Risks To Polar Bears
By tony leather, 20th May 2012 | Follow this author
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In 2011, the global population is estimated at between 20,000 to 25,000 Polar Bears, divided into 19 sub-populations, eight of which are thought to be declining, concern now being expressed that species' survival is now threatened by climate change temperature rises.
Risks To Polar Bears
Were you aware that the First Scientific Meeting on the Polar Bear was held almost 50 years ago now, on September 1965, when 46 interested parties got together convened in Fairbanks, Alaska, concerned even then about the future fate of Polar Bears.
In those days there still commercial hunters, herding the bears toward waiting gunmen with a light aircraft, something roundly condemned in the media, leading to the 1973 signing of the International Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears and Their Habitat.
Polar B
To this day, ongoing and concentrated effort, on the improvement of scientific understanding of polar bears that began then as well are ongoing, and at that time, there were thought to be up to 30,000 examples of the species dotted around the whole of the Arctic.
In 2011, the global population is estimated at between 20,000 to 25,000 Polar Bears, divided into 19 sub-populations, eight of which are thought to be declining, concern now being expressed that species' survival is now threatened by climate change temperature rises.
Polar C
Polar Bears are truly creatures of the sea ice, rightfully dubbed Ice Bears by many, with the evolutionary adaptations - longer necks, elongated heads, small ears, massive forepaws and a layer of blubber - clearly demonstrate their suitability to life among Arctic ice floes, though this habitat is slowly disappearing.
Arctic sea-ice volumes were the second lowest ever recorded this year, thought by some to be in the early stages of a so-called death spiral, as it recedes more each year. The area or extent of the ice is just as important is the thickness of it.
In recent years, the continuous loss of oldest, thickest ice has meant that recovery of ice volumes in the winter months - from summer minimum extents - has slowed dramatically, and a November issue of Nature magazine claimed that the rate of Arctic sea ice decline is the worst in 1500 years.
Polar D
Not surprisingly, a July International Bear Association Conference study revealed that, even though Polar Bears are excellent swimmers, results proved that some bears regularly had to swim distances longer than 30 miles, one even managing, over an amazing thirteen straight days swimming, 426 miles, all bears being forced to swim further just to find food and habitat suited to their needs, because climate change is quite literally pulling the sea ice out from under the feet of these now perilously endangered creatures.
The amount of weight gained by a pregnant female prior to entering the den for winter hibernation is vital both for her and healthy cubs, so the less she has to eat, the less she has to build up that fat reserve. This can mean fewer cubs surviving and consequent population decline.
Polar E
Polar Bears are not necessarily a doomed species, becausde most scientists believe that enough ice will remain around the north-west of Greenland and the north-east of Canada to support a reasonable population.
Thing is though, that concentrations of atmospheric CO2 now exceed worst-case Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projections, carbon emissions actually increasing at record levels. Those incredibly beautiful Polar Bears may not be on the brink of extinction, but they will become much rarer, and difficult to find as time goes by.
Comments
20th May 2012 (#)
Pretty sad that we knew there were problems 50 years ago.. and little is done, in fact the human population has more than doubled in that time and increasing problems for the polar bears.
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20th May 2012 (#)
I could not agree more. Where mankind is concerned, inhumanity is just too prevalent
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