An isolated population of polar bears in Greenland has made a clever adaptation to the decline in the sea ice they depend upon as a platform for hunting seals, offering a ray of hope for this species in at least some locales in the warming Arctic.
They were found to be the world's most genetically isolated polar bears, distinct from the species' 19 other known populations. They have been almost entirely cut off from other polar bears for at least several hundred years, with no evidence of any leaving, though some evidence of an occasional arrival from elsewhere.
Polar bears, numbering roughly 26,000 in all, are particularly imperiled by climate change as rising temperatures reshape the Arctic landscape and deprive them of their customary sea-ice platform for hunting their main prey, ringed seals and bearded seals. "This use of glacier ice has not been documented before and represents a unique behavior," said John Whiteman, chief research scientist for the conservation group Polar Bears International and a biology professor at Old Dominion University in Virginia, who was not involved in the study.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Warmer Air Increasing Thunderstorm PotentialAs our climate changes, warming temperatures is increasing thunderstorm potential for parts of the United Sates. Why is this important? All it takes is just one lightning strike with our drought to spark a large fire.
Read more »
HNWI migration regains traction, as Russia, China see most departuresRussia has lost 15 percent of its high-net-worth population in the last six months, as many major markets are seeing changes in their millionaire populations.
Read more »
Europe's most powerful supercomputer just got inauguratedLUMI has the unique distinction of offering environmentally friendly solutions that distinguish it from supercomputers known for their prolific and intense consumption of energy.
Read more »
The 1977 Climate Memo That Could Have Changed The Course Of HistoryA 1977 climate memo to President Carter warned of the need to transition to renewable energy but was largely ignored.
Read more »
Scientists discovered a hidden world ecosystem under AntarcticaScientists went to Antarctica to study how climate change could affect our ice shelves. Instead, they uncovered a hidden world full of life.
Read more »
Global regulators set out climate checklist for banksGlobal regulators published a detailed checklist for banks on Wednesday to assess how climate change affects all aspects of their business, including pay and capital, as economies set carbon reduction targets.
Read more »