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Monitoring the Welfare of Polar Bear Populations in a Rapidly Changing Arctic

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Marine Mammal Welfare

Part of the book series: Animal Welfare ((AWNS,volume 17))

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Abstract

Most programs for monitoring the welfare of wildlife populations support efforts aimed at reaching discrete management objectives, like mitigating conflict with humans. While such programs can be effective, their limited scope may preclude systemic evaluations needed for large-scale conservation initiatives, like the recovery of at-risk species. We discuss select categories of metrics that can be used to monitor how polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are responding to the primary threat to their long-term persistence—loss of sea ice habitat due to the unabated rise in atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG; e.g., CO2) concentrations—that can also provide information on ecosystem function and health. Monitoring key aspects of polar bear population dynamics, spatial behavior, health and resiliency can provide valuable insight into ecosystem state and function, and could be a powerful tool for achieving Arctic conservation objectives, particularly those that have transnational policy implications.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Polar Bear Research Program, US Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, AK, USA

    Todd C. Atwood

  2. Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Colleen Duncan

  3. USDA/APHIS/VS/STAS/Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health, United States Department of Agriculture, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Kelly A. Patyk

  4. US Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, AK, USA

    Sarah A. Sonsthagen

Authors
  1. Todd C. Atwood
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  2. Colleen Duncan
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  3. Kelly A. Patyk
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  4. Sarah A. Sonsthagen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Todd C. Atwood .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Clinical Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford, Bristol, United Kingdom

    Andy Butterworth

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Atwood, T.C., Duncan, C., Patyk, K.A., Sonsthagen, S.A. (2017). Monitoring the Welfare of Polar Bear Populations in a Rapidly Changing Arctic. In: Butterworth, A. (eds) Marine Mammal Welfare. Animal Welfare, vol 17. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-46994-2_28

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