Polar Bear Climate Welfare | Animal Welfare Hub

Polar bears face existential welfare and conservation threats from sea ice loss driven by climate change, with individual suffering increasing as hunting opportunities decline.

Key Facts

Arctic sea ice has declined by around 13% per decade since the late 1970s
Polar bears rely on sea ice as a hunting platform for ringed seals — their primary prey
Longer ice-free periods force bears to fast for extended periods, causing body condition decline
Polar bear reproduction is declining in populations already affected by ice loss
Churchill, Manitoba has become a focus of human-bear conflict as bears increasingly enter settlements

Welfare Considerations

Polar bear welfare is uniquely and directly linked to climate change. As sea ice declines, bears face longer fasting periods, lower body condition, reduced reproductive success, and increasing human-wildlife conflict. Individual bears in poor condition experience chronic hunger and associated physical deterioration. Cubs born to nutritionally stressed mothers have lower survival rates. The welfare trajectory for polar bears under continued warming is one of progressively increasing suffering across the population. Climate change mitigation is therefore directly a polar bear welfare intervention at planetary scale.

What You Can Do

Support climate change mitigation policies as a wildlife welfare priority
Donate to polar bear research and monitoring programs
Support organizations working on human-bear coexistence in northern communities
Reduce your carbon footprint with the knowledge that it has direct implications for polar bear welfare
Advocate for polar bear conservation as part of broader Arctic ecosystem protection