polar bears
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Polar bears may be driven to cannibalism by climate change
If you watch nature shows, you know that male bears see cubs as tasty little McNuggets with fur, so it's not like one bear eating another is a big deal. Except that in the Arctic, polar bears are increasingly deprived of the sea ice they rely on to access seals and other tasty mammalian treats. […]
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The most heartbreaking polar bear picture, ever
I don't know if this guy is actually trying to push this icebreaker ship away from his home. Maybe he just thinks there's a free buffet if he can climb aboard. But in the context of the polar bears' plight, with their numbers dwindling due to climate change and habitat loss, this looks like a […]
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Critical List: Judge rules on polar bears’ status; Cain’s wrong on wind and solar
A new ruling on the polar bear's status as a threatened species gives the Obama administration the power to decide the species' fate.
Amtrak carried more passengers last year than ever before.
The E.U. is wondering whether it should just give up its GHG reduction plans since no one else in the world seems be doing their part to decrease emissions.
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Reenact global warming in your cocktail
This Japanese site sells ice cube molds depicting penguins and polar bears sitting on ice floes. As the ice melts, both the floes and the critters are destroyed, making this a pretty good simulation of the effects of global warming. Finally, a product that combines climate education with all the drinking you need to do […]
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Come and get your Endangered Species Condoms
The Center for Biological Diversity wants to give away 100,000 Endangered Species Condoms this fall. Wanna help?
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Federal biologist who reported polar bear deaths now under (deeply weird) investigation
Back in 2006, Dr. Charles Monnett published an article that included observations about polar bear deaths in the Beaufort Sea. In the report, co-authored with another scientist, Monnett reported seeing four dead polar bears in 2004. Monnett works for the federal government, and this month he was put on administrative leave while the government investigates "integrity issues" connected to that report. Administrative leave means he has to put all current research on hold.
Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a watchdog organization, has formally complained about the investigation. In its complaint, the group includes portions of an interview the Department of the Interior inspector general conducted with Monnett. From the transcript, it appears that they were concerned about the method Monnett and his colleague had used to achieve a rough estimate of the mortality rate. The group writes that "it became clear that the IG agents were focused on what in their mind was a disparity but was, in fact, their inability to understand the note.”
And, if you read the transcript, the investigators do seem tangled up. Here's a sample: -
Critical List: How to support Tim DeChristopher; white dudes think they're smarter than science
Want to support Tim DeChristopher? Go to Washington in August to protest the Keystone XL pipeline. "Consider this your call to action," said Peaceful Uprising, the group DeChristopher founded.
BREAKING: Conservative white dudes (aka the Jim Inhofe Fan Club) are most likely to think they're smarter than science, i.e. doubt the existence of climate change.
In California, though, everyone -- even conservatives -- supports cutting greenhouse-gas emissions. -
Climate change already killing baby polar bears
Climate change isn't just killing polar bears, it's killing baby polar bears. YOU MONSTER.
A study that tracked polar bears swimming long distances found cubs that swam more than 30 miles at a time were more likely to die than cubs that didn't. Baby polars have a hard time making those swims because: -
Polar bears discover Irish heritage
For a long time, scientists thought, as any reasonable person would, that the female ancestor of modern polar bears came from some Alaskan island. But it turns out that, like humans, bears are sometimes attracted to bears that come from foreign places, especially if they have cute accents. In fact, the female ancestor of polar bears came from, of all places, Ireland. (A press release from the Office of the Polar Bear King confirmed that yes, polar bears will be participating in St. Patrick's Day parades worldwide next year.)