Dead Bears Don't Breed

Every week, the Null dissects the most self-evident studies and pointless papers not to hit the headlines. It's harsh, but funny. This week, we learn about conservation.

Canadian hunting policies encourage hunting male polar bears in order to conserve the females. However, research from the University of Alberta now suggests that this could make it harder for the female bears to find a mate.

The university study makes the bold conclusion that the current policy of killing males has reduced the number of males in the wild. The strong association between killing males and there being fewer males is especially worrying if the sex ratio of males to females is below a critical level.

The team found that regions with low population densities, and therefore fewer bears, actually need more males than females to maintain fertility rates. Over-harvesting male bears could have serious consequences on the Canadian polar bear populations, said the authors.

Why not try another study of the bleedin' obvious?

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