One Bright Spot For Polar Bears - N. Labrador Population Doing Well

[hatrack]

While biologists worry polar bears could be on their way to becoming an endangered species, the population north of Labrador appears to be thriving. Biologists fear that changes to the Arctic environment from global warming will have a severe impact on the animals.

Monitoring populations is difficult because many of the world's estimated 20,000 to 25,000 polar bears live in inaccessible areas of the Arctic.

But Andrew Derocher, chair of the International Polar Bear Specialist Group, said the population of bears in the Davis Strait area seems to be doing well.

"The harp seal population has increased a lot along the Newfoundland and Labrador coast," said Derocher, who is also a biology professor at the University of Alberta. "You've just got more fuel to get that population up in size."

EDIT

http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2005/07/15/polar-bears050715.html