HOLIDAY ADOPTION

GOOD CHEER

ARCTIC ALLIES

SCIENTIST PROFILE

DENVER HOLT

 Owl Research Institute

Winter's Chill

Temperatures have plunged into the neighborhood of

-20 C near Churchill, and freeze-up has come to parts of Hudson Bay, with polar bears beginning to move out across the ice in some areas--a couple of weeks earlier than in recent years. 

We're cautiously optimistic that the newly formed ice will hold for the Western Hudson Bay polar bears, giving them access to seals after months of fasting. This population has been experiencing longer and longer ice-free periods in recent years, shortening their hunting season. 

Scientists have long predicted that less time on the sea ice and less time to hunt would affect the survival rates of polar bear cubs. This has apparently started to happen, with almost no yearling cubs spotted from Tundra Buggies� this year.

To help draw attention to the annual wait for freeze-up along Hudson Bay and the threats polar bears face in one of Earth's most fragile ecosystems, we've launched the first ever Polar Bear Week with our partners explore.org  and Frontiers North Adventures-think Shark Week, but with polar bears! Major media outlets from the Huffington Post to Outside and Mashable are joining us in this effort--and we'd love you to take part too.

Once again, our coverage of the Churchill polar bear migration includes a Polar Bear Cam, blog posts from the field, and social media updates with photos and ice reports.

We've also added a new Citizen Science Project to help document the health and condition of the polar bears approaching the Tundra Buggies and to track them over time. Cassandra Debets is helping to set up the pilot phase of this program in cooperation with PBI's chief scientist, Dr. Steven Amstrup, and University of Wyoming researchers through grants from SeaWorld and Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium.

"So far, we're still testing methods," says Debets, adding that the project has proved engaging to visitors, who are curious to learn about fat index levels in the bears, how to tell male and female bears apart, and how to estimate the age of the bears they see. 

By Denver Holt

I recently traveled from Missoula, Montana, to Churchill, Manitoba, to participate in PBI's Tundra Connections� program. It was my first Tundra Buggy� tour to see polar bears. I was just as thrilled to see arctic fox, arctic hare, willow ptarmigan, and snow buntings, which are other very cool arctic animals.

However, my favorite arctic animal is the snowy owl. It's hard to give one species a higher ranking than another, so I'll just list the ten reasons I think snowy owls are one of the most fascinating.   More 

Arctic Species of the Month:

Arctic Hare

Pure white in winter--with the exception of small black tips on the ends of their ears--arctic hares are so well 

These large, well-furred hares browse on tundra flowers and plants, especially arctic willows, using their keen sense of smell to find food under the snow. Their long, sharp claws help them dig through crusted ice to reach the vegetation below. Arctic wolves, gyrfalcons, and peregrine falcons are their main predators, along with snowy owls.

Fun fact: The arctic hare's thick black eyelashes protect its eyes from the sun's glare. 

My Planet, My Part

Have you added the momentum of your actions and ideas to our new online community gathering place, My Planet, My Part?

The page is emerging as a strong hub for making connections with like-minded people around the world. And if you've always wanted to see Churchill's polar bears, the launch includes a contest, with the grand prize a trip to Churchill during next year's polar bear migration, sponsored by our partner, explore.org.

Here's a sample entry from the contest that sums it all up, a word collage created by one of our Leadership Camp graduates, Karen Meeker Biddinger-Ogden.