Why is polar bears endangered

Today, legal harvesting continues on a limited basis for Indigenous peoples, based on quota systems. These hunts have long been an important part of Aboriginal cultural traditions and provide important nutritional benefits in some regions.

As we head into a less stable future, vigilance is needed to make sure these limited hunts remain sustainable. Given the nature and breadth of the threats polar bears face, it will take adaptive management today——coupled with aggressive action on climate change globally——for the species to survive in the long run.

Conservation Concerns. Living with Polar Bears. Discover Polar Bears. Popular Polar Bear Tracker. Endangered Status. Our Impact. Our Team. Polar Bear Tracker. Just for Kids. Polar Bear Cams. The Endangered Species Act is under attack. Please tell Congress to defend this crucial law. Join now. Your support is key in our work protecting species and their habitat. Press releases Editorials and letter to the editor on rescinding the 4 d rule Search our newsroom for the polar bear. Polar bear videos from Hudson Bay, Canada, Polar bears and Center staff on Hudson Bay, Canada, videos with narrative Heartbreaking video footage showing the dire effects of global warming on polar bears Video: Frostpaw the Polar Bear.

Mangelsen, ImagesOfNatureStock. As the bears spend longer periods without food, their health declines. For every week earlier the ice breaks up in Hudson Bay, bears come ashore roughly 10 kg 22 lbs lighter and in poorer condition. Unhealthy bears can mean lower reproduction rates, higher cub mortality — and eventually, local extinction.

The main causes of death for cubs are lack of food or lack of fat on nursing mothers. As top predators, polar bears are exposed to high levels of pollutants through their food. The popular image is of polar bears living in a pure, frozen wilderness is misleading. The Arctic food chain contains high levels of some toxic chemicals. Bears with high levels of some POPs persistent organic pollutants have low levels of vitamin A, thyroid hormones, and some antibodies. These are important for a wide range of biological functions, such as growth, reproduction, and the ability to fight off diseases.

Females with partially-developed male sexual organs -- Pseudohermaphrodites -- have been observed in 1. Scientists believe this could be the result of long-range pollutants. Best estimates say there are 20, to 30, polar bears in 19 different groups or populations scattered across the top of the U. Four of these populations are considered to be declining.

Bears in the Beaufort Sea region are among the best studied and their numbers have fallen 40 percent in the last ten years. Five populations are thought to be stable and there's not enough known about the others to judge.

See how scientists are trying to track polar bears across vast areas of Russia. Polar bears are considered endangered in the U. Bears can lose weight fast but also gain it back quickly if they can catch seals.

The farther the bears have to travel to get on the ice to hunt the more weight they lose. Eventually they start losing muscle, hurting their chances of hunting success, which can lead to a downward spiral. Bears are also doing a lot more swimming as the sea ice declines, said Derocher.

Although capable of swimming long distances, polar bears burn far more energy doing so than walking, a recent study published in Polar Biology found. One female bear Griffen studied swam miles over nine days. She lost 22 percent of her body weight and, worse, lost the nursing cub that had started the journey with her. More swimming could lead to smaller bears, reduced reproduction rates, and even increased risk of death—something already being seen in western Hudson Bay and around the southern Beaufort Sea, Griffen said.

I do know that the only solution for the long-term survival of the polar bear is to address climate change.

All rights reserved. Share Tweet Email. Read This Next Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London.