New Study Quantifies Link Between Sea Ice and Polar Bears

Researchers have established a mechanistic link between climate change-driven sea ice loss and polar bear population declines.
Published today in Science, the report “Energetic Constraints Drive the Decline of a Sentinel Polar Bear Population” introduces an individual-based bioenergetic model and analyses of long-term data grounded in 42 years of observations and monitoring. The researchers use energy as a currency, analyzing energy acquired and energy expended by polar bears to link environmental conditions to individuals and populations.
Polar bears require sea ice to hunt and therefore survive, and this rigorous analysis of the Western Hudson Bay polar bears from 1979 - 2021 demonstrates that this subpopulation’s approximate 50% decline was due to climate-driven sea ice loss that reduced hunting opportunities for polar bears. The research highlights the urgent need for climate action to protect polar bears, especially vulnerable cubs, as the Arctic warms over four times faster than the global average.
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