How has global warming impacted polar bears?

Everyone has heard that polar bears are threatened by climate change. But what does that mean, exactly? ... There are 19 distinct subpopulations of polar bears living in the Arctic, and each population will be affected somewhat differently. read more

Polar bears are affected by several factors, including hunting, pollution and oil extraction. Most notably, hunting, particularly following the introduction of snowmobiles, airplanes and ice breakers, led to a huge decline in certain subpopulations. read more

According to a 2009 report by the IUCN Polar Bear Specialist Group, of the 19 recognised subpopulations of polar bears, 8 are in decline, 1 is increasing, 3 are stable and 7 don’t have enough data to draw any conclusions. read more

Etr#5: "we do not know if the recent warming has affected the polar bears in a positive or negative way. "No one has proposed any ways that warming benefits polar bears (wait until oil exploration is big time in the Arctic; that'll sure be good for 'em). The question is no effect or a growing negative one. read more