For a short time each year, the remote Canadian town of Churchill, Manitoba is transformed into the Polar Bear Capital of the World. This curious place, accessible by air, sea or train, with its long main street, low rise buildings and distinctly pioneering feel, becomes the centre of attention for bears and visitors alike.

In October and November, as many as 1200 bears gather here on the icy tundra, waiting for the sea to freeze so they can wander out in search of seals. After fasting for the summer, the bears are particularly hungry. Churchill is perched on a spit of land between the western shore of Hudson Bay and the Churchill River and for centuries, this peninsula has been the bears natural access point into the bay.

Polar bears have the ability to detect scent from as far away as 20 miles. Churchill proves irresistible, particularly if the big freeze is taking a while to happen. But dont be concerned, the resident Polar Bear Police have a tried and tested humane procedure for dealing with strays that wander where they are not wanted. It involves a rather large trap, tranquilliser dart, a brief stay in the polar bear jail, then a helicopter trip out of town to relocate somewhere more appropriate. This closely monitored procedure works well for the bears and the townsfolk.

The great advantage of polar bear watching in Churchill is that its a comfortable adventure. Instead of camping on an ice field with an arctic wind howling through your tent, after youve spent a day with the bears you simply return to civilisation, eat a hearty home cooked meal and then sleep in a comfortable hotel bed.

Temperatures can range from minus ten degrees to nine degrees and although there is likely to be snow and possibly rain, there is also a good chance of having bright, clear days so bring sunglasses. The particularly dark nights and lack of artificial lighting outside of town, you may well get to witness a display of the northern lights.

Churchill occupies a transitional zone where the stunted trees of the taiga meet the mosses of the tundra. Blanketed with snow in the winter and covered by thousands of bogs and lakes in the summer, this terrain is completely flat until it reaches the sloping banks of the Churchill River and the ridge around Hudson Bay, whose grey quartzite boulders have been rubbed smooth by the action of the ice, wind and water.

It should be no secret to anyone that the Arctic “Polar Bear” is facing some of its most drastic climate changes it has been through , since its existance . The ice-packs which these animals live on is being melted away by green-house gas’s , and more commonly reffered to by most as “Global Warming”.

As our earths climate warms , these ice-packs are melted and broken apart making it harder for the polar bear to find its food. This causes the polar bear to swim great distances , in order to hunt for its next meal . Wildlife conservationists have actually seen polar bears drown because they just could’nt make it to the nearest ice flow .

Recent study shows that the polar bear populations are declining at an alarming rate . Fewer cubs are being sited every year , which means that their reproductive cycle is being effected also . This animal is slowley being starved to the brink of extinction .

To save the polar bear , we have to start thinking about reducing green house gas emissions. We must find other means to feul our economy , which could diminish the effects of global warming through time, and lessen our dependance on “fossil fuels”.

The polar bear is not the only one of the species in this habitate which are being affected . The Walrus , seal , arctic fox , arctic hare , and many others are being affected also . Oil exploration in the northern regions should be stopped , stopping the potential for human error , and thus preserving our environment . How far will we push our environment without looking back to see the effects it has incurred , and devistation it has caused .

To conclude , Global Warming is a very serious issue in todays fast paced world we live in , lets “hope” that it is recognized globally and dealt with by our politicians and governments because afterall , they are the people who can truly make a difference.

 

Found throughout the circumpolar Arctic, the polar bear is one of the largest land carnivores. Surviving mainly on a diet of seal, polar bears also eat kelp, scavenge on carcasses, and occasionally even kill a walrus or a small whale. Aptly titled Kings of the North, or Lords of the Arctic, polar bears are truly fascinating animals with unique characteristics, all of which enable them to survive in a harsh and unforgiving world.

So how does a polar bear start out in life? Well, sometime around midsummer, polar bears mate and then go their own separate ways. This is the point where things get very interesting. The fertilized egg divides into a hollow orb of cells called a blastocyst, then free floats in the uterus for four months before attaching to the uterine wall. This delay allows the female polar bear to build up the fat she needs, roughly 400 pounds of it, before the fetus or fetuses begin to develop. This also insures that the cub or cubs are not born too early. Typically, once the blastula begins to develop, one to three embryos will result with actual gestation taking another four months.

Not long after mating, the female polar bear begins preparing a den that she will enter sometime in mid October. Her den will be a hole dug into the deepest snowdrift she can find on a south facing slope and measures approximately 6.5 x 5 x 3 feet with an air vent in the top. There she will spend the winter in hibernation, the cubs being born sometime between November and January. At birth, a baby polar bear weighs around one pound and measures about twelve inches. Blind, deaf, and covered in very fine fuzz, the cubs are totally dependant on mom for food and warmth, spending all of their time nursing and sleeping. Roughly, one month later, the cubs will begin to hear sounds and shortly thereafter, they will open their eyes. At two months, they begin walking around the den. Finally, mom and cubs emerge from the den in March or April by which time the cubs weigh in at around 23 pounds.  

For the first 12 weeks, mom and cubs stick close to the den while the cubs get used to the colder temperatures and develop their leg muscles. Polar bear cubs stay with the mom for about 2.5 years. During this time, she fiercely protects them while teaching them how to hunt for food and the basics of survival. The cubs start eating solid food when they are around 3-4 months old but continue to supplement their diet by nursing for another 18 months or so. At around one year of age, the young bears will start trying to hunt on their own, not truly becoming efficient hunters until they reach about two years old. Not long after this, once the mother is again ready to breed, either mom or her new suitor, will chase off the cubs, forcing them to make their way in the world.

Polar bear cubs grow quickly, weighing in at around 99 pounds by the time they reach 8 months old. Once they reach adulthood, a female polar bear will weigh in at 350-550 pounds and can measure over 8 feet tall while a male can easily weigh anywhere from 1,000 to 1,400 pounds and measure over 9 feet tall. Their life span varies but polar bears in the wild have an average life span of span of 20 years with a few living as long as 30.

Survival for polar bear cubs is not high, only 55% will make it to adulthood. They do have some unique factors to help them. A polar bear’s fur is not actually white. Each hair is a clear hollow tube with highly reflective qualities (making it appear white) while their skin is black to absorb heat from the sun. They can also swim for long periods while their thick layers of fat and water repellent fur protect them from the freezing water. Partially webbed front paws and elongated hind paws, which act like rudders, allow the polar bear to swim more efficiently. The pads of their feet, the only place on their bodies with the exception of their nose that is not covered with fur, have a layer of  dermal bumps which combined with long hairs between the toes allow for friction against the ice.

Sadly, as of May of 2008, the classification of polar bears upgraded to “threatened” allowing them increased protection under the Endangered Species Act. A combination of melting arctic ice, oil drilling and over hunting have put these fascinating animals in danger of extinction, some experts saying there could be a reduction in the polar bear population of two thirds by 2050. The polar bear is the first animal whose decline ties directly to global warming. Let us hope that with continuing conservation efforts we can still save these magnificent creatures from disappearing along with the arctic ice that they call home.