Polar bears

By RD3114

  • Discovery of polar bears

    Discovery of polar bears
    John Phipps was the first to describe the polar bear as a distinct species in 1774. He chose the scientific name Ursus maritimus, the Latin for 'maritime bear', due to the animal's native habitat.

  • hunting

    hunting
    Serious concern began in the 1960s after years of increasing hunting.

  • meeting for concerns

    meeting for concerns
    First international meeting on conservation of Polar Bears in Fairbanks Alaska

  • killing of polar bears

    Total population in Alaska estimated at 2,000. Hunted by Inuit natives along north coast. 15 villages took 344 animals between 1985-87

  • population

    Population estimate worldwide: 22,000

  • threatened

    Listed with U.S. Endangered Species Act as Threatened

  • land for polar bears

    U.S. government will set aside 200,541 square miles in Alaska and off its coast as "critical habitat" for polar bears.

  • population increase

    The population in 2015 increases to 32,000 polar pears