176 



nation.^ fronting on the north polar basin, namely. Canada, Denmark, N"orway 

 and the Soviet Union l)e.sides the United States. 



Ba.setl upon the combined effort of this Bureau and the State of Alaska, 

 it now was possible to increase the definitiveness of information concerning this 

 species. It was shown th*t this bear does not regularly come ashore in Alaska, 

 which precludes regiilar denning and foraging in this land : that this species no 

 longer occurred on St. Mattliew Island as it did in 1800; that the bag of 1965 

 of 202 bear.s contributed about .$450,000 to Alaskan economy : that the bag from 

 1960 to 1965 averaged about 75 percent males : that the average litter size in 

 March and April since 1958 for cubs of-the-year was 1.86 individuals, and for 

 cubs older than one year was 1.58 animals. 



With the engagement in December 1967 of a wildlife biologist intimately 

 acquainted with Alaskan conditions, this Bureau began its first .specialized study 

 of the polar bear. This biologist and another from the Alaska Department of 

 Fish and Game work in a complementary manner, the Bureau biologist centering 

 his attention on the bears of the Chukchi Sea region off the west coast of Alaska, 

 and the Department of Fish and Game biologist centering his attention on the 

 bears of the Beaufort Sea region off the north coast of Alaska. Their work, it 

 should be noted, is being carried out cooperatively with wildlife biologists rep- 

 resenting Canada, Denmark, Norway, and the Soviet Union, which in turn is 

 beine coordinated by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature 

 and Natural Resources headquartered at Morges. Switzerland. 



This group has found that the Arctic-A\'ide harvest of po'ar bears is approxi- 

 mately 1.250 animals annually. In 1969, the harvest by nation included 128 by 

 Greenland (Denmark). 346 by Norway. 407 by Canada. 298 by the United States, 

 and a few by the Soviet Union for zoos or .scientific study. The Soviet Union has 

 otherwise had a closed season on this species since 1956. The bag in Alaska is 

 controlled by that State which restricts the number of permits Issued to 300. It 

 is generally illegal to bag cubs or females with cubs. 



Field work by the American biologists suggests that the bears taken by hunters 

 in the Chukchi Sea region probably come from Wrangel Island as a natal area, 

 and those taken in the Beaufort Sea region probably have as their natal area is- 

 lands in the western Canadian seas. 



Their work shows also that the average age of the males bagged is decreas- 

 ing .since 1966. This means that younger animals are making up more and more of 

 the bag, but not necessarily that the population is being jeopardized. This is a 

 trend, however, which needs to be closely watched with a view to altering the 

 hunting regulations in favor of this bear when the need is indicated. 



Reaching a reliable estimate of the total regional population of this bear re- 

 mains elusive. The sparse distribution of the individuals, the shortness of the 

 .sea.son for field work, and the frequency of violent weather all contribute to this 

 diflBculty. The Bureau's biologist recently tested an infra-red scanning system 

 for making a count of polar bears. Application of the method is exi)en.sive and the 

 result so far is not entirely satisfactory. It is believed, however, that the sys- 

 tem is promising. 



Increased funding would facilitate the more rapid cumulation of data basic 

 to good management. 



Mr. Potter. Dr. Linduska, the information I am talking about was 

 derived from the proceedings of the various conferences held in con- 

 junction with the ICUX's concern with polar bears. 



Coming back to the question we talked about, walrus and now sea 

 otters, I think I have read all or most of the paners Karl Kenvon has 

 written on sea otters and I see no indication there except possibly with 

 regard to Amchitka that the population of .sea otters has reachecl their 

 natural level any place in Alaska or in California. 



Are you aware of any information that I have not seen that indicates 

 that thev are at this maximum population level ? 



Dr. LiNDUSKA. Xo, I think your reporting is accurate, to my knowl- 

 edge. 



Amchitka. by the slacking back of population increase, would cer- 

 tainly suggest they are arriving at the saturation point, and this is 

 one of the common phenomena that occurs as an animal reaches a point 

 of saturation with its habitat. 



