Polar Bears Drowning as Ice Melts, Scientists Say
By Dave Porter
Fairbanks, AK - Scientists say they have found four polar bear carcasas
floating in the water off the coast of Alaska in the last 30 days,
victims of a melt down of ice shelves there.
Sadly, Greenpeace is carrying a video cartoon image on their US
website of two polar bears that cling desperately to a piece of
melting ice before disappearing beneath the water. If only it
were just a cartoon, but it's not, it's reality and there is
little anyone can do to curb the arctic shelf from melting.
According to Greenpeace, Polar bears will be extinct with 45
years if global warming isn't reversed.
Research led by Dr Charles Monnett, marine ecologist at the
American government's Minerals Management Service, shows that
the ice shelf is retreating further north from Alaksa, 200
miles at this point from where it used to be two decades ago
and for polar bears who live on the ice year round, that
means trouble.
"Drowning-related deaths of polar bears may increase in the
future if the observed trend of regression of pack ice continues,
" said Monnett.
As the ice pack retreats north in the summer between June and
October, the bears must travel between ice floes to continue
hunting in areas such as the shallow water of the continental
shelf off the Alaskan coast - one of the most food-rich areas
in the Arctic.
However, last summer the ice cap receded about 200 miles further
north than the average of two decades ago, forcing the bears
to undertake far longer voyages between floes.
Short swims up to 15 miles are no problem for Polar bears and
some bears have been observed swimming up to 100 miles. But
that is the extent of their ability, and if they are trying
to make such a long swim and they encounter rough seas they
could get into trouble and drown. That is exactly the
circumstance scientists believe the four Polar bears
encountered.
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