The Evolution Of Polar Bears

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

In the scientific article, “Love in the Time of Climate Change: Grizzlies and Polar Bears Now Mating,” by Adam Popescu, believes that climate change is helping to cause grizzlies and polar bears to mate. He points out that glacier sheets are retreating, this forces the polar bears to move into grizzly’s territory. Moreover, that the permafrost is also starting to melt, which is causing grizzlies to wander into the polar bears territory. Consequently, he goes on to put that because of this mating, the grizzlies are eating up the polar bears genetically. He concludes that if this trend keeps up, in a few decades any kind of the bear population in this area will be no more. Lastly, the author’s purpose is to make readers aware of the hidden effects

Canada is home to many species of rich heritage, cultural significance and meaning to the Canadian people. Of the many species, one holds a strong iconic significance that plays a vital role in the very ecosystem it resides in. The polar bear species are undoubtedly the apex predator of its food chain and a culturally significant species to the indigenous people. With both these traits, it makes the polar bear a true Canadian symbol which is further emphasized by its very place on the Canadian two-dollar coin to the strength and endurance represented by this majestic species. However, no matter how strong and enduring the polar bears are to the arctic, such resilience is not as effective against the harsh changes their environment has gone through.

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.

Polar Bears in 2008 was listed by the US government on the list of endangered species. Thus, they became the first species recognized as endangered due to global warming.

Plunging into Lucky Peak for a good cause. Polar Bear Challenge. Lucky Peak Reservoir, Boise Idaho. Saturday, January 1st.

Polar bears are one of the most endangered species in the IUCN states this is due to Global warming which most of us are still ignorant about, It has a climatic impact on the Arctic by the rising temperature which results in melting the ice glacier and these glaciers are the homes of polar bears that have been disappearing and shrinking making it

As polar bears inhabit the Arctic regions of five separate nations, it is important to examine the different nation specific management plans in place for conservation of the species. By examining the various management plans in place, a comprehensive look into polar bear management of the species on a global level may be achieved. Of the five nations with polar bear populations, the three largest have some form of a national management plan in place. However, in all five nations, all have specific polar bear hunting regulations and restrictions that also assist in polar bear preservation.

Climate change has recently become a very large issue and at the forefront of it all are the Artic Polar Bears. These Artic Polar Bears have been labeled as vulnerable by National Geographic. This vulnerable label comes from a multitude of issues with the most significant being climate change. Artic Polar Bears are dying rapidly because these large carnivores are victims of the climate change, oil exploration, toxic pollution, and overhunting, all these and many more reasons are leading them to extinction and something needs to be done about it.

Reproduction and Abundance of Polar Bears under Climate Change article, “…female mating probability under sea ice area declines and declines in mate-searching efficiency due to habitat fragmentation.” (Molnár). Furthermore, since the Polar Bear habitat is decreasing in size, there are little to no male Polar Bears to mate. Since female Polar Bears do not have enough energy to search at a great distance to mate (because of low food) they do not have the ability mate and reproduce.

The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is the biggest terrestrial mammal in the Arctic. He is also considered as an animal with a circumpolar or broad distribution in polar regions. The conservation status of bear remains problematic, according to the global warming that is happening now. If further managements are not implanted, polar bear population`s will disappear in the future. The polar bears live in the Arctic, an ocean surrounded by land. The Arctic has a very low species diversity and polar bears the first animal into the food chain. Also, the Arctic has cold winters which are not suitable for some aquatic species. With global warming and interglacial period, the ice and snow began to recede about 20.000 years ago. The rate of ice loss has

The polar bears are dying rapidly, and if we don’t start thinking about the environment then they will blow out to extinction. Polar bears, known as the bears of antarctica, are magnificent animals. They are the top consumer for most prey. Without them, the secondary consumer would overpopulate and eventually lose control and take over.

Due to the warming of Earth’s climate and its obvious effect on all of its inhabitants, many evolutionary adaptations have been underway in order to facilitate survival. While there are many concepts to explore, specie migratory patterns stand out for further evaluation. While temperature has notably changed in some regions and the overall climate has become warmer, specific species’ migratory patterns are forced to adapt accordingly in order to increase that specie’s chance of survival. Practically, if a climate was to stay warmer than usual for a period, in order to adapt, a species might hold off migration or stay in a place migrated to already for a longer time than traditional migration maps would accommodate. Out of the many studies conducted

A primary response to change is the ability of individuals to modify their behavior patterns relation to spatial distribution and phenological shifts. However, for species living in environmental extremes, they have little opportunity to regulate the climate-warming changes to their physical environment and must display plasticity in their key behaviors to cope with the changes. Polar bears face the dilemma of remaining with ice that has retreated past biologically-productive shallow waters or to move away from the retreating sea ice to the shore which can lead to inadequate resources and exposure to risk factors. There was an investigation on polar bears from Alaska’s southern Beaufort Sea (SB) subpopulation to see if the rapid environmental

Polar bears are found across the Arctic. They are most abundant in areas with annual sea ice and productive ringed seal populations. There are five nations with polar bears: U.S. Alaska Canada, Russia, Greenland Kingdom of Denmark and Norway Svalbard. Polar bears do not live in Antarctica.