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International Polar Year 2007–2008 - WMO

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Table 3.9-2. Current<br />

status, trends,<br />

harvest and risk of<br />

decline for polar bear<br />

populations.<br />

(Unpublished data, courtesy<br />

of Dag Vongraven, Norwegian<br />

<strong>Polar</strong> Institute)<br />

430<br />

IPY 20 07–20 08<br />

Pan-Arctic Protected Areas Monitoring<br />

Plan<br />

In addition to the ecosystem-based Expert Monitoring<br />

Groups, the CBMP aims to establish a Pan-Arctic<br />

Protected-Areas Monitoring Group, recognizing that<br />

protected areas represent important existing platforms<br />

for the implementation of pan-Arctic, coordinated<br />

biodiversity monitoring. The CBMP is working<br />

collaboratively with the various national and regional<br />

Arctic protected-areas agencies to identify current<br />

biodiversity-monitoring efforts and opportunities for<br />

establishing a standardized suite of parameters that<br />

can be monitored within protected areas (Gill et al.,<br />

2008). The main objective is to identify a small suite of<br />

biodiversity measures that would be common across<br />

the Arctic and implemented in the same way by the<br />

agency responsible for its respective protected area.<br />

This pan-Arctic set of measures will allow coordinated<br />

reporting of biodiversity in Arctic protected areas and<br />

provide a broader context to regional changes, thereby<br />

assisting managers in monitoring changes within<br />

Population<br />

Abundance<br />

Estimate<br />

<strong>Year</strong> of<br />

Estimate<br />

their own protected areas.<br />

During 2010, the Pan-Arctic Protected Areas<br />

Monitoring Group held workshops focused on<br />

reviewing current monitoring programs and selecting<br />

a suite of standardized parameters to monitor and<br />

indicators to report. The goal is to track and promote<br />

implementation of the monitoring plans.<br />

Circumpolar <strong>Polar</strong> Bear Research and<br />

Monitoring Plan<br />

Despite the sustained attention given to polar<br />

bears (Ursus maritimus), we have only limited baseline<br />

information on most polar bear regional populations<br />

and a poor understanding of how polar bears will<br />

respond to a rapidly changing Arctic climate (Table<br />

3.9-2). Meeting this challenge requires an efficient<br />

coordinated effort spanning all Arctic regions. An<br />

integrated pan-Arctic research and monitoring plan<br />

is needed to improve our ability to detect trends in<br />

polar bear populations, understand the mechanisms<br />

Annual Kill<br />

(5-year mean)<br />

Trend Status<br />

Estimated Risk of<br />

Future Decline<br />

(10 years)<br />

East Greenland unknown – 58 Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Barents Sea 2650 2004 no catch Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Kara Sea unknown – n/a Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Laptev Sea 800-1200 1993 n/a Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Chukchi Sea unknown – n/a Decline Reduced Data deficient<br />

Southern Beaufort Sea 1526 2006 44 Decline Reduced Moderate<br />

Northern Beaufort Sea 1202 2006 29 Stable Not reduced Data deficient<br />

Viscount Melville Sound 161 1992 5 Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Norwegian Bay 190 1998 4 Decline Data deficient Very high<br />

Lancaster Sound 2541 1998 83 Decline Data deficient High<br />

M’Clintock Channel 284 2000 2 Increase Reduced Very low<br />

Gulf of Boothia 1592 2000 60 Stable Not reduced Very low<br />

Foxe Basin 2300 2004 101 Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient<br />

Western Hudson Bay 935 2004 44 Decline Reduced Very high<br />

Southern Hudson Bay 900-1000 2005 35 Stable Not reduced Very high<br />

Kane Basin 164 1998 11 Decline Data deficient Very high<br />

Baffin Bay 1546 2004 212 Decline Data deficient Very high<br />

Davis Strait 2142 2002 60 Decline Not reduced Very high<br />

Arctic Basin unknown – Data deficient Data deficient Data deficient

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