Stop Big Game Hunting on Polar Bears

Polar bears are exquisite, glorious animals. They’re also an endangered species. Yet Canada allows polar bears to be hunted and killed for their skin, claws, skulls, teeth and more.

Yet, many of Canada’s polar bear populations are shrinking. In part that’s due to the fact that climate change is melting the Arctic ice the polar bears depend upon to survive. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, Arctic sea ice is melting so rapidly that we could lose two-thirds of the world’s polar bear populations within the next 45 years. But it’s also due to how much polar bear hunting Canada allows. Says NRDC, legal hunting of polar bears solely for the purpose of international trade and sport (i.e., their hides, or for the fun of the kill), occurs only in Canada. Each year, reports NRDC, about 600 polar bears are hunted in Canada, a number that takes its toll on the entire polar bear population.

Consumers are playing a role in the bears’ demise, too. Demand for polar bear skins has gone up, driving up the price, which then motivates hunters to get out their guns.

Unfortunately, even though polar bear populations appear to be stable in northern Canada, the same is not true farther north. As ice melts, polar bears find it harder and harder to find food and shelter, and many drown trying to reach a safe destination. We need to take action now to save them before they go extinct.

This is a difficult issue because the livelihood of Inuit people depends upon polar bears for food and income. Rather than pushing for the banning of hunting at the expense of Inuit lives, I ask that you tackle these issues together. If we can improve the living situations of Inuit people, we can eliminate some of the necessity of allowing foreign, non-native big game hunters to exploit the polar bear population