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A28 SCIENCE
Saturday 3 February 2018
Climate change diet: Arctic sea ice thins, so do polar bears

By SETH BORENSTEIN AND weight.”
MARK THIESSEN The ice cover in the Arc-
Associated Press tic grows in the winter and
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) melts in the summer. Be-
— Some polar bears in cause of climate change,
the Arctic are shedding the ice is shrinking and thin-
pounds during the time ning more and earlier, he
they should be beefing up, said.
a new study shows. It’s the As the ice dwindles, “we
climate change diet and are essentially pulling the
scientists say it’s not good. rug out from underneath
They blame global warm- the polar bears,” Durner
ing for the dwindling ice said.
cover on the Arctic Ocean The bear videos showed
that bears need for hunt- researchers all sorts of
ing seals each spring. usually private aspects
For their research, the sci- of polar bear life, includ-
entists spied on the polar ing courtship and hunting.
bears by equipping nine They recorded dramatic,
female white giants with and at times, bloody seal
tracking collars that had hunts from the bear’s per-
video cameras and the spective.
bear equivalent of a Fitbit “You’re seeing everything
during three recent springs. In this April 15, 2015 photo provided by the United States Geological Survey, a polar bear it is seeing,” Durner said.
wearing a GPS video-camera collar lies on a chunk of sea ice in the Beaufort Sea.
The bears also had their Associated Press Researchers only tracked
blood monitored and were female bears because
weighed. Researchers studied the air and at other times they the bears travelled more males can’t keep collars
What the scientists found bears for 10 days in April, swim after seals. If there is than 155 miles (250 kilo- on — their heads are too
is that five of the bears lost when they are supposed less sea ice and it is broken meters) in about 10 days small and their necks too
weight and four of them to begin putting on weight apart, bears have to travel off the northern coast of big — Pagano said.
lost 2.9 to 5.5 pounds (1.3 to so they can later have more — often swimming — Alaska in the Beaufort Sea, Blaine Griffen, a Brigham
2.5 kilograms) per day. The cubs, feed the cubs and and that has serious conse- Pagano said. The average Young University biology
average polar bear stud- survive through the harsh quences, such as more en- bear female burned about professor who wasn’t part
ied weighed about 386 winter. But because the ergy use, hypothermia and 13,200 calories a day — six of the study, praised the
pounds (175 kilograms). ice is shrinking, the bears risk of death, said University times more than an active USGS work, noting that
One bear lost 51 pounds are having a harder time of Alberta biology profes- human female. past studies have looked
(23 kilograms) in just nine catching seal pups even sor Andrew Derocher, who “Just to break even they at resting polar bears and
days. during prime hunting time, wasn’t part of the study. have to capture at least polar bears on treadmills in
“You’re talking a pretty Pagano said. The United The study found that on one seal every five to 10 the lab.
amazing amount of mass States Fish and Wildlife Ser- the ice, the polar bears days — and that’s just to In the long run, climate
to lose,” said U.S. Geologi- vice lists polar bears as a burn up 60 percent more break even,” said study change “will result in small-
cal Survey wildlife biologist threatened species. energy than previously co-author George Durner, er bears that produce few-
Anthony Pagano, lead au- Polar bears hunt from the thought, based on these a USGS research zoolo- er cubs and that have low-
thor of a new study in Thurs- ice. They often wait for seals first real-life measurements gist. “And if they don’t do er survival rates,” Griffen
day’s journal Science . to pop out of holes to get done on the ice. A few of that they’re going to lose said in an email.q

NOAA launching investigation into minke whale deaths

By PATRICK WHITTLE whale, which is a group of NOAA said it is treating the there, said Teri Rowles, ma- whales, which are one of
Associated Press large whales that also in- deaths as an “unusual mor- rine mammal health and the rarest marine mam-
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — cludes the blue whale and tality event,” which it said stranding program coordi- mals in the world. Entan-
An investigation will be right whale. Twenty-nine has triggered “a focused, nator with NOAA Fisheries glement in fishing gear and
conducted into a spate of the animals were found expert investigation into Office of Protected Re- ship strikes played a role in
of deaths among minke stranded from Maine to the cause.” sources. some of the deaths of 18
whales along the East South Carolina in 2017 The agency has launched Eighteen minke whales right whales last year, ac-
Coast last year, the federal and 2018 and only one similar investigations into have had complete or cording to NOAA officials.
government announced survived, officials with the multiple deaths of hump- partial necropsies and nine Another dead right whale
on Wednesday. National Oceanic and At- back and right whales re- showed evidence of en- was found off of Virginia
The minke is a fairly com- mospheric Administration cently, and both of those tanglement in fishing gear in January. NOAA has an-
mon species of baleen said. investigations are still in while two showed evi- nounced a voluntary ves-
progress. dence of blunt force trau- sel speed restriction zone
It’s the first time the agen- ma, NOAA officials said. off of Virginia to protect
cy has had three inde- Others showed evidence right whales in the area.
pendent unusual mortal- of infectious disease or NOAA officials said it’s
ity events involving large they could not be recov- possible environmental
whales in the same area at ered or examined, officials changes could be caus-
the same time, NOAA offi- said. ing the whales to travel in
cials said. The investigation into the areas of the ocean where
The investigation will in- minke whales comes as they aren’t typically seen,
clude areas from Maine NOAA is trying to find a which could put them
to Florida because the way to slow high mortality more at risk of entangle-
animals are known to swim among North Atlantic right ment and ship strikes.q