Polar Bear Welfare and Climate Change

Polar bears are the iconic emblem of climate change impacts on Arctic wildlife, with welfare consequences from sea ice loss including extended fasting, nutritional stress, and increased bear-human conflicts.

Key Facts

Around 26,000 polar bears remain in 19 subpopulations across the Arctic
Polar bears depend on sea ice as a platform for hunting ringed and bearded seals
Western Hudson Bay bears now spend an average of 3 weeks longer on land due to earlier sea ice break-up than in the 1980s
Body condition of polar bears in several subpopulations has declined significantly, with some individuals showing severe emaciation
Polar bears are strong swimmers but increasingly long swims to reach sea ice cause exhaustion and cub mortality

Welfare Considerations

Sea ice loss is causing chronic and escalating welfare harm to polar bears. Extended fasting periods, sometimes exceeding 8 months for Hudson Bay bears, cause protein catabolism from muscle breakdown, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and immune suppression. Cubs born to nutritionally compromised females have lower birth weights and reduced survival rates. Conflict with humans in communities as bears range further onshore creates welfare risks through management interventions including translocation and lethal control. The trajectory of climate change means these welfare impacts will intensify regardless of conservation effort.

What You Can Do

Support ambitious climate mitigation policies as the most effective long-term protection for polar bear welfare
Donate to Polar Bears International which funds research on nutritional stress and population dynamics
Back community coexistence programmes that reduce lethal polar bear management in Arctic settlements
Engage with climate advocacy that explicitly frames biodiversity and animal welfare alongside human impacts