Home page

Text size

E-mail this page

ELLESMERE ISLAND
The governments of Nunavut and Greenland are collaborating to collect current data about the polar bear population in the Kane Basin, between Ellesmere Island and northern Greenland.

The last study in the basin was done between 1993 and 1997, and suggested the population was declining in the area. Nunavut and Greenland co-manage the small population.

"This collaborative effort ... will help us better understand and sustainably manage this shared polar bear population," Nunavut Environment Minister James Arreak stated in a news release announcing the study, which started April 23.

Researchers will use the non-invasive genetic mark-recapture method to track the population, and will also collect data from a small number of collared and ear-tagged bears in Kane Basin to determine how far the bears roam.

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.