In recent years, polar bears in the Beaufort Sea have had to travel far outside of their traditional arctic hunting grounds which has contributed to an almost 30% decrease in their population.
In recent years, polar bears in the Beaufort Sea have had to travel far outside of their traditional arctic hunting grounds which has contributed to an almost 30% decrease in their population.
The bears’ home range, or the amount of space they need for food and other resources, was around 64% larger from 1999-2016 than it was in 1986-1998, according to a recent study in the journal Ecosphere.
“Having to travel farther means these bears are expending more energy which can threaten their survival,” said Anthony Pagano, a postdoctoral researcher in Washington State University’s School of the Environment and lead author of the study. “If we want to preserve the habitat of these amazing mammals, then we need to focus on the root of the problem, which is slowing global climate change.”
For the study, Pagano and colleagues from the U.S. Geological Survey used satellite tracking data to analyze the movement patterns of female polar bears from 1986-2016 in the Beaufort Sea area north of Alaska.
Their work showed over the last two decades polar bears are having to travel farther north of their traditional hunting grounds on the continental shelf to remain on their receding sea ice habitat.
Read more at: Washington State University
New WSU research shows over the last two decades polar bears are having to travel farther north of their traditional hunting grounds on the continental shelf to remain on their receding sea ice habitat (photo by Hans-Jurgen Mager on Unsplash).
