In search of polar bears
Apr 28th, 2011 by wwftravel
A polar bear cub looks up while its mother dozes. © WWf-US / Rhys Gerholdt
WWF Media Manager Rhys Gerholdt describes his recent experience viewing polar bears in the wild.
March 2011. The vehicle I am in, a beaten up van outfitted with tank tracks, slowly lurches down a steep hill. I am jostled back and forth as we inch our way across the tundra of northern Canada, 40 miles from the tiny town of Churchill. After a two hour-long drive into the wilderness we rock to a stop, finally reaching our destination. Less than 100 meters away, in a tangle of small willows, a polar bear mother rests as her frisky, solitary 10-week old cub tugs on her neck and bats at barren twigs. I’m immediately struck by how this powerful beast can be so caring and gentle, tolerating the cub’s incessant yanking.
Battling biting cold winds and wrapped in a massive Canadian Goose parka, I get out and stand alongside my colleague Peter Ewins, WWF Arctic wildlife biologist, Joining us is a two-person crew with ABC News, heavily laden with film equipment. Often, WWF sends scientists to the Arctic from July to November to work on field research projects and collaborate with indigenous communities. This time, we’ve trekked to this remote corner of the world for an equally important aspect of our work: explaining to a television audience the perilous situation faced by the polar bears and their cubs in the Arctic.
Rhys tries his best to stay warm in Arctic Canada. © Peter Ewins
After minutes of prodding, the cub finally stirs his slumbering mother. She raises her head and looks around for a moment, then turns to her cub and daintily pushes it away from her face using a paw as big as a Frisbee. I press the shutter button on my Canon digital SLR absently as I stand entranced by the mother’s sheer size, magnificence and affection toward her infant. With the wind chill, the air temperature is negative 40 degrees (when it’s this low it doesn’t really matter if we’re talking Fahrenheit or Celsius anymore!), but at that moment the tingling in my fingers is from pure adrenaline.
That evening, I stare up at green swirling lights of the aurora borealis and contemplate the trajectory polar bears are headed on. Researchers say that, by 2035 (when that cub will be an adult), the lack of sea ice near Churchill will make life here impossible for the polar bear to survive. WWF scientists and staff are working tirelessly to avoid that fate, but I admit it is an uphill battle. The problems in the Arctic cannot be solved here in these Northern lands of the Cree and Inuit which are already facing the heat. The solutions lie in reducing our addiction to dirty fossil fuels, using our energy more efficiently, and powering our economies with clean, renewable energy. The solution to saving the polar bear is within our grasp. But, I ponder, will we seize it?
Visit Churchill with WWF:
- Tundra Lodge Adventure, October 15-21, 2011
- The Polar Bears of Churchill, October 26-31, 2011
