polar bear

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Polar Bear Cannibalism May Be Rising

Bears now seen eating cubs on sea ice

(Newser) - Male polar bears have long been known to prey on cubs and even females, but bear cannibalism is more widespread than earlier thought, and may be on the increase because of climate change, researchers warn. Most previous sightings of bear eating bear involved animals on shore late in the year,...

Mystery Disease Killing Alaskan Seals

Ringed seal outbreak puzzles biologists

(Newser) - A mysterious disease is killing seals along Alaska's Arctic coast, and officials fear it might spread to other countries—and other species. Scores of dead or severely weakened ringed seals with telltale skin lesions and hair loss have been found along the coastline over the last few months, Reuters...

Polar Bear in Norway Attack Was Starving

Group's camp was surrounded by faulty tripwire

(Newser) - The mauling victims of a starving polar bear have been airlifted from Norway to Britain for treatment. The bear killed a teenager on a Norway science trip before a team leader managed to kill the animal with a gun that jammed four times. The adult leader, a co-worker, and two...

Polar Bear Kills Tourist in Norway

Four others injured in attack

(Newser) - A British tourist is dead and four people are seriously injured after a polar bear attacked them today in Norway. The five were part of a group of campers in the Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard, according to a district governor's spokesperson. The group reported the mauling via satellite phone...

Fed Polar Bear Defender Placed on Leave

Supporters charge he was singled out for punishment over stand

(Newser) - A federal wildlife biologist who sounded the alarm about drowning polar bears in the midst of global warming has been placed on leave pending the outcome of a scientific misconduct probe. Charles Monnett is being investigated for unspecified "integrity issues" apparently linked to his report that polar bears could...

Long-Distance Swims Harming Polar Bears?

The swims could be hurting cub survival rates

(Newser) - Polar bears forced to swim longer distances because of diminished sea ice off Alaska's coast may be paying a price in lost cubs or precious calories, according to a study by the US Geological Survey. The study reviewed data from female polar bears in the Chukchi and southern Beaufort...

Polar Bears Have Irish Ancestors

DNA study proves interbreeding with Irish bears of old

(Newser) - Polar bears have as much claim to Irish descent as any St. Patrick's day marcher, according to a DNA study of ancient bear bones. All polar bears alive today have the maternal DNA of the extinct Irish brown bear, the researchers found, suggesting that the two species interbred during...

Final Verdict: Knut Drowned
 Final Verdict: Knut Drowned 
Apr 1, 2011 6:20 AM CDT

Final Verdict: Knut Drowned

Cause of the brain swelling not known, says pathologist

(Newser) - The sad final verdict is in: Celebrity polar bear Knut died from drowning. But the four-year-old's collapse into his enclosure's pool at the Berlin Zoo was caused by encephalitis, according to a necropsy performed on the bear. The AP reports that a zoo pathologist said she could not tell what...

Knut to Be Stuffed, Displayed

Famous polar bear will go to Berlin museum

(Newser) - Knut spent his life on display in the Berlin Zoo, and in death he'll move to a museum. The famous bear will be stuffed and exhibited in Berlin's Natural History Museum, the New York Post reports, citing the Times of London. Even as veterinarians examined Knut to determine a cause...

Brain Problems Killed Knut
 Brain Problems Killed Knut 
Mar 22, 2011 10:25 AM CDT

Brain Problems Killed Knut

Berlin Zoo says he was otherwise fine

(Newser) - The mysterious and sudden death of polar bear sensation Knut is mysterious no longer. A necropsy performed yesterday discovered "significant changes to the brain, which can be viewed as a reason for the polar bear's sudden death," the Berlin Zoo announced today. The zoo wouldn't elaborate on what...

Polar Bear Knut Is Dead
 Polar Bear 
 Knut Is Dead 
Mar 19, 2011 12:14 PM CDT

Polar Bear Knut Is Dead

Beloved polar bear had been a world sensation

(Newser) - Sad news from Germany: Knut, the world's most famous polar bear, is dead. The 4-year-old bear was found in his enclosure this morning, though the cause of death isn't known. Knut became an international sensation after being abandoned by his mother at the Berlin Zoo, then raised by human keepers....

