More alarmism and wild guesses they never give up with this crap
Scientists are warning polar bears in the Arctic could face starvation by the end of the century if sea ice keeps shrinking.
Sea ice projections for the Canadian Arctic Archipelago show global warming could reduce the icy periods polar bears need to hunt and breed each year.
The Canadian Arctic Archipelago is known as the "last ice area" and was thought to be a long-term safe haven for the polar bear.
But researchers said the findings were an early warning sign for the potential impacts of climate change on other Arctic species too.
Dr Andrew Derocher from Canada's University of Alberta said the region's icy conditions were crucial for polar bears, but sea ice projections in the area were not positive.
He said the ice models showed the animals could starve if climate change continued on its current trajectory, as it would not only impact upon the bears, but also their prey.
"We know already that other populations further south and in other areas won't be doing well ... but in this area where we thought the ice would persist well into this century [we've started] to see serious difficulties," he said.
"They have a short window in the spring time where they gorge themselves on the fat of seals. The problem is, if you push them too far, they don't have enough energy stored.
Dr Derocher said up to a quarter of the world's polar bears could lose their habitat and the decline would happen "quite quickly".
Researchers believe the results have implications for other parts of the world too.
"Many of the populations and some of the examinations we've done in lower latitude areas indicate clearly they won't persist beyond mid-century," he said.
There is evidence that polar bear numbers have been slowly increasing since unregulated hunting was banned in some regions in the 1970s, but Dr Derocher said shrinking sea ice could be their next big threat.
"I think the thing that's really worrisome is just how fast these changes have occurred," he said.
"[The Arctic is] warming faster than other parts of the planet, it's giving us an opportunity to respond. If we don't choose to we do it at our own peril."
PHOTO: Dr Andrew Derocher has been studying polar bears in the arctic for 30 years. (Dr Andrew Derocher)
