Distribution of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in the Svalbard area

Abstract

The distribution and movements of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in the Svalbard area were studied, using mark and recapture and satellite raido‐telemetry in the period 1988 to 1994. A Total of 172 bears has been captured, mostly in the southern and south‐eastern parts of Svalbard, and 36 females have been tracked by satellite for more than 330 days. Two bears out of 389 tagged in the period 1966 to 1993 have been reported from the Greenland catches, which have been about 100 per year in the same period. About 95% of tracking days and 89% distance covered were from the Norwegian part of the area, the rest were from Russian territory. Minimum polygon home‐range estimates for 36 females, each tracked for more than 330 days, were 69468±79136 Km2. Twenty‐five percent (9/36) of the females have moved eastwards into Russian territory. Only two of them (6%), one of them in two different years, have landed at Franz Josef Land and one at Novaja Zemlja Information on Seasonal fidelity based on the distance from first spring capture location to spring locations in consecutive years exists for 38 female and four male bears. For 30 females, the average distance after one year was 149.3±143.2 km from the first tagging site. After two years the average distance was 78.9±82.5 km for 15 females, after three years the distance was 51.1plusmn; 29.5 km for nine females and after four years 32.0±31.9 km for four. The regression slope between distances and time is negative. The denning locations of 25 of the females were recorded based on satellite data. Twenty‐four of these were at Svalbard and one (4%) at Franz Josef Land. Satellite data combined with mark recapture data show that the polar bears have a very high degree of seasonal fidelity to Svalbard. This suggests that the migration of polar bears between Svalbard and Greenland and between Svalbard and Russia is relatively low and that the Svalbard population of polar bears can be managed as a local population.