Polar bear subpopulations around the Arctic
Range and numbers
Links
- US to recognise polar bear as threatened (27 Dec 2006)
- Polar bear populations on the decline (16 dec 2006)
- Threats to the polar bear
- Download WWF-Canada's position statement on polar bears [pdf, 54 KB]
- Download: Polar Bear Specialist Group Proceedings from 2005 meeting (published Nov. 2006) [pdf, 1.9 MB]
- US FWS information on recent polar bear listing under Endangered Species Act
- Download the Report for Congress - Polar Bears: Listing Under the Endangered Species Act
Polar bears often move over huge distances in their annual cycle. Because population estimates are very difficult to obtain in the Arctic, census data are patchy for some polar bear subpopulations. The current overall estimate is 20-25,000 wild polar bears.
Trends in polar bear subpopulations
The IUCN-PBSG report (2006), brings together the latest information on the trend and status of the 19 polar bear subpopulations. Some subpopulations are in decline...
According to the report, 5 subpopulations are in decline, 5 are stable and there is insufficient data on the other subpopulations to make an assessment.
...and may continue to decline
In the next 10 years, it is estimated that 5 polar bear subpopulations have a high to very high risk of decline, 6 have a low to very low risk and there is currently no estimate for 8 subpopulations.
Rollover the map below for information on the different polar bear subpopulations or download detailed table of polar bear subpopulation status from the IUCN-PBSG report. [pdf, 121 KB ]
Key contacts
A polar bear on the pack ice. Svalbard, Norway.
© WWF / Miriam Geitz
© WWF / Miriam Geitz
Threats
The main threats to the continued survival of polar bear populations are:
- Global warming (especially the melting of sea ice, and changes to marine food supply and availability);
- Contamination of food supply by toxic chemicals such as persistent organochlorine pollutants (DDT, dieldrin, dioxins, etc.) and heavy metals such as mercury;
- Marine oil pollution and disturbance associated with increased industrial and shipping activities in arctic waters;
- Disturbance to key habitats from industrial explorations and developments (e.g., denning concentrations in oil-gas rich areas); and
- Over-hunting.
- Intraspecific predation (i.e., cannibalism, often seen in bear species);
- Increased conflicts with humans along arctic coastlines (human safety issues, often leading to the relocation of polar bears and occasionally killing of polar bears); and
- Tourism, if not properly monitored, can potentially disturb polar bear populations.
The latest information on the status of the polar bear
As some recent media reports have mistakenly cited incorrect facts about polar bears, WWF provides a brief summary of the most important facts about the species and the threats to their survival.In this way we hope that readers will be able to base their thinking, writing and decisions on accurate facts, not distorted information. Much of this information is contained in the recently published 190-page report from the World Conservation Union’s Polar Bear Specialist Group (IUCN-PBSG) most recent Working Meeting (IUCN 2006).
Click here for information on the basic ecology of polar bears.
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1 Obbard, M.E. 2006. Temporal trends in the Body Condition of Southern Hudson Bay Polar Bears. Climate Change Research Information Note Number 3. Government of Ontario, Applied Research and Development Branch. Pp. 8. Download [pdf, 0.45 MB]
2 Regehr, E.V., Amstrup, S.C., and Stirling, Ian, 2006, Polar bear population status in the southern Beaufort Sea: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2006-1337, 20 p. (http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1337/)
