“Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals”
Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals
Impact on polar bears
According to the source material, polar bears depend on sea ice, where they hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice passages to move from one area to another. Changes in the extent and stability of sea ice will affect polar bears in many ways, especially in their hunting.
Impact on seals
Seals depend on sea ice for breeding and rearing pups, as well as for resting and hunting near shore. Reduced sea ice can lead to premature separation of mothers and pups, leading to higher mortality rates among pups.
Impact on Arctic Wolves
Arctic wolves depend on sea ice for hunting and movement. Changes in sea ice conditions can make hunting and movement difficult for them.
The effects of climate change on Arctic mammals
Impact on polar bears
Polar bears depend on sea ice, where they hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice passages to move from one area to another. Changes in sea ice and its stability are important to polar bears. The climate change-related decline of seals in the Barents Sea in 1987 had serious impacts on the seabirds that live in that area.
Impact on seals
Seals depend on sea ice for breeding and rearing pups, as well as using it as a resting platform. Decreased sea ice can lead to earlier separation of mothers and pups, leading to higher mortality rates among pups. Seal species that depend on sea ice may also be negatively affected by reduced sea ice.
The Impact of Climate Change on Arctic Mammals
Climate change will impact Arctic mammals in ways that will affect conservation efforts as well as those who harvest wildlife resources on land and at sea. Changes in habitat and food sources will affect the health and reproduction of these animals.
Arctic Mammals
- Polar Bears: Polar bears depend on sea ice, where they hunt ice-dwelling seals and use ice passages to move from one area to another. Changes in the extent and stability of sea ice will affect polar bears’ survival.
- Seal fish: Seal fish species also depend on the marine environment in which they live and hunt. Changes in the ocean will also affect their food sources and reproduction.
Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals
Impact on polar bears
According to the source, climate change is having a serious impact on polar bears. Polar bears depend on ice to hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice passages to move from one area to another. Polar bears’ success in hunting seals depends on good ice conditions in the spring, which is critical for the survival of the polar bear family. Changes in the extent and stability of ice are important, and decreases and predictability in ice are likely to have dire consequences for polar bears. A shift to earlier ice formation in the fall and earlier ice melt in the spring means polar bears must find food more quickly during the extended annual starvation period. This change may also increase the direct mortality rate of polar bears. Changes in the environment cause environmental stress on polar bears that interact with stress from chemical pollutants. Polar bears, at the top of the marine food chain, accumulate pollutants in their blubber by eating ringed seals and other marine animals. High levels of chlorine compounds and heavy metals have been found in polar bears. In some cases, pollutants can be stored in blubber, keeping the chemicals from affecting the bear’s health when blubber reserves are high. But during lean seasons, when blubber reserves must be used, the chemicals are released into the body. Studies have shown that polar bears in some areas of the Arctic have had fewer blubber reserves in recent decades as ice melt occurs earlier and earlier, forcing them to come ashore to starve for longer periods of time.
Impact on seals living on island ice
Seals depend on island ice to give birth and raise their pups, and use it as a
Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals
Climate change affects Arctic mammals by altering their natural habitats. Warming in the Arctic leads to a reduction in ice and snow cover, affecting nesting and breeding for animals, especially polar bears.
The reduction in ice and snow also affects the ability of Arctic mammals, such as seals and reindeer, to hunt. This can lead to food shortages and poor health for these animals.
The Impact of Climate Change on Arctic Mammals
1. Impact on polar bears
According to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) resource, climate change impacts polar bears by reducing the extent and stability of drift ice. Polar bears depend on drift ice to hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice passages to move from one area to another. Polar bears’ hunting success depends on good spring drift ice conditions. Changes in the extent and stability of drift ice are important to polar bears and projected declines in drift ice could have devastating consequences for the species.
2. Impact on seals
Seals depend on drift ice for breeding and raising their young, as well as for hunting near shore. Decreasing drift ice can lead to early separation between mother and calf, leading to higher mortality rates among the pups. Additionally, decreasing drift ice can affect the ability of seals to forage, forcing them to move to deeper areas where there are no nearshore food sources.
3. Impact on reindeer/reindeer
Reindeer are one of the most endangered animals in the Arctic and depend on drift ice for nesting and breeding. Changes in the extent and stability of drift ice can lead to the decline of reindeer and affect the biodiversity of the area.
Source & ©: ACIA Impacts of Arctic Warming: Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (2004), Key Finding #4, Polar Bears, p. 58
Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals
Climate change in the Arctic will affect mammals in a variety of ways, including changes in habitat and food sources.
