Nation & World

<< Previous   of   Next >> Associated Press  (click to enlarge) Members of the Alaska Wilderness League sit in on the Interior Department's news conference Wednesday in Washington to announce the threatened-species status given to polar bears. (click to enlarge) A polar bear watches a whaling crew offshore near Barrow, Alaska.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Thursday, May 15, 2008 Polar bears given 'threatened' status Associated Press and Los Angeles Times WASHINGTON -- The Department of the Interior declared the polar bear a threatened species Wednesday, making the big arctic bear, whose fate clings to shrinking sea ice, the first creature added to the endangered species list primarily because of global warming. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne cited dramatic declines in sea ice over the last three decades and projections of continued losses, meaning, he said, that the polar bear is a species likely to be in danger of extinction in the near future. A species is declared "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act if it deemed to be at risk of becoming endangered in the foreseeable future. If it does not make progress toward recovery, it can be declared "endangered," meaning it is at risk of extinction and needs even greater protection. Kempthorne cited conclusions by department scientists that sea ice loss will likely result in two-thirds of the polar bears disappearing by midcentury. The bear population doubled from about 12,000 to 25,000 since 1960, but he noted that scientists now predict a significant population decline. Studies last year by the U.S. Geological Survey suggested 15,000 bears would be lost in coming decades with those in the western Hudson Bay area of Alaska and Canada under the greatest stress. Canada has about two-thirds of the world's polar bear population. But when asked how the bear will be afforded greater protection under the Endangered Species Act, Dale Hall, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, had difficulty coming up with examples. The proposal did not include designating critical habitat. Better management of bear habitat on shore and making sure bears aren't threatened by people, including hunters, more studies on bear population trends and their feeding habits were among the areas mentioned. Polar bears are experts at hunting ringed seals and other prey on sea ice. But they are so unsuccessful on land that they spend their summers fasting, losing more than 2 pounds a day. This forced fast is an average of three weeks longer than it was 30 years ago, according to studies in Canada's western Hudson Bay. This gives the bears less time to hunt and build up fat reserves they need to make it until they can resume hunting with reformation of the ice in the fall. As bears have become thinner, the reproductive rates of female bears has declined. The survival rates of cubs have fallen, too.

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