Polar bears face extinction pressure from sea ice loss. Zoo welfare must address their cognitive complexity and physical needs while the ethical justification for captivity becomes increasingly urgent.
Polar bear captivity presents acute tensions between individual welfare and conservation justification. Captive polar bears almost universally develop stereotypic behaviours reflecting spatial, cognitive, and social frustration that enclosures cannot resolve. Their ranging behaviour — covering hundreds of kilometres — is an ecological reality that no zoo can accommodate. Conservation justification has historically rested on insurance population value, but reintroduction to a shrinking Arctic habitat is not a viable conservation strategy. The primary conservation tool for polar bears is climate change mitigation, not captive breeding. This raises fundamental questions about whether holding polar bears in zoos serves their welfare or conservation needs adequately. Where zoos do hold polar bears, the highest welfare standards including large water access, cognitive enrichment, and minimal stereotypy management should be the baseline requirement.