Are polar bears going to become extinct because the Arctic ice is melting?
The emotional appeal is very strong, because polar bears are a memorable feature of any trip to the zoo. There is a book entitled “Why Are the Ice Caps Melting?” by Anne Rockwell, aimed at the 4 – 8 year old range. There was also a British band named “The Melting Ice Caps” who sang totally unrelated songs. Publicity and excitement abounds, but science says otherwise. Let’s start with a few facts: First, the native people of Nunavut (northern Canada bordering the Arctic Ocean) hunt polar bears for food all their lives, and they haven’t noticed any shortage of polar bears. Nobody is trying to protect polar bears from people. Second, polar bears easily swim 100 km (over 60 miles). A polar bear “stranded” on an ice floe offers a photo distressing to humans, but if the ice floe is close enough to be filmed, the bear has a pretty easy trip back to solid ground. Third, Arctic sea ice is not diminishing; it’s currently back to the same extent as in 1979, three decades ago. This was reported in
