Polar bears not starving, says Nunatsiavut wildlife manager

One of the people who oversees an Indigenous hunt of polar bears says the population isdoing well, despiteheart-wrenching photos online suggesting some bears are starving.

Every year, the Nunatsiavut government awards polar bear licences to Inuit hunters livingin the northern Labrador settlement area.

The Inuit set a quota of 12 polar bears this winter. Nunatsiavut wildlife manager JimGoudie said all 12were takenwithin the first seven days of theseason.

Goudie said it's just the latest evidence that polar bears are on the rebound in northern Canada a trend he saidofficials have been recordingfor years.

"There are lots of signs of bears," he told CBCRadio's Labrador Morning."Lots of bears and a continuation of what we've seen over the last three or four years."

The Nunatsiavuthunt takes place over an area stretching from Cape Chidley at the northern tip of Labrador to Fish Cove Point further south near Rigolet.

Goudie said the majority of the bears are killed in the Nainand Hopedale areas.

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"You can go wherever you want to within Nunatsiavut or the Labrador Inuit settlement area to harvest your polar bear," he said. "Anywhere outside of Nunatsiavut boundaries, the harvest would be illegal."

Those who hunt bears are legally obligated to donate any meat they don't use, but they are free to do what they want with the pelts.

Most opt to sell them to wealthy buyers from Canada to East Asia, and each pelt is embedded with a computer chip to prove it was acquired through a legal hunt.

Healthy numbers, misinformed public

Goudie said prior to a 2007 survey, it was estimated there were about 880 polar bears in the northern Labrador and northern Quebec regions.

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However, thestudy actually found 2,152 animals, a significant increase over the earlier estimate.

Researchers are now two years into a new study, and Goudiesaid word of mouth indicates the population is continuing to rebound.

"I think our polar bear population is very, very healthy," he said."The Davis Strait polar bear population is probably one of the most healthy in Canada, and certainly in the world."

Goudie said while there are a few different polar bear groups that arein trouble, the majority are thriving.

He said despite that,most people have no idea and from what he sees online many seem to think that polar bears are in trouble and indeclineglobally.

Goudie points to one post he saw recently from National Geographic that showed what appeared to be a starving polar bear, but in reality wasan animal that was sick.

"It's an easy story to put out there, that polar bears are in massive trouble. Sometimes I have to bite my tongue or keep my fingers off the keyboard when I see those social media posts," he said.