What are the statistics of a polar bear?

Answer 1

Here is a good interview with Dr. Nick Lunn of the Canadian Wildlife Service - one of a handful of scientists focusing their efforts, knowledge, and talent on studying the polar bear.

"The population in the Western Hudson Bay region has declined 22% in 17 years, to less than 1000 bears."

"Of the thirteen populations of polar bear in the world, only two are considered as thriving, as many as five may currently be stable, and the rest are either threatened, in decline, or there is simply not enough data to make a reliable assessment."

Some people will argue that polar bear populations are increasing, but this is simply a lack of understanding.

"It isn't hard to find media reports stating that polar bear populations are at historic highs - up to 25,000 now from a low of 5,000 or so in the 50's or 60's. This gets a chuckle from Nick. Look in any of those reports for the source of their conjecture. The fact is nobody was even paying attention to polar bear numbers in the 50's or 60's, much less conducting a scientifically sound census survey. So where do they come up with those numbers? Hmm… Good question.

In the 50's and 60's polar bear were being shot, killed, hunted down wholesale. It has only been within the past couple of decades that scientists, government leaders, and wildlife managers have realized that it might be prudent to put some limits on the carnage to assess what it is we have in the way of polar bears and to begin serious, ongoing scientific study of them.

What happens when uncontrolled hunting is stopped? Gosh, it seems there may have been some recovery in polar bear populations due to the alleviated stress from hunting. (Incidentally, 500 bears are still harvested every year in Canada.)

When you hear anyone authoritatively pronouncing that polar bear numbers have recovered from 5000 to 25,000 just know that they're simply guessing. Right off the bat a reason to question the veracity of their argument. (And when the Wall Street journal says anything about environmental policy, assume they likely don't know a whit about what they're talking about.) "