As polar bears fight for survival because of disappearing Arctic sea ice, a new group of Greenland bears seems to have found an icy area that might permit a small population to “hang on.”But the situation overall for the endangered polar bear species remains serious.Scientists say the animals are in danger of disappearing because of the effects of climate change.A team of scientists recently studied a group of a few hundred polar bears in Southeast Greenland.These bears are genetically different and geographically separate from others.What is unusual about these bears is that they survive even while having just 100 days a year when there is enough sea ice to hunt seals.In other places, polar bears need at least 180 days, usually more, of sea ice for them to effectively hunt.When there is no sea ice, bears often do not eat for months.Sea ice is frozen ocean water.With limited amounts of this ice, the Southeast Greenland polar bears use freshwater ice masses called icebergs.
