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 POLAR
BEARS
Polar bear is a potentially threatened specie which lives in circumpolar
north. Polar bears live in Russia, Alaska, Canada, in Greenland and
on Svalbard archipelago.
Biologists estimate the population of polar bears at 22,000 to 27,000
bears.
From 1950 until 1972 there were organised polar bear hunts for tourists
in Svalbard. 1973, hunting has been forbidden and now polar bear are
completely protected. On the Svalbard islands, their population has
rebounded from a low of about 1,000 to roughly 3,000.
Wild polar bears, unlike most other bears, are barely habituated to
people and are potentially dangerous to humans. Since 1973 five people
have been killed by polar bears in Svalbarda
Scientists are worried about the effects of pollution and global warming
on polar bears. PCB levels in the polar bears of Norway and western
Russia are two-and-a-half to seventeen times higher than those in
North American populations. PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) are damaging
their immune systems and affect their endocrine system. Scientists
have found that more than one per cent of polar bears in Svalbard
are hermaphroditic.
According to a report issued in November 2004 by the Arctic Council
and the International Arctic Science Committee, polar bears could
become extinct by the end of the century if present warming trends
continue in the Arctic. |
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