Dispatches from the field

Little is known about the polar bears, walrus and whales of Russia’s Kara Sea.

For people who have problems visualizing climate change, this is what it can look like in the Arctic – 35,000 walruses crowded onto an Alaskan beach, driven there by the loss of their preferred resting and feeding place on coastal ice.

We’ve followed dozens of polar bears on the WWF Polar Bear Tracker since it launched in 2003. But few have wandered as far as Kara, a female bear tagged by researchers in Spring 2013.

This August, eight polar bears came searching for food in four Russian Arctic villages. WWF set out to keep both local people and bears safe.

I spoke with our WWF-sponsored students one last time before we parted ways (but hopefully not for long!)

I asked some of the northern students for their stories about sea ice.

WWF is part of a “Students on Ice” expedition from Arctic Canada to Greenland, both sponsoring students, and helping give the students useful skills. WWF staff member Sue Novotny is on board, and is sending blogs about the expedition. After four days exploring Labrador, southern Greenland seems both familiar and new to the students. The […]

WWF is part of a “Students on Ice” expedition from Arctic Canada to Greenland, both sponsoring students, and helping give the students useful skills. WWF staff member Sue Novotny is on board, and is sending blogs about the expedition. Traditionally, ships visiting this part of Labrador would be met with an incongruous sight – a […]

Here on the Labrador coast we are seeing and hearing of the mixing of nature that’s beginning to occur with climate change.

They’re pretty much there all the time, but you see them anywhere, any time