Devon Fredericksen
Devon Fredericksen
Vibeke Steinsholm
Vibeke Steinsholm

For at least 400 hundred years, and possibly as many as a thousand, the bird keepers of Vega, Norway have linked themselves to the common eider duck. This relationship between wild ducks and humans is a mutualistic one, in which eiders benefit from the houses and nests that the humans build, and the people benefit from the down that is ethically collected at the end of each nesting season. This tradition has been recognized by UNESCO as culturally significant, and the Norwegian government even provides a small stipend to each bird keeper to help pay for the costs of their care. Unfortunately, seabird populations are declining around the world, including the common eider, making the work of the bird keepers even more urgent. In Vega, a tension exists between forward progress in the modern world and the “old-fashioned” ways of island life. Some bird keepers, like Vibeke Steinsholm, are working to preserve the tradition of eider tending and stoke the interest of the younger generations. Scientists, anthropologists, artists, and government officials have been working together to create multidisciplinary approaches and alliances through the project “Fuglan Veit,” which aims to employ a more-than-human approach to eider duck conservation. Keeping this link alive is about more than just continuing an age-old practice; it’s about seeing humans as part of the natural world, not separate from it.

Eider Ducks

Eider Ducks