Walrus dies from bird flu on Arctic island: Researcher
The first case of a walrus dying from bird flu has been detected on one of Norway's Arctic islands, a researcher said Monday.
The first case of a walrus dying from bird flu has been detected on one of Norway's Arctic islands, a researcher said Monday.
Ecology
Apr 29, 2024
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The National Parks Service and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service filed a decision April 25 outlining a plan to capture three to seven grizzlies from other ecosystems in the Rocky Mountains or interior British Columbia and release ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 26, 2024
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Montanans know spring has officially arrived when grizzly bears emerge from their dens. But unlike the bears, the contentious debate over their future never hibernates. New research from my lab reveals how people's social ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 16, 2024
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The population of brown bears in the Pyrenees mountains, which had been threatened with extinction, keeps growing, French authorities said Tuesday.
Plants & Animals
Apr 2, 2024
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When darkness falls on central Ohio during the total solar eclipse on April 8, will animals think it's time to go to bed? Will they be anxious? Will they care?
Plants & Animals
Mar 22, 2024
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The National Park Service and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service published a final series of proposals Thursday calling for reintroducing grizzly bears to the North Cascades.
Plants & Animals
Mar 22, 2024
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A proposal to reintroduce grizzly bears to part of Central Idaho has roiled tensions, with advocates saying the action is decades late and critics claiming it's a step toward gruesome maulings.
Plants & Animals
Mar 15, 2024
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Encompassing over 16,000 km2 of towering mountains, long fiords, lush valleys, and massive ice caps, Agguttinni Territorial Park is a protected area on northern Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada. This park, and all of Nunavut, ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 12, 2024
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Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) like clean, cold water and can be found around northern Greenland, Svalbard, Alaska and in Arctic parts of Russia and Canada.
Plants & Animals
Mar 8, 2024
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Rising temperatures and melting ice play a central role in the unfolding Anthropocene—i.e., the most recent geologic period in Earth's history. What distinguishes the Anthropocene from prehistoric human impacts on the environment, ...
Environment
Mar 7, 2024
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Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern Hemisphere and partially in the Southern Hemisphere. That which pertains to bears is called ursine. Bears are found in the continents of North America, South America, Europe, and Asia.
Common characteristics of modern bears include a large body with stocky legs, a long snout, shaggy hair, plantigrade paws with five nonretractile claws, and a short tail. While the polar bear is mostly carnivorous and the giant panda feeds almost entirely on bamboo, the remaining six species are omnivorous, with largely varied diets including both plants and animals.
With the exceptions of courting individuals and mothers with their young, bears are typically solitary animals. They are generally diurnal, but may be active during the night (nocturnal) or twilight (crepuscular), particularly around humans. Bears are aided by an excellent sense of smell, and despite their heavy build and awkward gait, they can run quickly and are adept climbers and swimmers. In autumn some bear species forage large amounts of fermented fruits which affects their behaviour. Bears use shelters such as caves and burrows as their dens, which are occupied by most species during the winter for a long period of sleep similar to hibernation.
Bears have been hunted since prehistoric times for their meat and fur. To this day, they play a prominent role in the arts, mythology, and other cultural aspects of various human societies. In modern times, the bear's existence has been pressured through the encroachment on its habitats and the illegal trade of bears and bear parts, including the Asian bile bear market. The IUCN lists six bear species as vulnerable or endangered, and even "least concern" species such as the brown bear are at risk of extirpation in certain countries. The poaching and international trade of these most threatened populations is prohibited, but still ongoing.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA