{"id":424041,"date":"2026-01-31T19:42:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T18:42:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=424041"},"modified":"2026-01-31T19:42:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T18:42:26","slug":"polar-bears-on-norwegian-islands-fatter-and-healthier-despite-ice-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=424041","title":{"rendered":"Polar bears on Norwegian islands fatter and healthier despite ice loss"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Two<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Norwegian Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard have become fatter and healthier despite significant sea ice loss due to climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A study published in Scientific Reports on January 29, 2026, analyzed body condition data from 770 adult polar bears between 1992 and 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scientists expected the opposite, but polar bears in the Norwegian Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard have become fatter and healthier since the early 1990s, all while sea ice has steadily declined due to climate change.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Polar bears rely on sea ice as a platform from which to hunt the seals that they rely on for blubber-rich meals. The bears\u2019 fat reserves provide energy and insulation and allow mothers to produce rich milk for cubs.<\/em> The BBC<\/a> has the story.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers weighed and measured 770 adults in Svalbard between 1992 and 2019 and found that bears had become significantly fatter.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They think that Svalbard bears have adapted to recent ice loss by eating more land-based prey, including reindeer and walruses.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The discovery, published in Scientific Reports<\/a>, was particularly puzzling because of the impact of climate change in Svalbard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the same period that this research was carried out, global temperature rise has reduced the number of ice-free days per year in the region by almost 100 – at a rate of about four days each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The fatter a bear is the better it is,” explained lead researcher Dr Jon Aars from the Norwegian Polar Institute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“And I would have expected to see a decline in body condition when the loss of sea ice has been so profound.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“And I would have expected to see a decline in body condition when the loss of sea ice has been so profound.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walruses have been officially protected in Norway since the 1950s, after they were hunted to near extinction. That protection has boosted their numbers and apparently provided a new source of fatty food for polar bears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the full story here<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Norwegian Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard have become fatter and healthier despite significant sea ice loss due to climate change.<\/p>\n

A study published in Scientific Reports on January 29, 2026, analyzed body condition data from 770 adult polar bears between 1992 and 2019.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":424048,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"Discover how polar bears in Svalbard are thriving despite climate change, adapting to a new diet from land-based prey since the 1990s.","jetpack_seo_html_title":"Svalbard Polar Bears Thrive Despite Climate Change: Study","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvY2xpbWF0ZS1zY2llbmNlLnByZXNzXC93cC1jb250ZW50XC91cGxvYWRzXC8yMDI2XC8wMVwvT0lHLTIwMjMtMTAtMjNUMTMyMTAxLjk1MS5qcGVnIiwidHh0IjoiUG9sYXIgYmVhcnMgb24gTm9yd2VnaWFuIGlzbGFuZHMgZmF0dGVyIGFuZCBoZWFsdGhpZXIgZGVzcGl0ZSBpY2UgbG9zcyIsInRlbXBsYXRlIjoiaGlnaHdheSIsImZvbnQiOiIiLCJibG9nX2lkIjoxNTU4MTI0NDl9.on-DNVLtFUzvbI0S9FO1gpQKWSdjQ6y4ZLpEc7cws-wMQ"},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818056,691841097,691841011,691841096,691829004,691818251],"class_list":["post-424041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-climate-change","tag-dr-jon-aars","tag-fatter-and-healthier","tag-norwegian-arctic-archipelago-of-svalbard","tag-norwegian-polar-institute","tag-polar-bears","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/OIG-2023-10-23T132101.951.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1Mjn","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":423920,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=423920","url_meta":{"origin":424041,"position":0},"title":"Barents Sea polar bears thriving despite massive loss of sea ice, study\u00a0confirms","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"01\/30\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"A recently published study lead by Norwegian polar bear specialist Jon Aars found that both male and female polar bears were fatter and healthier after 1995 despite the greatest loss of sea ice of any Arctic region. However, no evidence was provided that a greater consumption of walrus and reindeer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Arctic region\"","block_context":{"text":"Arctic region","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=arctic-region"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ChatGPT-Image-29.-Mai-2025-18_18_08.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ChatGPT-Image-29.-Mai-2025-18_18_08.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ChatGPT-Image-29.-Mai-2025-18_18_08.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ChatGPT-Image-29.-Mai-2025-18_18_08.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":424156,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=424156","url_meta":{"origin":424041,"position":1},"title":"Shock News: Polar Bears Are Thriving","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/01\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"A recent study published in Scientific Reports on January 29, 2026, titled \"Body condition among Svalbard Polar bears Ursus maritimus during a period of rapid loss of sea ice,\" examines how polar bears in the Svalbard region of the Barents Sea have fared amid accelerating climate change.","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0AQMTuzl9uRA3JzlYEZwMUE76S-fazRUoQ9qm3dzTtJWE-LSbfb-MsrClEuxIFAMsFOyZk6PRceaGiBByoPczSCSI_pHnI9ZmTdIeCpHHmrsjo1YhMkfNxtMVHa-kYXYd.jpeg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0AQMTuzl9uRA3JzlYEZwMUE76S-fazRUoQ9qm3dzTtJWE-LSbfb-MsrClEuxIFAMsFOyZk6PRceaGiBByoPczSCSI_pHnI9ZmTdIeCpHHmrsjo1YhMkfNxtMVHa-kYXYd.jpeg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0AQMTuzl9uRA3JzlYEZwMUE76S-fazRUoQ9qm3dzTtJWE-LSbfb-MsrClEuxIFAMsFOyZk6PRceaGiBByoPczSCSI_pHnI9ZmTdIeCpHHmrsjo1YhMkfNxtMVHa-kYXYd.jpeg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0AQMTuzl9uRA3JzlYEZwMUE76S-fazRUoQ9qm3dzTtJWE-LSbfb-MsrClEuxIFAMsFOyZk6PRceaGiBByoPczSCSI_pHnI9ZmTdIeCpHHmrsjo1YhMkfNxtMVHa-kYXYd.jpeg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":331666,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=331666","url_meta":{"origin":424041,"position":2},"title":"New data show Svalbard polar bears are fatter than they were in 1993 despite continued low sea ice","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"06\/05\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Researchers at the Norwegian Polar Institute have finally updated their spring data, which show male polar bears in 2024 were even fatter than they were in 1993 and litter sizes of new cubs were just as high, despite continued low sea ice in the region over the summer months especially.","rel":"","context":"In \"Norwegian Polar Institute\"","block_context":{"text":"Norwegian Polar Institute","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=norwegian-polar-institute"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/0ar250.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/0ar250.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/0ar250.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/0ar250.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/0ar250.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":268082,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=268082","url_meta":{"origin":424041,"position":3},"title":"More Barents Sea polar bear habitat at mid-July 2023 than in 2012 despite more atmospheric CO2","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"07\/18\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"More open water exposed to summer sunlight has meant more food for fish, an advantage that has bumped up the food chain to ensure more seals for polar bears the following spring. Fatter bears produce healthier cubs that are more likely to survive their first year of life.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image-543.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image-543.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image-543.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image-543.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":424652,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=424652","url_meta":{"origin":424041,"position":4},"title":"Biologists allowed David Attenborough to tell BBC viewers that Barents Sea bears were dying of starvation 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