Monday 12 August 2013

Is this starved polar bear which died as ‘skin and bones’ the 'categorical proof' that climate change is wiping out the species?

  • Experts found the carcass of a polar bear in Svalbard in the Arctic Ocean
  • Lack of sea ice and seals forced the bear to search further afield for food
  • Scientists claim climate change has reduced sea ice to record lows and is to blame for the death of this animal
  • But some experts add that commercial trade in Canada is also to blame for falling polar bear numbers

The skin and bones of a male polar bear, that is believed to have starved to death, has been discovered washed up in Svalbard, in the Arctic Ocean. 

Experts claim low sea ice levels caused by climate change meant the bear couldn't hunt seals and this caused the bear to unsuccessfully search more than 150 miles for food. 

Climate change is said to have reduced sea ice in the Arctic region to record lows and is 'absolutely, categorically and without question' the reason why polar bears are dying out, according to one wildlife expert.

Dr Ian Stirling from Polar Bears International has studied polar bears in the region for the past 40 years. 

He told The Guardian that the way the bear was found, lying on its stomach, suggests that it starved to death and just dropped to the ground when it died.

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