A good year for Svalbard polar bears due to abundant sea ice coverage
Posted on April 2, 2024 | Comments Offon
A sow and a pair of half-grown cubs recently paid a visit to the Polish Research Station in southwestern Svalbard without causing any more trouble than racing heart-rates, according to a report in The Guardian today.
Money quote from the leader of the expedition [my bold]:
This year the team had seen more polar bears than usual, he added. Usually there were around 20 bear sightings a year, but this year there had been close to 40 sightings since June and they expected to see more in their final three months.
“So far, we have not observed any clearly emaciated individuals. This year is probably a good year for Svalbard’s polar bears because there is a lot of sea ice here compared to recent years,” he said [The Guardian, 2 April 2024, see photo above].
https://polarbearscience.com/2024/04/02/a-good-year-for-svalbard-polar-bears-due-to-abundant-sea-ice-coverage/
