Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation
Abstract Kane Basin (KB) is one of the world's most northerly polar bear ( Ursus maritimus ) subpopulations, where bears have historically inhabited a mix of thick multiyear and annual sea ice year‐round. Currently, KB is transitioning to a seasonally ice‐free region because of climate change....
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/am-pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 |
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crwiley:10.1111/gcb.15286 2024-10-13T14:05:46+00:00 Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation Laidre, Kristin L. Atkinson, Stephen N. Regehr, Eric V. Stern, Harry L. Born, Erik W. Wiig, Øystein Lunn, Nicholas J. Dyck, Markus Heagerty, Patrick Cohen, Benjamin R. University of Washington Environment and Climate Change Canada Environmental Protection Agency Pinngortitaleriffik National Aeronautics and Space Administration Universitetet i Oslo World Wildlife Fund 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/am-pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#am http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Global Change Biology volume 26, issue 11, page 6251-6265 ISSN 1354-1013 1365-2486 journal-article 2020 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15286 2024-09-17T04:44:36Z Abstract Kane Basin (KB) is one of the world's most northerly polar bear ( Ursus maritimus ) subpopulations, where bears have historically inhabited a mix of thick multiyear and annual sea ice year‐round. Currently, KB is transitioning to a seasonally ice‐free region because of climate change. This ecological shift has been hypothesized to benefit polar bears in the near‐term due to thinner ice with increased biological production, although this has not been demonstrated empirically. We assess sea‐ice changes in KB together with changes in polar bear movements, seasonal ranges, body condition, and reproductive metrics obtained from capture–recapture (physical and genetic) and satellite telemetry studies during two study periods (1993–1997 and 2012–2016). The annual cycle of sea‐ice habitat in KB shifted from a year‐round ice platform (~50% coverage in summer) in the 1990s to nearly complete melt‐out in summer (<5% coverage) in the 2010s. The mean duration between sea‐ice retreat and advance increased from 109 to 160 days ( p = .004). Between the 1990s and 2010s, adult female (AF) seasonal ranges more than doubled in spring and summer and were significantly larger in all months. Body condition scores improved for all ages and both sexes. Mean litter sizes of cubs‐of‐the‐year (C0s) and yearlings (C1s), and the number of C1s per AF, did not change between decades. The date of spring sea‐ice retreat in the previous year was positively correlated with C1 litter size, suggesting smaller litters following years with earlier sea‐ice breakup. Our study provides evidence for range expansion, improved body condition, and stable reproductive performance in the KB polar bear subpopulation. These changes, together with a likely increasing subpopulation abundance, may reflect the shift from thick, multiyear ice to thinner, seasonal ice with higher biological productivity. The duration of these benefits is unknown because, under unmitigated climate change, continued sea‐ice loss is expected to eventually have negative ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Climate change Kane Basin Sea ice Ursus maritimus Wiley Online Library Arctic Kane ENVELOPE(-63.038,-63.038,-73.952,-73.952) Global Change Biology 26 11 6251 6265 |
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Open Polar |
collection |
Wiley Online Library |
op_collection_id |
crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Kane Basin (KB) is one of the world's most northerly polar bear ( Ursus maritimus ) subpopulations, where bears have historically inhabited a mix of thick multiyear and annual sea ice year‐round. Currently, KB is transitioning to a seasonally ice‐free region because of climate change. This ecological shift has been hypothesized to benefit polar bears in the near‐term due to thinner ice with increased biological production, although this has not been demonstrated empirically. We assess sea‐ice changes in KB together with changes in polar bear movements, seasonal ranges, body condition, and reproductive metrics obtained from capture–recapture (physical and genetic) and satellite telemetry studies during two study periods (1993–1997 and 2012–2016). The annual cycle of sea‐ice habitat in KB shifted from a year‐round ice platform (~50% coverage in summer) in the 1990s to nearly complete melt‐out in summer (<5% coverage) in the 2010s. The mean duration between sea‐ice retreat and advance increased from 109 to 160 days ( p = .004). Between the 1990s and 2010s, adult female (AF) seasonal ranges more than doubled in spring and summer and were significantly larger in all months. Body condition scores improved for all ages and both sexes. Mean litter sizes of cubs‐of‐the‐year (C0s) and yearlings (C1s), and the number of C1s per AF, did not change between decades. The date of spring sea‐ice retreat in the previous year was positively correlated with C1 litter size, suggesting smaller litters following years with earlier sea‐ice breakup. Our study provides evidence for range expansion, improved body condition, and stable reproductive performance in the KB polar bear subpopulation. These changes, together with a likely increasing subpopulation abundance, may reflect the shift from thick, multiyear ice to thinner, seasonal ice with higher biological productivity. The duration of these benefits is unknown because, under unmitigated climate change, continued sea‐ice loss is expected to eventually have negative ... |
author2 |
University of Washington Environment and Climate Change Canada Environmental Protection Agency Pinngortitaleriffik National Aeronautics and Space Administration Universitetet i Oslo World Wildlife Fund |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Laidre, Kristin L. Atkinson, Stephen N. Regehr, Eric V. Stern, Harry L. Born, Erik W. Wiig, Øystein Lunn, Nicholas J. Dyck, Markus Heagerty, Patrick Cohen, Benjamin R. |
spellingShingle |
Laidre, Kristin L. Atkinson, Stephen N. Regehr, Eric V. Stern, Harry L. Born, Erik W. Wiig, Øystein Lunn, Nicholas J. Dyck, Markus Heagerty, Patrick Cohen, Benjamin R. Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
author_facet |
Laidre, Kristin L. Atkinson, Stephen N. Regehr, Eric V. Stern, Harry L. Born, Erik W. Wiig, Øystein Lunn, Nicholas J. Dyck, Markus Heagerty, Patrick Cohen, Benjamin R. |
author_sort |
Laidre, Kristin L. |
title |
Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
title_short |
Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
title_full |
Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
title_fullStr |
Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
title_full_unstemmed |
Transient benefits of climate change for a high‐Arctic polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
title_sort |
transient benefits of climate change for a high‐arctic polar bear ( ursus maritimus) subpopulation |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/gcb.15286 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/am-pdf/10.1111/gcb.15286 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-63.038,-63.038,-73.952,-73.952) |
geographic |
Arctic Kane |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Kane |
genre |
Arctic Climate change Kane Basin Sea ice Ursus maritimus |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change Kane Basin Sea ice Ursus maritimus |
op_source |
Global Change Biology volume 26, issue 11, page 6251-6265 ISSN 1354-1013 1365-2486 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#am http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15286 |
container_title |
Global Change Biology |
container_volume |
26 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
6251 |
op_container_end_page |
6265 |
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1812811811853959168 |