What Warming Looks Like; 16-YO Svalbard Polar Bear Reduced To Bag Of Bones By Ice Loss

[hatrack]

This 16-year-old male polar bear died of starvation resulting from the lack of ice on which to hunt seals. Photograph: Ashley Cooper/Global Warming Images

A starved polar bear found found dead in Svalbard as "little more than skin and bones" perished due to a lack of sea ice on which to hunt seals, according to a polar bear expert.

Climate change has reduced sea ice in the Arctic to record lows in the last year and Dr Ian Stirling, who has studied the bears for almost 40 years and examined the animal, said the lack of ice forced the bear into ranging far and wide in an ultimately unsuccessful search for food.

"From his lying position in death, the bear appears to simply have starved and died where he dropped," Stirling said. "He had no external suggestion of any remaining fat, having been reduced to little more than skin and bone."

The bear had been examined by scientists from the Norwegian Polar Institute in April in the southern part of Svalbard, an Arctic island archipelago, and appeared healthy. The same bear had been captured in the same area in previous years, suggesting that the discovery of its body, 250km away in northern Svalbard, represented an unusual movement away from its normal range. The bear probably followed the fjords inland as it trekked north, meaning it may have walked double or treble that distance.


EDIT

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/aug/06/starved-polar-bear-record-sea-ice-melt

[pscot]

1. For some reason, this really pisses me off

[Hydra]

2. Me too

Whether or not we are totally to blame for the climate change, we're killing other species off horrifically because we need too much space and we pollute the rest.

Good stewards of the planet's ecosystem we are certainly NOT.

[daleanime]

5. Oh hell yes...

[Auntie Bush]

3. That picture is pathetic! A picture we're going to find many times. :((((((

After the heat wave in the Arctic this summer I unfortunately fear for the life of the polar bears. I wonder how many adults and babies ave already died and how many more will die before the sea ice returns. They are dieing now as I type this. Polar bears are my favorite animal and I cry for them.

[ET Awful]

6. Agreed.

I feel a great sadness seeing that picture.

[limpyhobbler]

4. bump

not a pretty picture but people ought to see it.

[jwirr]

7. Several days ago there was an article where the DNR broke into a shelter and killed an wild

animal because it was not supposed to be rescued. I thought then of the polar bears and other polar animals that should be rescued because it is us killing them. Is there any organization that is doing anything about this kind of situation other than the DNR?

[EC]

8. That was here in Kenosha Wisconsin

Walker said it should never happen again. That's the only good thing he's ever decided.

[bearssoapbox]

9. DAMN!!!!!!!!!!!

DAMN!!!!!!!!!!......DAMN!!!!!!!!!!!!!.......DAMN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's all I thought when I saw that. Then I started crying. So many emotions...sadness, anger, despair.

I've always had a soft spot for all bears. A couple of my nicknames are 'Bear' & 'Big Bear'. Probably because I'm 6'3" and ever since I was a junior/senior in high school I haven't weighed less than 220-230 lbs. Long hair, bushy beard and have portrayed a "mountain man" at festivals and circa. 1800's re-enactments. Those days are many years gone.

Even did volunteer work for a few years at the Columbus Zoo working with bears.

After I moved away from there and got married we ended up doing cat rescue for 30 years.

What is being done to this planet and how the animals, and humans, are treated is beyond belief.

It's so good to see how many here on DU are pro environment. That's another thing that made me like this place.

Thanks for posting this hatrack. We have to stay up on this even when it is disturbing.

For those that want to say anything about the CAPS (I've noticed that some do)....

TOUGH NOOGIES

[midnight]

10. K&R

[rwsanders]

11. There are landmarks in my hatred of the GOP...

One of them is the gasbag (rush) mocking Al Gore because he proposed a $0.50 gas tax to fund alternative fuels, high gas mileage vehicles, and mass transit. Well the prices went up anyway and the oil companies are pocketing the profits and we have nothing but gas guzzlers on the road to show for it.
When I think of all of those that tried so hard to be voices of reason that have been mocked and ignored, it certainly makes things seem hopeless.
Some that are still around are losing hope. Pierre Beland who studied the belugas in the St. Lawrence river wrote a book called "A Farewell to the Beluga", in a documentary on Roger Payne (who released those LP's of whale songs) he said it seemed his life's work was being destroyed before his eyes.
The forces of destruction have been relentless and keep winning victory after victory (the wolves no longer have ESA protections) and the major environmental groups are using the same tired tactics (they appear to have given up on popular support and try to win everything in court).
Very sad.

[pscot]

12. You can't just blame the GOP

This is Milo Minderbinder's world and everyone has a share.

[rwsanders]

14. What I blame them for is the pollution of the discourse, if someone has a good idea...

that doesn't fit with their selfish desires or fear-based reality, they squawk and squeal and cry.
It's pitiful that so much of the public buys into their flag-wrapped crap.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

13. but ofcourse, there's no global warming. it's only warmer years.

[stuntcat]

15. Times like this I'm glad for the internet,

because no one I know IRL will pay any attention to this. They're so happy watching tv, eating, shining their cars..

People think I should have all this Hope for humanity but I'm surrounded, SURROUNDED by people who make it impossible. I've learned to laugh, just laugh it all off, because what good will my sadness do? But I am glad my life's half over.
And as long as we have internet, I'll find some people who actually mind what's happening.