In a world of mass diversity, we are surrounded by endless forms of life, most beautiful, most wonderful. In the words of Charles Darwin, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change”. From all the ends of the Earth, there is a wide spectrum of beings from all the six kingdoms of all living things (Plantae, Animalia, Fungi, Protista, Eubacteria, Archaebacteria) that are the product of millions of years of evolution – “the greatest show on earth” (David Attenborough). The icon of the Arctic, the polar bear is a tribute to the theories of evolution by natural selection that have been created by many scientists, specifically; Charles Darwin, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Alfred Russel Wallace, Ernst Haekel and Theodosius Dobzhansky.
This report will elaborate on the evolution of the polar bear or Ursus Maritimus over hundreds of thousands of years.
The analysis of the DNA of a distinct population of brown bears inhabiting Alaska’s ABC Islands (Admiralty, Baranof and Chichagof) approximately 1,450km south of the nearby polar bear habitat, revealed that the ABC bears were even more closely linked to polar bears genetically than they were to other brown bears. Polar bears are believed to have diverged from a population of brown bears that became isolated during a period of glaciation in the Pleistocene. (DeMaster, Douglas P.; Stirling, Ian (8 May 1981). "Ursus Maritimus". Mammalian Species 145 (145): 1–7).
The Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encircling the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and land masses. Although it is closely related to the Brown Bear, it has evolved to occupy a narrower ecological forte, with many body characteristics adapted for cold temperatures, for moving across snow, ice, and open water, and for hunting the seals which make up most of its diet. Though there are many theories surrounding evolution, the two stand outstanding hypotheses applying to the modification from Brown Bear to Polar Bear are Lamarck’s theory of Use and Disuse, and Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection. The intention of this paper is to compare these thesis and determine the most appropriate in
Global warming is the recent and ongoing rise of temperature on a global scale. Over the past century, the Earth's average temperature has risen 1.4°F (Carlowicz, 2010). Global warming is the effect of an excessive amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gasses trap heat from escaping back into space to keep the Earth from freezing, this is called the Greenhouse Effect. An excessive amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap too much heat, thus, causing Earth's temperature to rise.
The white phased black bear was said to have traversed barriers of the sea during the last ice age when glaciers covered most of northwest British Columbia. When temperatures started to rise, and glaciers started to retreat it is believed that the white bear was then isolated on the islands off the coast of BC. The white coats would suggest an adaptation to the white snow for hunting, however if that was the case, the evolutionary trail should have left the recessive gene behind when it was no longer useful to them in the temperate forests. Most research that is done on the Spirit bear is to try and understand the polymorphism of this species and how it has come to last among a low frequency in a minute area. Evidence now suggest that the reason for the white fur is actually a very important adaptation for the bear and is still very useful even in the array of
The bear have evolved along time ago and now there is only eight species existing. They evolved from early canids during the late Oligocene and early Miocene, about 25 million years ago. The earliest ancestors where the Dormaalocyon Latouri. An intermediate ancestor was the short faced bear, very similar to the modern day bear. It lived through the pleistocene period. It grew to thirteen feet long and was a herbivore. The ancestors to the modern day bears lived in the same climate and ate the same things. The modern bear contrast from the ancestor because the ancestor was more skinny and was smaller, and it was more cat like. The eight species of bear that still exist. They are the Polar bear, Brown bear, American black bear, Asian
"Polar Bears, Ringed Seals, and the Complex Consequences of Climate Change" is an article written by Mary Bates who earned her PhD studying Bat echolocation. She works for an American Association for the Advancement of Science. In this article Mary talks about how Climate change is impacting different species at different rates. Here, she focuses on sea-ice dependent animals such as Polar Bears and Ringed Seals at Arctic. She explains on how these animals are dependent upon the sea-ice for living. The Arctic is warming at a rate three times greater than the global average, and that the sea ice coverage is declining rapidly. She also talks about Hamilton's study on sea-ice dependent animals. Before the melting of sea ice the Polar bears used
During the time period from 1924 - 1964, there was a lot of inclusion of ethnic immigrants coming into America. The country just went through a World War and immigration was strict. Immigrants were trying to come to America in search of jobs and freedom. But most of them came to a place of hard work and low pay, terrible living and dangerous job conditions. That was before the time period of 1924 - 1964.
