How long has the polar bear been endangered?
The Polar Bear first became a protected species in 1973 when five nations entered into an agreement to protect and research the species. The International Agreement for the Conservation of Polar Bears was signed by the nations that the Polar Bears populated, and migrated through. They were theUnited States, Canada, Russia, Denmark (Greenland), and Norway. Even with the protection of the “agreement”, the Polar Bears were still listed in 1982 by the IUCN Red List, and posted with a status of vulnerable. Finally in May 2008 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Endangered Species List added the Polar Bear with a status of threatened. It is also listed with Russia, and Canada as a “Species of Concern”. So, the Polar Bear has been protected and considered an animal of concern or “in danger” since 1973, but it is not listed with a status of “endangered”. The first protection granted the Polar Bear was 36 years ago. For more details, please see sites listed below.
