Svalbard’s polar bears are doing well – the population is stable or even growing slightly, many of the animals are in good physical condition. This is Jon Aars description of the current situation, see previous article.
But there are other opinions. This is Morten Jørgensen’s critical reply to Jon Aars description of the state Svalbard’s polar bears currently are in. Morten Jørgensen is the author of the book Polar bears: beloved and betrayed.
There is a tendency in polar bear management to push the consequences of the many problems that the species face into the future. Sometimes the near future. But never right now. Because that would mean that the hunting would have to stop, and the managers cannot bring themselves to even begin to face that decision. This laissez-faire attitude of projection of today’s issues into the future spills over into science.
Latest, Jon Aars claims that the polar bears in Svalbard for now are doing ok – but will face tougher times in the decades to come. He even goes so far as to say that the local population is stable and may be growing.
He has absolutely no scientific basis for making such statements.
The latest attempt at counting the polar bears of Svalbard led to the conclusion that there is no statistical significant change in the population since the previous “count”. In other words, Jon Aars’ optimism is based not in scientific data, but in … ? I guess only he knows.
Also: The presumed stability of the population, based on the data from those last two counts, is NOT a good sign. It is actually almost evidence that the local polar bear population on Svalbard is in dire straits. How so? Well, the other mainstream mistake which Jon Aars makes is to forget the historical context. If everything was just fine, the local polar bear population in Svalbard should in recent decades have shown, and should still be showing, a significant increase – based on their current local protection status after long periods of extreme over-hunting. The very fact that the population is still lingering at a meager 200-500 or so bears is a clear indication that the disintegration of their main habitat is causing the local population to be under massive stress.
The Svalbard polar bear population is clinging on. And must be presumed to be facing a steep decline soon. To bring forth unfounded optimism is not good science, but only serves to falsely appease those who think that urgent action is not needed for the polar bear to receive full protection.
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Norwegens arktischer Norden (1): Spitzbergen
Photobook: Norway's arctic islands. The text in this book is German. [shop url="https://shop.spitzbergen.de/en/polar-books/70-norwegens-arktischer-norden-1-aerial-arctic-9783937903262.html"] ← Back
Lofoten, Jan Mayen and Spitsbergen from the air - Photobook: Norway's arctic islands. The text in this book is German, but there is very little text, so I am sure that you will enjoy it regardless which languages you read (or not).
The companion book for the Svalbardhytter poster. The poster visualises the diversity of Spitsbergen‘s huts and their stories in a range of Arctic landscapes. The book tells the stories of the huts in three languages.
Comprehensive guidebook about Spitsbergen. Background (wildlife, plants, geology, history etc.), practical information including travelling seasons, how to travel, description of settlements, routes and regions.
Join an exciting journey with dog, skis and tent through the wintery wastes of East Greenland! We were five guys and a dog when we started in Ittoqqortoormiit, the northernmost one of two settlements on Greenland’s east coast.
12 postcards which come in a beautifully designed tray. Beautiful images from South Georgia across Antarctica from the Antarctic Peninsula to the Ross Sea and up to Macquarie Island and Campbell Island.