Be that as it may, people have been underestimating these animals for a really long time. A little over a year ago, the international community rejected a US proposal to ban the international trade of polar bear parts at a meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Without question, pursuing Polar Bear in their frozen Arctic habitat has no comparable in the hunting world. There are 20,000-25,000 polar bears left … Their main prey is the ringed seal—full of fat and high in calories. Why is polar bear hunting allowed? “The polar bear is already on an extinction trajectory because of global warming. Polar Bear Spring Hunt The iconic Polar Bear is the largest of all land carnivores and is hunted in one of the most extreme environments in the world. However, they said that hunting will not affect the polar bear’s population much as of now. As per the IUCN […] A polar bear might catch only one or two out of ten seals it hunts, depending on the time of year and other variables. Climate change and sea ice loss have dominated discussions about polar bear conservation in recent years. “Although a warmer climate may largely determine the future distribution of polar bears, the vast majority of population reductions over the past 30 years are attributable to unsustainable hunting.” More than 50,000 polar bears have been killed since 1960 – which is twice as many as the remaining wild population. While humans are driving climate change and forcing polar bears towards extinction, the extent of a shocking hunting industry has been exposed. Although a warmer climate may largely determine the future distribution of polar bears, the vast majority of population reductions over the past 30 years are attributable to unsustainable polar bear hunting. Liodden began a project called Polar Bears and Humans in 2016 which investigates polar bear hunting. Photographer’s claims that Inuit hunting is unsustainable are not supported. Unsustainable hunting will push it over the edge,” said Brendan Cummings with the Center for Biological Diversity, which successfully petitioned and sued to protect polar bears under the U.S. POLAR BEAR HUNTING . Native Inuit organizations have applauded the decision as one that will protect their sovereign indigenous rights to hunt polar bears for their meat and pelts, the latter of which is valued at almost $80,000 USD. According to Ole Liodden, an award-winning wildlife photographer and conservationist, the increasing pressure on polar bears in conjunction with climate change is a recipe for extinction for the species, and that the practice of hunting the animals must come to an end if we are to save them from extinction. Without question, pursuing Polar Bear in their frozen Arctic habitat has no comparable in the hunting world. Polar bear hunting plays a central role in long-held traditions and also provides food and fiber for traditional lifestyles. Polar bears spend over 50% of their time hunting for food. To state that the polar bear is in a tough situation is a touch of a modest representation of the truth. The financial return from the sale of polar bear hides is also an important income for local people. Polar bear trophy hunting began in the 1940s, in Alaska, USA, and Svalbard, Norway, with just a few animals being killed. But in his new book, Polar Bears and Humans, Ole Liodden, a Norwegian polar bear researcher, argues that it’s not. Why do some nations allow hunting—including trophy hunting? Their diet mainly consists of ringed and bearded seals because they need large amounts of fat to survive. Q: Polar bears are a threatened species. Controversial polar bear hunting expeditions are pushing the species rapidly towards extinction, a leading conservationist has warned. Polar bears in some areas were severely over-hunted in the past when trophy hunters utilized light aircraft and large motorized vessels to go into the ice to catch bears … Unsustainable hunting is a danger to polar bears The companies proudly boast “100% success rates”. Polar Bear hunting is a controversial topic, much like the case with most other "trophy-animals". Endangered Species Act. But others are concerned that the rate of trophy hunting is unsustainable and must be banned in order to protect the species.