Hannah Osborne is the planet Earth and animals editor at Live Science. Prior to Live Science, she worked for several years at Newsweek as the science editor. Before this she was science editor at International Business Times U.K. Hannah holds a master's in journalism from Goldsmith's, University of London.
An image capturing a polar bear with plastic hanging from its jaws has been shortlisted for the Ocean Photographer of the Year 2024 award. The image, taken on Kiepert Island in the Svalbard archipelago off Norway, by photonaturalist Celia Kujala serves as a"a stark reminder that even the uninhabited reaches of the Arctic are not exempt from the pervasive grip of plastic pollution," competition representatives wrote in a statement emailed to Live Science.
The polar bear photograph highlights the scale of plastic pollution in the Arctic and the impact it has on regional species. Considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species, polar bears face multiple threats. A 2016 study predicts their numbers will fall by 30% by the middle of the century.
"There are not enough data to get a clear picture, but it is probable that bears are more likely to ingest plastic when they find human trash as they seek food on shore," John Whiteman, chief research scientist at Polar Bears International and assistant professor of biology at Old Dominion University in Virginia, told Live Science in an email.
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