Polar bears are native to the Arctic and can be found in Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Svalbard. They"re also found in Canada—like the cub in today"s image, photographed in Churchill, Manitoba. Polar bears spend over half of their time hunting for seals on the sea ice, although they usually catch just one or two for every 10 that they try to catch. Their reliance on sea ice for hunting means that they are highly vulnerable to climate change. Sea ice is rapidly disappearing as the planet heats up, and polar bears are at risk of malnutrition and starvation as their hunting grounds vanish. Shrinking ice sheets also mean that these bears have to swim farther to find food, which depletes their energy reserves. It is important that we reduce our carbon footprints and contribute to the conservation of these amazing predators.
Polar bear cub, Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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9,000-year-old handprints
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Happy Onam!
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Tour de France
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Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
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Antarctica Day
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World Otter Day
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An oasis in the desert
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Everglades National Park, Florida, United States
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Gollinger Waterfalls, Salzburg, Austria
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Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, United States
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Sequoias of the sea
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Palace of Westminster, London, England
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Heaven meets Earth!
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Sperm whale pod surfacing
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Ancient town of Sorano, Tuscany, Italy
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Isle of Skye, Scotland, UK
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Part science experiment, part public park
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A road not for the faint of heart
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The holy city of Varanasi
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Sangameswara Temple, Andhra Pradesh
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Aït Benhaddou, Morocco
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Avalanche Lake Trail at Adirondack High Peaks, New York, United States
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Rolling hills of the Palouse, Washington, United States
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The butterfly effect
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Roques de Benet, Els Ports Natural Park, Catalonia, Spain
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Regal Radiance
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Bohemian waxwings
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Camels in the desert, United Arab Emirates
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A labyrinth of luxury
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Almond trees in full bloom, California, USA