PHOTO VIA WIKIPEDIA, CC BY-SA
The picture
The polar bear is the largest land carnivore on Earth and the living symbol of the Arctic. It hunts seals from the surface of frozen sea ice, so the length of the ice season decides how well a bear eats each year. They are not doomed: the world already saved them once, when nations agreed in 1973 to end unregulated hunting and numbers recovered. What they need now is cooler air, which makes the everyday climate actions in this app their most direct lifeline.
The science
Ursus maritimus, meaning 'sea bear'. Their fur is not white at all: each hair is a hollow, transparent tube that scatters light, and the skin beneath is black to absorb the sun. A thick fat layer keeps them warm in near-freezing water, and they can smell a seal through a metre of snow.
In numbers
Worth repeating at dinner
A polar bear can smell a seal nearly a kilometre away, and through a metre of snow.
- WWF
They are powerful swimmers - one tracked bear swam over 600 km without stopping.
- USGS
Polar bear fur is transparent and hollow, not white, and the skin underneath is black.
- Polar Bears International
What they face
Bears hunt seals from the ice, so shorter ice seasons mean fewer chances to eat and store fat.
IUCN
As ice retreats, bears spend longer ashore, where food is poor and encounters with people rise.
Polar Bears International
What is already working
Patrols, bear-proof food storage and warning systems keep both people and bears alive in Arctic towns.
Every tonne of emissions avoided is ice kept in the Arctic, the single thing that decides their future.
Reasons for hope
After the 1973 international agreement ended unregulated hunting, polar bear numbers recovered strongly. Countries can act together for a species.
Of the 19 tracked populations, a number are stable or increasing, and maternity dens are better protected than ever.
Meet them
Small actions that reach them
People doing the big work
Hopeling is also a pocket companion: one fact, one small act a day. Open the app