Ice Bear: A Natural and Unnatural History of the Polar Bear - Hardcover

Mulvaney, Kieran

3.81

118 ratings by Goodreads

9780091926106: Ice Bear: A Natural and Unnatural History of the Polar Bear

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0091926106 ISBN 13: 9780091926106

Publisher: Hutchinson, 2011

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The polar bear is one of the most recognisable animals on the planet. Yet if global warming continues at its present pace, summer sea ice could disappear entirely from the Arctic Ocean by the year 2040. Polar bears could be extinct within a generation.

Ice Bear is the definitive account of an iconic species: its life, its past, and its uncertain future. These beautiful bears are creatures of paradox: Arctic residents whose major problem is not staying warm, but keeping cool. Officially classed as marine mammals, they are the world's largest land carnivores. They begin life in a snowdrift; at birth they weigh just twenty ounces. Fully grown, they become massive predators that can walk almost silently, ten feet in length and close to 2,000 pounds. Wandering thousands of miles over the course of a year, they are, above all, creatures of the ice. Without sea ice and the life it supports, polar bears cannot survive.

Kieran Mulvaney is an expert on the Polar regions who has led three expeditions to the Arctic as well as Project Thin Ice 2006: Save the Polar Bear - the successful first attempt to reach the North Pole in summer and draw attention to the impact of climate change on polar bears. This book blends natural and human history, myth and reality with scientific and personal observation, to tell the story of these remarkable animals, the region in which they dwell, and the rapid changes overtaking planet Earth.

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Review:

"The excellent book - a blend of natural history and personal reflection - is full of profound observations about one of the world's most telegenic yet threatened mammals" (BBC History Magazine)

"Ice Bear joins the dots of this unfolding drama at the top of the world, showing why polar bears are much more than majestic and charming adornments to the planet." (Daily Mail)

"Kieran Mulvaney has written numerous polar-related book and in this one he sheds some light on this odd animal, concentrating on two bears living around Hudson Bay in Canada and following them from their charming infancy through to full adulthood. On the way there is much to be learnt." (Daily Telegraph)

Book Description:

A fascinating, up-close look at virtually everything interesting, important, or culturally relevant about the birth, life, and death of the polar bear.

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