Well, it seems to be a familiar theme these days but Canada seems to be the polar bear ‘bad guy’ again. Nikita Osyanikov, a polar bear researcher from Russia, is quoted in the media and saying the Russian polar bear hides are often tagged as ‘Canadian’ so that they can be legally sold. You see, polar bear hunting in Russia has been banned since, I believe, 1957 – part of their initial moves to conserve … Continue reading
Fairly often, I find myself picking up one of Fred Bruemmer’s books and scanning through them again, even though I have read all of them over and over and over. Bruemmer was one of the first modern arctic explorers, environmentalists and writers, travelling the arctic in the 1960s and 1970s as well as one of the first polar bear photographers at Cape Churchill. An amazing life and an amazing writer. His work also puts some … Continue reading
Its hunting time in the arctic. Leads, temporary cracks in the ice, have opened up and there are some nice floe edges around – where the ice meets the open ocean. Bears, seals and everything gather around these areas, its a ‘busy’ place. And, of course, out here you find seals giving birth in snow dens and polar bears looking for seals giving birth in snow dens. It is a bit of a mixed bag … Continue reading
We are at Eagle Plains, halfway between Inuvik and Dawson City and a staple of any Dempster Highway trip. Its a seventies-holdover motel, probably with a few ATCO trailers converted into ‘more motel’, you can feel the squeak and breezes of a good piece-meal northern hotel. Its a strangely friendly place, as in no one really smiles that much but everyone is pretty friendly – happens a lot in the north for some reason. Pictures … Continue reading
Up in the West Arctic for a bit… its the Muskrat Jamboree weekend in Inuvik, Northwest Territories. It doesn’t have a whole lot to do with polar bears but its a fun community event – there’s snowmobile races, arctic games, dogsledding, drum dancing and a whole bunch of Bingos. Inuvik is a bit too much ‘oil and gas’ for me but its a great visit, lots of nice people in the MacKenzie Delta… especially in … Continue reading
Prime seal hunting season is just beginning out on Hudson Bay. The seal birthing season is likely underway and polar bears are likely now heading over to where the fast ice meets the sea ice. Throughout the spring, an assortment of scavengers follow the seal hunt as well. Adult polar bears tend to only eat the fat of young seals, essentially peeling them like bananas and scooping out the best parts. This leaves most of … Continue reading
For polar bears, motherhood actually starts in mid-September with pregnant females nestled into an earthen maternity den and the three month pregnancy just beginning. Near Churchill, cubs are born in early to mid-December once the den has become covered and insulated by a layer of snow. Less than one kilogram (2.2 lbs) at birth, they are blind, lightly furred and utterly helpless. There are usually two cubs born, sometimes just one if the mother is … Continue reading
Another new polar bear/sea ice study is out and this one is actually pretty good. Like, I actually learned something from reading it. I mean this study is actually about bears!!! Here is a link to the paper – it comes from the University of Alberta, authored by Seth Cherry with Derocher, Thiemann and Lunn. It takes an in-depth look at just when females bears (the only ones they can follow with radio collars) come … Continue reading
If you like the Polar Bear Blog, check out my first book, Polar Bears of Churchill. It combines over ten years of guiding experience in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada with the latest scientific research, local history and a bit of cabin fever. Independently published. Available online for $14.95!
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