Polar bear
About the species
The Latin name for polar bears, Ursus maritimus, means ‘sea bear’, and reflects the fact that the species spends much of its life in or around water. An excellent swimmer, it uses its front paws like oars and its hind legs like a rudder.
The polar bear inhabits the ice-covered waters of the Arctic, spending much of its time at or near the edge of the sea ice, where it is most likely to find food. It can be found in Greenland, Svalbard (Norway), northern Canada, Alaska (US) and Russia.
Its habitat depends on the movement of the sea ice. As the Arctic ice cap melts in the summer, some bears follow the retreating ice to stay close to seals and other prey, while others become stranded and spend their summers on land, living off stored body fat. When the ice returns in the autumn, the bears go back to the sea ice once again.
There are an estimated 20,000-25,000 polar bears in the world, living in 19 subpopulations. These different groups overlap considerably, and the genetic differences between them are small.
The polar bear is listed as ‘vulnerable’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species. The US government recently listed it as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, citing the risk of the species eventually becoming extinct due to the melting of its sea ice habitat.
Challenges and threats
Climate change is the biggest threat to the polar bear. In 2007, the summer thawing of arctic sea ice broke all records and advanced dramatically further than predicted. The polar bear uses the ice for hunting, and a reduction in sea ice makes access to its prey more difficult, meaning it may not put on enough weight to survive the summer season. Less access to food could also lead to a decrease in reproduction rates, and smaller offspring that are less likely to survive to adulthood. If climate change predictions are correct and summer sea ice in the Arctic disappears in the next 20-30 years, polar bear numbers will be greatly reduced.
Increased industrial activities in the Arctic, including oil and gas exploration and development, are escalating the deterioration of the polar bear’s remaining fragile habitat. Furthermore, there is no proven technology to combat oil spills in ice-covered water. A large oil spill could devastate the Arctic marine environment.
An oil spill can affect all marine species. Toxin levels increase moving up the food chain and are highest in top predators such as polar bears. High levels of toxins from the oil accumulate in the fat of the bears, which can potentially cause health problems relating to reproduction, hormone function, development, and immunity.
Polar bears exposed to spilt oil and other toxic chemicals absorb large quantities of these substances, which can harm the insulating properties of their fur, cause hair loss, and irritate and skin and eyes. When the polar bear grooms itself, it ingests the oil and toxic chemicals; this can lead to brain damage, kidney failure and damage to the digestive system that can result in death.
WWF in action
WWF is working to maintain a healthy Arctic environment with undisturbed ecosystems and healthy populations of wildlife.
We do this in two ways: the first is to tackle climate change – the most important step that can be taken to protect polar bears is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions responsible in part for the melting of the polar bears’ sea ice habitat.
Our second approach is to address the direct threats from shipping, fishing, and oil and gas activities, through our efforts to protect the rich marine habitats, such as the Norwegian and Russian Arctic regions of the Barents Sea. We work to maintain and restore marine ecosystems and develop a long-term vision for biodiversity in order to secure the future of this fragile ecoregion.
Related links
- Tackling climate change
- Arctic
- More about polar bears
- WWF-Canon Polar Bear Tracker
- WWF and the Tundra Buggy project
- Arctic environment and conservation
How you can help
Latest news
Project witnesses threat to polar bears
WWF has just finished working in Canada on a unique project, organised by Polar Bears international (PBI), which highlighted the way climate change is now threatening polar bears.
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WWF has welcomed a warning issued today by the European Commission of the danger of a new rush for the Arctic’s natural resources.
Arctic lecture highlights Canon Europe partnership
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