International Polar Bear Day is marked on 27 February.

“The polar bear is the king of the Arctic, a clever and inventive hunter. However, despite its might, this animal needs protection,” noted Chukotka Autonomous Area Governor Roman Kopin on his Instagram page.

He underscored that Chukotka’s Wrangel Island is home to the polar bears’ “maternity hospital,” or prime denning site, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

 “The world’s biggest population of this marine predator, the Chukotka-Alaska polar bears, serves as an indicator of this species’ global state. Annual monitoring shows that the polar bear population is stable,” concluded the governor.

In Russia, the polar bear enjoys special government protection. Its population is affected both by human impact and climatic factors, the most important of which is ice melting in the Arctic Ocean.

International Polar Bear Day, established in 2000, is called upon to raise public awareness of the need to protect the polar bear. It is important not only for the countries where polar bears live – Russia, Norway, Canada, Denmark (Greenland) and the United States – but also for the entire world.