Polar bears are a living symbol of the consequences of global warming: their habitat is shrinking as temperatures rise, as is their food. But scientists observing them in the Arctic have discovered another frightening result.
Polar bears are suffering from injuries to their paws due to ice pellets sticking to their fur. Some of the bears studying in Greenland have gotten their paws so stuck in the ice that they are unable to walk. Published in the newspaper. Environmentthe study suggests that some snowballs are up to 30cm in diameter and are caught not only in hair but also in flesh. The bears with the most severe injuries are males, simply because they travel the most kilometers.
A similar problem was observed with sled dogs.
What has to do with Climate changeClimate change ? Scientists have been observing bears suffering from the snowball phenomenon for about ten years, and it seems that it is the alternating periods of cold and mild weather that cause them to form. The snow melts, the bears walk on it and it gets sticky, then it freezes and the snowballs stick to the bear’s paws.
But the same problems were seen DogsDogs Sledge from Greenland, which forced them mushers To cut the hair around their claws.