(figure 4) Current distribution of the Louisiana black bear, Ursus americanus luteolus, decades after listed as an Endangered
Grizzly bears have had to adapt when the weather is off like having a warm winter it sets their internal clock off to where when they should be hibernating they are still out or cold weather comes late they are already awake from hibernation or cold weather comes to to early and they aren’t hibernating. They also have to deal with man made disasters like oil spills or fires, both can kill bears and kill what they eat like fish which could then kill the bears if they can not eat enough food because their immune system will deteriorate and kill them. Grizzly Bears are divergent because recent studies have shown that some grizzly bear’s mothers are polar bears and fathers are grizzly bears. This means that the fathers travel long distances to mate with mother polar bears. The most recent studies have suggested that they have been divergent from about 150,000 years ago. (Tia Ghose) Past research revealed that brown bears on ABC Islands, off the southeastern coast of Alaska, had mitochondrial DNA that look just like polar bear DNA.(Mitochondrial DNA comes only from the mother and is carried in the cytoplasm in the cell’s energy-making structures called mitochondria.) (Tia
It was in Eurasia, within 500,000 years ago, that brown bears roamed the land. It was a time when Eurasia was found coated in ice and the Arctic ocean became it. A pack of brown bears were forced to separate for the hunt for food. It is believed that glaciers forced isolation upon the packs resulting in the deaths of many bears. Isolation was an important part of the evolution between the two bears as it forced those with an evolutionary advantage, such as the colour and thickness of their coats, to enhance these advantages and managed to survive and breed. Unlike those who were unable to cope with the environment. This generation then made new adaptations to further increase their likelihood of survival in the polar environment (PBS, 2015). For example, the bears required differently shaped teeth. As seen in the picture below, the back teeth of a polar bear are less in number and size. However, it is clear that the front teeth are larger and sharper. This is because of the change in environment forcing a change in diet for the bears; instead of eating berries the bears had to consume seals and needed sharper teeth to tear through skin. In order to camouflage themselves the bears, overtime, grew white fur to blend in with the snow. Another adaption made the these bears is the hunting technique used; at first only seal carcasses that had washed ashore were eaten by them however over time the bears
The polar bear, the largest land carnivore in North America, one of the largest animals in the world and a favorite at zoos worldwide, has, over the years, adapted to its harsh Arctic environment. The appropriately named ‘ursus maritimum’ or sea bear usually lives between 15 and 18 years in the wild and spends most of its life on ice. It is the most recent of the eight bear species. The first polar bear was a brown bear subspecies, with brown bear dimensions and brown bear teeth. The polar bear evolution was rapid due to the small population and extreme pressure to survive. Even today, the polar bear continues to evolve to better adapt to the harsh realities of Arctic life.
he death penalty serves the right justice for capital murder. Many people think that the death penalty does not serve any justice, but it takes away the number of cold murderers on the street. Life in prison may do justice on some occasions, but if a person kills another person, then that person deserves the death penalty.
Talks, T. (2013, March 30). Genetically Evolved Technology: Luke Bawazer at TEDxWarwick 2013. Retrieved November 17, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BljY3_i3gfw
The polar bear lives up in the Arctic region where global warming and climate change are melting the ice caps that the bears thrive on. They use the ice as a platform from hunting and rest. The random pocket holes in the ice, where the seals pop up at, is where the polar bear catches its prey. With this reduction of ice, “the abundance of seals, and increases the amount of energy and time needed for hunting, leaving less energy for reproduction” (Endangered Species and Habitats).
Polar bears are one of the countless species who are endangered. They were one of the first animals affected by global warming and their population is heavily decreasing. Around 1980, the Arctic was as large as 8 million square kilometres. In 2011, studies show that the Arctic has reduced its size to 4.5 million square kilometers. In the future, will there be anything such as the Arctic? Scientist predict by 2040, only a fringe of ice will remain in Northeast Canada and Northern Greenland. This is known as the Last Ice Area. This matter is mostly taking part in Canada, since; Canada holds more than half the world’s polar bear population. Other affected countries include the U.S. (Alaska), Greenland,
From what I know, Marijuana is slowly but surely becoming legalized. There are now 29 states that have legalized it in some form. Marijuana is in the same schedule with heroin. I believe marijuana should not be in the same schedule as heroin. There are no cases of death directly associated with marijuana. Marijuana has been most known for its incredible medical purposes. It has treated seizures with amazing success. Research on marijuana continues, but the government also makes it very difficult; marijuana is illegal federally. States that have legalized marijuana for recreational sale and use must take a great deal of legal measures to protect themselves federally. Families have had to fight hard to get laws for medical marijuana passed to help their children with epilepsy. It also is used to reduce pain, inflammation, and muscle control problems. Marijuana has also help drastically to lower opioid addictions and deaths from opioid overdose.