Polar Bears Threatened by Global Warming

Growing Arctic Ice Sheets Threaten Growing Polar Bear Populations by Travis Hill

A trawler sits parked near Sisimut, Grrenland. A strange catch hangs on its jib. This isn't a new species of squid, or an unfortunate whale calf. Lifeless, and hanging from the trawler's jib, is a land and aquatic animal, completely gutted after being shot. Blood stained its white fur.

The trawler's owner didn't go out to hunt polar bears struggling to get from one ice block to another. He didn't even catch this bear as it swam a long distance to get to an ice cap that's disappearing at a high rate.

The polar bear's "crime?"

Villagers caught this polar bear rummaging through their garbage. They brought the guns out and ended this bear's food foraging. Never again will they fear this polar bear. But what was this bear doing in a town?

Normally, polar bears hunt seal or walrus resting on an ice sheet's edge. They even spend a lot of time waiting near breathing holes, or places seals would go to catch some air.

But since the ice has gotten thicker, these seals had to find other places to breath. The growing ice sheet even caught 200 narwhal whales by surprise. What was supposed to be a routine breathing stop turned into a fatal nightmare. Thickening ice cut their escape route to the sea; promising them a slow death. The Canadian government had no choice but to allow hunters to exceed their whale hunting limit.Image by ocean.flynn via Flickr

Growing ice becomes everyone's enemies, man and animal alike. With the ice cutting their food source off, unlucky polar bears face starvation. Human villages offer them hope; garbage cans become instant all-you-can-eat buffets.

This fact is important, as many people are embracing the myth that the ice sheets are disappearing; threatening polar bear populations. Ironically, growing ice slowly kills them; melting ice brings them a thanksgiving bounty.

So, if thickening ice isn't helping the polar bear population, what other myths is the media broadcasting to a busy populace?

Those claiming that the ice sheets are shrinking point to "Exhibit A," the photo with bears huddling on a shrinking chunk of ice.

But, if you talk to the photographer, that ice chunk was within easy swimming distance to the main ice sheet. This photo took place during the summer, when the Arctic ice sheet normally melts around the edges. The sun wouldn't be that bright during the winter.

As "Exhibit B," they talk about the polar bear drowning as it tried to swim the long distance to the nearest ice sheet. The fact that a storm blew this polar bear out to sea goes unmentioned.

Another media myth is that the polar bear population has shrunk due to the melting ice sheets. Despite their misfortunes, the polar bear population is doing pretty good. The National Center for Public Policy Research points out that the polar bear population has doubled since the 1960s, standing at 22,000 bears.

Travis is a freelance writer that specializes in information market, political writing, fundraising and communications.

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