polar bears

Land-based food not nutritionally sufficient for wild polar bears, according to new study

A study, by San Diego Zoo Global conservationists, released this week (Sept. 12, 2016) is shedding new light on how scientists evaluate polar bear diet and weight loss during their fasting season. On average, a polar bear loses up to 30 percent of its total body mass while fasting during the open-water season. Although some scientists previously believed land-based foods could supplement the bears' nutritional needs until the sea ice returns, a new study published in the scientific journal Physiological and Biochemical Zoology has revealed that access to terrestrial food is not sufficient to reduce the rate of body mass loss for fasting polar bears.

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  • Earth & Climate

polar bears

Polar bears face higher risk of disease in a warming Arctic

Climate change and sea ice loss leaves polar bears exposed to more diseases, research suggests.




polar bears

Polar Bears Are Exposed to More Parasites, Viruses and Bacteria as the Arctic Heats Up

Pathogens are more common in polar bears living in the Chukchi Sea now than they were three decades ago, a new study suggests—but it's not yet clear what that means for the mammals' health




polar bears

Band-aids won’t save the polar bears: smarter climate adaptation needed - Insights Blog

The polar bear, floating mournfully away on an ice floe as his habitat melts around him, is perhaps one of the most well-travelled symbols of the impacts of climate change.




polar bears

Polar bears in a warming world: Q&A with Don Moore of the National Zoo

All bear species except for one live in either temperate or tropical woodlands. Only the polar bear is a stranger to the forest, living and […]

The post Polar bears in a warming world: Q&A with Don Moore of the National Zoo appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.




polar bears

Polar bears are walking on an ever-faster 'treadmill' of ice

Increased sea ice drift forces polar bears to expend more energy walking on a fast-moving 'treadmill' of sea ice.



  • Climate & Weather

polar bears

9 wild videos of polar bears

As polar bears struggle to survive in the fast-changing Arctic, MNN presents a tribute to the animals' legendary power, precocity and perseverance.




polar bears

Forget polar bears: Global warming will hit the tropics first

In the next decade, the tropics will suffer unprecedented climate change effects, long before the Arctic and its polar bears see big shifts.



  • Climate & Weather

polar bears

Live webcam offers rare glimpse of migrating polar bears

Explore.org has affixed several high-definition cameras to locations in Churchill, Manitoba, the 'Polar Bear Capital of the World.'




polar bears

How can lasers protect polar bears from oil drilling?

Polar-bear dens, where mama bears raise young cubs during the harsh Alaska winters, could be identified using laser technology.




polar bears

Polar bears changing hunting and dietary habits as ice shrinks

Polar bears have shifted to a diet of more land-based food in response to climate change and melting sea ice.




polar bears

Google Street View puts polar bears on the map

The conservation nonprofit Polar Bears International will use the 360-degree panoramas for educational outreach and scientific research.




polar bears

As polar bears wait, let's talk about ice

The world's southernmost population of polar bears is waiting for sea ice to form just weeks before the U.N.'s climate change conference.




polar bears

Coca-Cola cans go white for the polar bears

The new white Coca-Cola cans are part of a fundraising campaign to protect the Arctic.



  • Sustainable Business Practices

polar bears

Infographic: Polar bears in peril

Polar bears have ruled the Arctic for 100,000 years, but now they're struggling to keep up as the region undergoes a dramatic transformation.




polar bears

North Pole Marathon: Where the bitter cold slows you down and thoughts of polar bears make you go faster

Competitors from around the world line up on an Arctic ice floe to tackle one of the world's most difficult 26.2-mile races.



  • Fitness & Well-Being

polar bears

Polar bears need more food than we thought

The predators burn energy 1.6 times faster than previously thought, a study finds, helping explain why the loss of sea ice hits them so hard.




polar bears

This 'flock of sheep' was actually an unprecedented gathering of polar bears

Zoom in on this supposed image of sheep on a hillside and you'll be in for quite the surprise.




polar bears

10 fascinating facts about polar bears

From the color of their skin to their amazing swimming ability, polar bears are full of surprises.




polar bears

How many polar bears are there?

It's unclear exactly how many polar bears are left in the wild, but several populations likely face grave danger from climate change.




polar bears

CBD News: Statement by Mr. Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias, CBD Executive Secretary, on the Occasion of the International Forum on Conservation of Polar Bears And Jubilee Meeting of the Parties to the 1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears, Mosc




polar bears

Another Quote of the Day: Two Views on Polar Bears

In his erudite analysis of the global warming issue, Don Blankenship of Massey Coal expressed his opinion about the future of polar bears:




polar bears

Mesmerizing short film follows photographer through the Arctic, wolves and polar bears ensue (video)

Take a breathtaking 9-minute journey with wildlife photographer Vincent Munier through the beautifully bleak frozen North, you won’t be sorry.




polar bears

See what polar bears are up to right now

There's a new polar bear live cam in town ...




polar bears

A Russian village is being overrun by polar bears; this is not normal

Some 60 polar bears are loitering near Ryrkaipy in Chukotka Russia, a new occurrence which is prompting some to suggest permanent evacuation.




polar bears

Female hunter who kills polar bears says she has received death threats

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT. Jen Shears, 36, from Newfoundland, Canada, has been hunting since childhood and is now teaching her six-year-old daughter Aspen to hunt.




polar bears

Polar bears are being forced into CANNIBALISM by climate change and humans, scientist reveals 

A Russian scientist reveals the animals are feeding on each other in the Arctic as melting ice and fossil fuel extraction companies are forcing the animals out of their traditional hunting grounds.




polar bears

Why polar bears are killing, eating each other up