Impact on polar bears
- Polar bears depend on the island ice to hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice trails to move from one area to another.
- Changes in the extent and stability of ice shelf are important, and observed and predicted ice loss could have devastating consequences for polar bears.
- Shifting ice formation times in the fall and earlier melt in the spring mean a longer annual hunger period for female bears.
Impact on seals
- Seals depend on the island ice for breeding and raising pups, and use it as a resting platform.
- Earlier melting of the island ice may lead to earlier separation between mother and pup, leading to higher infant mortality.
- Adapting to life on land in the absence of summer island ice appears to have been difficult for seals.
Climate change and its impact on Arctic mammals
Arctic mammals, such as polar bears, rely heavily on sea ice for hunting and movement. Climate change is leading to a reduction in the extent and stability of sea ice, with serious consequences for these animals. The decline in sea ice has negatively impacted the health and reproductive status of polar bears, particularly in areas such as James Bay and Hudson Bay in Canada.
The impact of climate change on Arctic mammals
Climate change in the Arctic will affect mammals such as polar bears. Polar bears depend on sea ice for hunting and movement. Changes in the extent and stability of sea ice will have serious impacts on polar bears, with the projected decline in sea ice in particular likely to have devastating consequences for the species.
The increased environmental pressures on polar bears due to climate change interact with the pressures from toxic substances. Polar bears, at the top of the marine food chain, accumulate toxic substances in their blubber by eating phosphorus and other marine animals that have absorbed the chemicals from species lower in the food chain. High levels of chlorine compounds and heavy metals have been detected in polar bears. In some cases, toxic substances can be stored in blubber, keeping the chemicals from affecting the bear’s health when blubber reserves are high. But during lean seasons, when blubber reserves must be used, the chemicals are released into the body.
The Impact of Climate Change on Arctic Mammals
Polar Bear
Polar bears depend on sea ice, where they hunt seals that live on the ice and use ice corridors to move from one area to another. Pregnant females build winter dens in areas with deep snowpack on land or on sea ice. When the females emerge from their dens with their cubs in the spring, the mothers have not eaten for five to seven months. Their seal-hunting success, which depends on good spring ice conditions, is essential to the survival of the family. Changes in the extent and stability of ice are therefore of paramount importance, and observed and predicted declines in sea ice are likely to have devastating consequences for polar bears. The earliest impacts of warming are expected to occur at the southern limits of the bears’ range, such as James Bay and Hudson Bay in Canada, and such impacts have been documented in recent years. The health of adult polar bears has declined over the past two decades in the Hudson Bay region, as has the number of cubs born and the proportion of yearlings in the population. Polar bears in that region experienced a 15% decline in both average weight and number of cubs born between 1981 and 1998. The later formation of sea ice in the fall and earlier melt in the spring means a longer annual fasting period for female polar bears, and their reproductive success is closely linked to their fat stores. Females in poor condition have smaller litters and smaller cubs, which are less likely to survive. Climate change is also likely to increase the number of bears dying directly. For example, increased frequency and intensity of spring rains have caused some dens to collapse, resulting in the death of both females and cubs. Earlier spring ice melt could separate traditional dens from spring feeding areas, and cubs would not be able to swim as far from their dens to feeding areas. Polar bears are unlikely to survive as a species if summer sea ice cover is almost completely lost, which some climate models predict will happen before the end of the century. The only foreseeable option polar bears have is to adapt to a summer terrestrial lifestyle, but competition, the risk of hybridization with brown and grizzly bears, and increased human interaction would then pose additional threats to their survival as a species. The loss of polar bears could have significant and rapid consequences for the ecosystems they currently occupy.
Chemical toxins and interactions with climate change
The increased environmental stress on polar bears from climate change interacts with the stress caused by chemical pollutants. Polar bears, at the top of the marine food chain, accumulate pollutants in their blubber by eating ringed seals and other marine mammals that have absorbed the chemicals by eating contaminated species lower down the food chain. High levels of chlorine compounds and heavy metals have been found in polar bears. In some cases, pollutants can be stored in blubber, which keeps the chemicals from affecting the bear’s health when its blubber reserves are high. But during lean feeding seasons, when blubber reserves must be used, the chemicals are released into the body. Polar bears in some areas of the Arctic have been observed to have lower blubber reserves in recent decades because the sea ice has gradually melted earlier, forcing them to come ashore, where they must fast for longer and longer periods.
Climate change in the Arctic threatens the survival of mammals. Rising temperatures, melting ice, and loss of habitat lead to reduced food availability and quality, causing the destruction of their habitat. This is a major threat to the Arctic ecosystem.