Polar Bear Makes Epic 9-Day, 420-Mile Swim

'Amazing feat' as animal searches for ice floes

(Newser) - Scientists in the Arctic have recorded what is by far the longest swim a polar bear has ever been known to make. A female bear fitted with a radio collar swam continuously for almost 10 days through icy waters north of Alaska, covering 420 miles as she searched for ice...

Arctic Melting May Bring New Beast: Polar-Grizzly

Mama grizzly, papa polar means threatened baby

(Newser) - Melting arctic sea ice isn’t just threatening polar bears’ lives—it’s threatening their gene pool. The loss of ice means more contact between polar bears and genetically-similar grizzlies, which means cross-breeding, scientists say. Hunters have shot at least two polar-grizzly crosses since 2006, the Independent reports. Other species...

Happy 4th Birthday, Knut!
 Happy 4th Birthday, Knut! 
Dec 5, 2010 3:02 PM CST

Happy 4th Birthday, Knut!

Zoo-goers celebrate Germany's favorite polar bear

(Newser) - Knut, Germany's favorite polar bear, has celebrated his 4th birthday with a lavish party at his zoo attended by about 250 people. Fish and meat were served in the polar bear's snow-covered, outdoor enclosure at the Berlin Zoo today, followed by a birthday cake shaped like the number 4. As...

US Sets Aside Land in Alaska for Polar Bears

187K square miles to be preserve for endangered species

(Newser) - The Obama administration is setting aside 187,000 square miles in Alaska as a "critical habitat" for polar bears, which could add restrictions to future offshore drilling for oil and gas. Nearly 95% of the designated habitat is sea ice in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas off Alaska's northern...

Knut Is Disturbed, Having Panic Attacks
 Knut Is Disturbed, 
 Having Panic Attacks 
says peta
Jun 18, 2010 9:14 AM CDT

Knut Is Disturbed, Having Panic Attacks

Polar bear is imitating tourists, acting abnormally

(Newser) - World-famous polar bear Knut is suffering panic attacks thanks to his life in captivity, say scientists…PETA scientists, that is. Knut and Gianna, his companion at the Berlin Zoo, “are definitely displaying behavioral problems,” one researcher tells AFP . Among his apparent issues: Panic attacks, swaying to and fro,...

UN Rejects Polar Bear Trade Ban

Canada: Aboriginal communities depend on bear hunt

(Newser) - A US-backed proposal to ban the international trade of polar bear skins, teeth, and claws was defeated today at a UN wildlife meeting over concerns it would hurt indigenous economies and arguments that the practice doesn't pose a significant threat to the animals. The Americans argued that the sale of...

PETA Wants Knut Castrated
 PETA Wants Knut Castrated 
Mar 3, 2010 1:33 PM CST

PETA Wants Knut Castrated

They worry about incest with comely cousin Giovanna

(Newser) - The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals want Knut’s nuts. The group’s German branch is demanding the Berlin Zoo castrate the world’s most famous polar bear, lest he mate with his current cage-mate—and cousin—Giovanna, a 3-year-old female on loan from the Munich Zoo. “...

Teen Survives Night Stranded With Polar Bears

Canadian youth rescued from Arctic ice floe

(Newser) - A 17-year-old Inuit youth is in a local hospital with hypothermia after spending over 24 hours stranded on a drifting ice floe in Canada's Hudson Bay with three polar bears. The teen became separated from his uncle as the two walked back toward a settlement after their snowmobile broke down...

Feds Pitch Polar Bear Habitat

Critics complain move doesn't address main threats

(Newser) - The federal government has proposed designating 200,000 square miles of land, sea, and ice in northern Alaska as a critical habitat for polar bears. The move is "one step in the right direction to help this species stave off extinction," said an Interior Department official. He acknowledged,...

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