![]() ![]() Read More: Polar Bears and Climate Change Related Resources At least visitors will increase their understanding of the problems polar bears and the Arctic are facing and this awareness will surely help to safeguard their futures. Tourism is limited anyway with only a limited number of permits to go around. However a respectful, limited level of tourism may be beneficial for the polar bears whilst also generating income for local people as many tour operators follow a code of conduct and partake in conservation efforts. Indirectly it may also lead to the bears leaving their habitat to search for peace or abandoning their traditional dens. This interference means humans come into contact with polar bears and can result in harassment, or even killing in self-defence. Tourist activity has increased in several areas which has led to accommodation building and the use of all-terrain vehicles and aircraft for aerial tours. There has been a noticeable increase in the level of organochlorines found in several polar bears in Canada. They can impede the bears’ immune system and cause birth defects. Most countries banned PCBs in the 1980s when they discovered how dangerous they are but unfortunately they can persist for decades. Scientists believe that these chemicals could affect the bears' reproduction and they may not be able to produce as many young as normal. PCBs, dumped in the sea, even in small amounts, are transferred up the food chain until they become concentrated and accumulate in polar bear body fat. The human population density may also increase as the development grows and this would increase the likelihood of human and polar bear conflicts. The exploration and recovery of natural gas and oil in the Arctic Basin could destroy important polar bear habitat and food supplies if an accident should occur in the Polar sea - especially as the number of oil wells increases. It is an endangered animal and there are serious threats to the continued increase of the population these are. ![]() Since the ban, the polar bear population steadily increased and the current population worldwide is now between 22,000 - 31,000. Between 19 the population of polar bears was estimated at only 8,000 - 10,000 and it was classified as an endangered species.įortunately, in 1973, an international agreement banned the hunting of the polar bear, only the native Inuits are allowed to kill them. The cannibalism in polar bears is not rare but it only occurs when the bear is too hungry or far too weak to hunt seals.Traditionally, the polar bear has been hunted by the Inuit people of North America and Greenland for its fur and flesh, but it wasn't until Western people began hunting the bear for 'sport', often from aircraft, that the numbers of polar bears dwindled. When the food is scarce adult bears might kill their cubs and eat them. Male bears are less likely to tolerate a female walking with her cubs except in a situation when the entire family is a unit. The chief predators of polar bear cubs are other mature polar bears especially the males. While adults are powerful enough to deal with any possible threat the cubs are too weak to possess such strength. This is probably a good news for polar bears as their habitat might flourish in the absence of humans. That is why very few humans have managed to settle in the most inhospitable place on earth. The arctic is no place for humans to live on. Every year 50 to 60 polar bears are hunted-some for food purposes while others for commercial reasons. Bears have long suffered from the brutal nature of humans. However powerful polar bears may appear to be there is always one predator that can threaten their survival no matter what. What Eats Polar Bears? – Polar Bear Predators Let us read more about the polar bear predators to see what animals eat polar bears in the Arctic. But polar bear cubs do have some natural predators in the wild. It clearly suggests that polar bears do not have any natural predator in the arctic world. They are the arctic’s rulers for no other animal-not even the heaviest of the Arctic’s mammals can dare to rival them. Polar bears ( Ursus maritimus) are apex predators as their super strength puts them at the top of the food chain.
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