It may seem like an unorthodox way to study polar bears, but it turns out the massive animals’ feces is offering vital clues into their health and the effects of climate change.
The “polar bear poop,” as it’s come to be known, is a valuable tool for researchers like Stephanie Collins, a professor at Dalhousie University’s department of agriculture and aquaculture in Halifax.
“(It answers) how we can learn about the diet and whether or not that diet is contributing to the health of an animal,” she said.
The samples come from two groups of polar bears: wild ones that ended up in “polar bear jail” in Churchill, Man., for getting too close to town and bears that live permanently in captivity at the Cochrane Polar Bear Habitat.
“It was a lot of fun getting to take part in something that is directly correlating to what’s going on in the wild,” said Amy Baxendell-Young from the habitat.
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The samples …