Most polar bears could disappear by the end of the century, scientists say. Global warming is to blame. According to a study published in Nature Climate Change, most polar bear populations will be in serious decline by 2080. The cause is melting sea ice. Polar bears hunt seals on the ice. Without ice, the bears must roam on the shore, where they are spending more and more time away from their main food source. That means the animals could starve.
科学家说，大多数北极熊可能在本世纪末消失。全球变暖是罪魁祸首。根据发表在《自然气候变化》杂志上的一项研究，到2080年，大多数北极熊的数量将严重下降。原因是海冰融化。北极熊在冰上捕食海豹。在没有冰的情况下，熊必须在岸边漫步，因为它们在远离主要食物来源的地方呆的时间越来越多。这意味着动物可能会饿死。
“There’s not enough food on land to sustain a polar bear population,” Péter K. Molnár, the study’s lead author, said. Lack of food leads to another problem: Mother bears may not be fat enough to produce milk for their cubs. Some bear populations could stop having babies, leading to a rapid decline in numbers.
该研究的主要作者Péter K.Molnár说：“陆地上没有足够的食物来维持北极熊的数量。”。缺乏食物导致了另一个问题：熊妈妈可能不够胖，无法为幼崽产奶。一些熊种群可能会停止生育，导致数量迅速下降。
Arctic sea ice usually melts in the spring and summer, and then grows in the winter. But now, the ice is taking longer to grow back. Weather statistics say the Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet. Ice in the region has declined 13% every 10 years since the 1970s. The Arctic is home to roughly 25,000 polar bears. Scientists have long known that the animals are in danger. This study, which looked at 13 of the world’s 19 polar bear populations, is the first to identify when they could become extinct.
北极海冰通常在春季和夏季融化，然后在冬季生长。但现在，冰需要更长的时间才能长回来。天气统计数据显示，北极变暖的速度是地球其他地区的两倍。自20世纪70年代以来，该地区的冰量每10年下降13%。北极大约有25000只北极熊。科学家们早就知道这些动物处于危险之中。这项研究观察了世界上19个北极熊种群中的13个，首次确定了它们何时可能灭绝。
But the study also notes that it is still possible to slow Arctic melting. The world can reduce the burning of fossil fuels and lower the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. It would have to be a drastic reduction. Bringing emissions to only a moderate level will still mean the loss of some polar bears. Saving the bears is up to us, Molnár says. “I believe that there is hope,” he says. “But humans need to act quickly to turn that hope into a reality.”
但该研究也指出，减缓北极融化的速度仍然是可能的。世界可以减少化石燃料的燃烧，降低导致气候变化的温室气体排放。这将是一个大幅度的削减。将排放量降至中等水平仍然意味着一些北极熊的损失。Molnár说，拯救熊取决于我们。“我相信还有希望，”他说。“但人类需要迅速行动，将这种希望变成现实。”
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