Everyone loves their Mum
Photo and caption by Will Rose and Kajsa Sjolander
A stranded polar bear cub cuddles up to its mother in the early morning sunlight. As the Arctic sea ice retreats over 700 miles from the shore, bears must either head north or swim south to land as the ice breaks up. Scientists anticipate that the number of bears on shore will increase as sea ice loss continues. While onshore, the bears feed on the remains of bowhead whales from the Inupiat harvest. Scientists are using DNA from hair snares to understand how the animals are faring as climate change reduces the amount of time they can spend on the sea ice hunting their preferred prey, seals.
Location: Kaktovik, Alaska