Research and Outreach for Polar Bears

Sensory ecology research focuses on hearing sensitivity, mother-infant behavior/acoustic communication, noise disturbance, and olfactory communication, with a focus on informing conservation management. With patience and expertise, we continue to study the bears at the San Diego Zoo to determine the hearing sensitivity of polar bears, providing valuable data to manage the effects of noise pollution from increasing industrial activities, including petroleum extraction and the effects of this disturbance on cub survival.

With planned breeding of polar bears at the San Diego Zoo, we will build on earlier studies of reproductive behavior/ physiology and commence studies of maternal care. Fecal hormone monitoring will differentiate the progressive stages of the female reproductive cycle. Working with U.S. Geological Survey biologists, who collect scent samples from wild bears, we are expanding our work on olfactory communication to determine the role of scent and smelling in finding mates and facilitating reproductive success.

We are building a network of collaborative partners in the zoo community and presenting these scent samples to bears at zoos in controlled behavioral studies. Assessing the role of olfactory communication is important as the polar bear’s sea ice habitat is becoming fragmented due to the impacts of global warming, which will disrupt olfactory trails used to coordinate mating. We will also study maternal care patterns and mother-infant communication in zoos and in the field.

Many of the industrial/agricultural chemicals that have been measured in high concentrations in wild polar bears are suspected to cause developmental/reproductive problems by interfering with hormone signaling.

We will clone genes that code for hormone receptors related to these processes, and screen receptors for interaction with environmentally relevant concentrations of man-made chemicals. Results enable us to determine which chemicals pose a threat to reproduction in wild polar bears. 

The “Arctic Ambassador” program, in collaboration with Polar Bear International, sends a representative from the San Diego region to Churchill, Canada, to learn about polar bear habitat and survival challenges. Upon returning to San Diego, ambassadors share their experiences and insights with their community.