VALENTINE'S DAY
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It's that time of year: February is just around the corner! A symbolic polar bear adoption is a sweet and thoughtful way to show you care.
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GIFT CENTER
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A cup of tea, a snuggly throw, and a signed copy of a polar bear book--what a cozy way to spend a snow day. And best of all, we're having a winter clearance sale on many of our titles, along with other vintage items!
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FEATURED SPONSOR
Natural Exposures
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Month after month, year after year, Daniel J. Cox of Natural Exposures generously donates
his remarkable photographs for use by PBI.
He also heads up the Arctic Documentary Project, documenting the changes in the Arctic to help people understand that climate change is real and happening now. You can help support this work on the ADP donation page.
Thanks, Dan, for your unending dedication to polar bear conservation and sharing the beauty of the Arctic with our Champions!
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SCIENTIST PROFILE
John Whiteman
University of Wyoming
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Every summer, Ph.D. candidate John Whiteman of the University of Wyoming heads to
northern Alaska to study how polar bears
adjust their physiology in response to longer, warmer summers with less sea ice.
He hopes his findings will also shed light on the long-held speculation that polar bears enter a state called walking hibernation during the melt season. Whiteman also joined us last fall in Churchill for our Tundra Connections broadcasts, helping to reach out to a worldwide audience about polar bears and climate change.
You can learn more about his project on the University of Wyoming's website.
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VIDEO OF THE MONTH
We love how this Project Polar Bear team,
the Polar Protectors, braved the snow and cold
in Pennsylvania to create their climate change and take action video, Live from the North Pole!
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PIN OF THE MONTH!
Looking for a fun winter craft?
Visit our Pinterest page
to learn how to make
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A New Year for Polar Bears
As we flip the calendar to a new year, we feel a surge of optimism that momentum is growing for action on climate change--and we celebrate the
roles each of you play in helping polar bears and the planet.
Now is the time to turn down the heat and save the polar bear's sea ice home. That's why we continue to focus our programs on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions--and why we invite you to Will this be the year you switch to reusable bags? Go meatless X days a week? Work with your city to add bike lanes?
And after you pledge, how will you sustain that behavior? To help turn your intentions into habits, we've gathered some key tips from behavioral scientists. |more
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State of the Polar Bear:
An Interactive Map
Move over Angry Birds. On the scale of cool, we much prefer the new interactive map on polar bear populations by the Polar Bear Specialist Group. It features all 19 populations along with information on whether they're declining, increasing, stable, or data deficient.
You can view how many polar bears live in each of the five polar bear nations and learn about the
four sea ice eco-regions and where they're found. The map also includes information on the threats to polar bears and projections on how each population is expected to fare in a warming Arctic.
Be sure to click through the various tabs and on the map itself to view the interactive features.
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Guest Post: Snug in their Dens
By Dr. Andrew Derocher
It's amazing to ponder that deep under the snow all over the Arctic, the miracle that brings us a new generation of polar bears is upon us.
Hundreds of pregnant females have settled down for a long winter's nap, snug in their dens with their cubs. It's amazing to me that an animal so large gives birth to cubs not much larger than the blocks of butter we use to make shortbread. |more
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Arctic Species of the Month
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Built for a life in the frigid cold, arctic cod ply the waters of the far north, often swimming under the sea ice.
Arctic cod feed on small copepods and other types of zooplankton. Ringed seals, in turn, prey on them, making them a key part of the polar bear's food chain. Small and slender, they usually measure less than 30 centimeters long and are a nondescript brown with small black spots and a silver belly.
Fun fact: Scientists have discovered that arctic cod have a special protein that keeps their blood from freezing in the ice-cold waters of the Arctic.
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You can also join us on your favorite community sites and share PBI with
your friends and family.
PHOTO CREDITS
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Pledge Bear, Cub and Mom, Daniel J. Cox,
Daniel J. Cox/NaturalExposures.com;
John Whiteman, Cristina Galvan;
Arctic Food Web, Modified Graphic from George Durner, USGS
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� 2013 Polar Bears International. All Rights Reserved.
Marks and text appearing in this newsletter including, but not limited to, Polar Bears International name, logo, and programs are trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of
Polar Bears International.
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