🇸🇯Animals recorded in Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Which animals have been recorded in Svalbard and Jan Mayen? 2,819 occurrence records cover 406 species. The most-recorded are listed below, with what the record pattern says about each one. 359 is the most-recorded animal class; the leading species records include humpback whale, blue whale, Greenland Shark.

• 2,819 records
• 406 species
• 36 classes

Country evidence passport

The most-recorded species in this dataset include humpback whale, blue whale, Greenland Shark. Use the country list as evidence of recorded wildlife, then open a species to compare its records across other countries and months. It is not a complete habitat or population census.

Most-recorded animals in Svalbard and Jan Mayen

	Animal	Group	Records
	humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae	Mammalia Balaenopteridae	453
	blue whale Balaenoptera musculus	Mammalia Balaenopteridae	146
	Greenland Shark Somniosus microcephalus	Elasmobranchii Somniosidae	103
	walrus Odobenus rosmarus	Mammalia Odobenidae	78
	harp seal Pagophilus groenlandicus	Mammalia Phocidae	72
	Thick-billed Murre Uria lomvia	Aves Alcidae	58
	Northern Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis	Aves Procellariidae	56
	fin whale Balaenoptera physalus	Mammalia Balaenopteridae	52
	Barrett's horny sponge Geodia barretti	Demospongiae Geodiidae	49
	Boroecia maxima	Ostracoda Halocyprididae	46
	Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla	Aves Laridae	45
	Discoconchoecia elegans	Ostracoda Halocyprididae	45
	Obtusoecia obtusata	Ostracoda Halocyprididae	44
	polar bear Ursus maritimus	Mammalia Ursidae	43
	Raricirrus arcticus	Polychaeta Cirratulidae	41
	reindeer Rangifer tarandus	Mammalia Cervidae	41
	beluga whale Delphinapterus leucas	Mammalia Monodontidae	32
	Deep-sea Demosponge Thenea abyssorum	Demospongiae Theneidae	29
	minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata	Mammalia Balaenopteridae	27
	Glaucous Gull Larus hyperboreus	Aves Laridae	26
	Liljeborgia fissicornis	Malacostraca Liljeborgiidae	23
	Parasitic Jaeger Stercorarius parasiticus	Aves Stercorariidae	22
	Black Guillemot Cepphus grylle	Aves Alcidae	22
	Arctic fox Vulpes lagopus	Mammalia Canidae	21
	Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea	Aves Laridae	19
	Atlantic Ocean Perch Sebastes norvegicus	— Sebastidae	19
	orca Orcinus orca	Mammalia Delphinidae	18
	Ivory Gull Pagophila eburnea	Aves Laridae	17
	Hentschel's horny sponge Geodia hentscheli	Demospongiae Geodiidae	17
	bearded seal Erignathus barbatus	Mammalia Phocidae	17
	Dovekie Alle alle	Aves Alcidae	17
	pavilion horny sponge Tentorium semisuberites	Demospongiae Polymastiidae	16
	Common Eider Somateria mollissima	Aves Anatidae	16
	Nymphon stroemi	Pycnogonida Nymphonidae	16
	Gyptis golikovi	Polychaeta Hesionidae	16
	Caulophacus arcticus	Hexactinellida Rossellidae	15
	Eumida arctica	Polychaeta Phyllodocidae	15
	Snake Blenny Lumpenus lampretaeformis	— Stichaeidae	15
	Sclerolinum contortum	Polychaeta Siboglinidae	14
	daubed shanny Leptoclinus maculatus	— Stichaeidae	13
	Atlantic Puffin Fratercula arctica	Aves Alcidae	13
	Boroecia borealis	Ostracoda Halocyprididae	13
	Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis	Aves Anatidae	13
	Purple Sandpiper Calidris maritima	Aves Scolopacidae	11
	Nymphon hirtipes	Pycnogonida Nymphonidae	10
	twohorn sculpin Icelus bicornis	— Cottidae	10
	Snow Bunting Plectrophenax nivalis	Aves Calcariidae	10
	Apherusa glacialis	Malacostraca Calliopiidae	9
	Geodia parva	Demospongiae Geodiidae	8
	Deepwater Redfish Sebastes mentella	— Sebastidae	8
	bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus	Mammalia Balaenidae	8
	Common Murre Uria aalge	Aves Alcidae	8
	Great Skua Stercorarius skua	Aves Stercorariidae	8
	Arctic Eelpout Lycodes reticulatus	— Zoarcidae	8
	Vahl's Eelpout Lycodes vahlii	— Zoarcidae	8
	Leieschara coarctata	Gymnolaemata Myriaporidae	7
	Heliometra glacialis	Crinoidea Antedonidae	7
	ribbed sculpin Triglops pingelii	— Cottidae	7
	King Somateria spectabilis	Aves Anatidae	7
	northern white chiton Stenosemus albus	Polyplacophora Ischnochitonidae	7