Mykines Tjørnuvík Haldarsvík Kirkja Total Change (%)
1983 ? 4 ? ? ? ?
1984 5 3 4 6 18 (- 25)
1985 ? 4 6 10 ? (+ 54)
1986 6 3 5 8 22 (-20)
1987 7 4 6 9 26 + 18
1988 5 2 5 7 19 -27
1989 6 5 7 8 26 + 37
1998 ? 2 4 ? ? ?
2000 ? 4 5 ? ? ?
2001 ? 4 7 ? ? (+22)
# years 5 10 9 6 5
Range 5-7 2-5 4-7 6-10 18-26
CV (%) 15 28 21 18 17