The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat.
Todd Atwood, Ph.D.
Spatial ecology, population ecology, predator-prey dynamics, polar bear ecology
Science and Products
Polar Bear Maternal Denning
Pregnant polar bears enter maternity dens in October/November, give birth to cubs in December/January, and exit dens in March/April. Historically, most polar bears from the Southern Beaufort Sea (SBS) population constructed maternity dens on the sea ice. Over the last three decades, as sea ice has become thinner and prone to fragmentation, there has been a landward shift in the distribution of...
Polar Bear Research
Polar bears ( Ursus maritimus ) are one of 4 marine mammal species managed by the U.S. Department of Interior. The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat. Our studies, ongoing since 1985, are focused on population dynamics, health and energetics...
Distribution and Movements of Polar Bears
Polar bears are tied to the sea ice for nearly all of their life cycle functions. Most important of these is foraging, or access to food. Polar bears almost exclusively eat seals, and they are equally as dependent upon the sea for their nutrition as are seals, whales, and other aquatic mammals. Polar bears are not aquatic, however, and their only access to the seals is from the surface of the sea...
Health and Energetics of Polar Bears
The warming climate has the potential to drive significant changes in the health and energetics of Arctic fauna, particularly those dependent on sea ice habitats like polar bears. An animal’s health and energetic state reflects the interaction between its behavioral choices and the environment. Because of this, measuring changes in health and energetics has potential for revealing important...
Polar Bear Population Dynamics
Information on the status and trends of polar bear populations are needed to inform management of polar bears under US laws and international agreements. The USGS maintains a long-term research program focused on the population dynamics of the southern Beaufort Sea polar bear population. In addition, the USGS collaborates with the US Fish and Wildlife Service in population studies in the Chukchi...
Q&A: Recent Research on Southern Beaufort Sea Polar Bears
Polar bears are found throughout the circumpolar Arctic and roam across miles of sea ice and land. There are 19 recognized subpopulations of polar bears across the Arctic with two in Alaska: the Chukchi Sea and the Southern Beaufort Sea. The sea ice habitat of these subpopulations is changing with substantial recent declines in the extent of sea ice off the coast of Alaska. These changes are...
USGS Alaska Science Center Polar Bear Research Program
The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat.
Role of Diet and Food Intake Affecting Polar Bear Population Dynamics in Southern Beaufort Sea
This is a graphical abstract for a publication by the USGS and collaborators that examines the role of diet and food intake affecting polar bear population dynamics. Polar bears consume diets consisting of high proportions of marine mammal blubber that they access from the sea ice.
This is a graphical abstract for a publication by the USGS and collaborators that examines the role of diet and food intake affecting polar bear population dynamics. Polar bears consume diets consisting of high proportions of marine mammal blubber that they access from the sea ice.
Todd Atwood speaks to Brown University Environmental Leadership Lab Students
Staff from the USGS Alaska Science Center and Volcano Science Center met with a group of high school students on August 3, 2022, in Anchorage who are participating in the 2022 Brown Environmental Leadership Lab. The students traveled throughout southcentral Alaska with a team of instructors to learn ab
Staff from the USGS Alaska Science Center and Volcano Science Center met with a group of high school students on August 3, 2022, in Anchorage who are participating in the 2022 Brown Environmental Leadership Lab. The students traveled throughout southcentral Alaska with a team of instructors to learn ab
Science and Products
Polar Bear Maternal Denning
Pregnant polar bears enter maternity dens in October/November, give birth to cubs in December/January, and exit dens in March/April. Historically, most polar bears from the Southern Beaufort Sea (SBS) population constructed maternity dens on the sea ice. Over the last three decades, as sea ice has become thinner and prone to fragmentation, there has been a landward shift in the distribution of...
Polar Bear Research
Polar bears ( Ursus maritimus ) are one of 4 marine mammal species managed by the U.S. Department of Interior. The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat. Our studies, ongoing since 1985, are focused on population dynamics, health and energetics...
Distribution and Movements of Polar Bears
Polar bears are tied to the sea ice for nearly all of their life cycle functions. Most important of these is foraging, or access to food. Polar bears almost exclusively eat seals, and they are equally as dependent upon the sea for their nutrition as are seals, whales, and other aquatic mammals. Polar bears are not aquatic, however, and their only access to the seals is from the surface of the sea...
Health and Energetics of Polar Bears
The warming climate has the potential to drive significant changes in the health and energetics of Arctic fauna, particularly those dependent on sea ice habitats like polar bears. An animal’s health and energetic state reflects the interaction between its behavioral choices and the environment. Because of this, measuring changes in health and energetics has potential for revealing important...
Polar Bear Population Dynamics
Information on the status and trends of polar bear populations are needed to inform management of polar bears under US laws and international agreements. The USGS maintains a long-term research program focused on the population dynamics of the southern Beaufort Sea polar bear population. In addition, the USGS collaborates with the US Fish and Wildlife Service in population studies in the Chukchi...
Q&A: Recent Research on Southern Beaufort Sea Polar Bears
Polar bears are found throughout the circumpolar Arctic and roam across miles of sea ice and land. There are 19 recognized subpopulations of polar bears across the Arctic with two in Alaska: the Chukchi Sea and the Southern Beaufort Sea. The sea ice habitat of these subpopulations is changing with substantial recent declines in the extent of sea ice off the coast of Alaska. These changes are...
USGS Alaska Science Center Polar Bear Research Program
The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat.
The USGS Alaska Science Center leads long–term research on polar bears to inform local, state, national and international policy makers regarding conservation of the species and its habitat.
Role of Diet and Food Intake Affecting Polar Bear Population Dynamics in Southern Beaufort Sea
This is a graphical abstract for a publication by the USGS and collaborators that examines the role of diet and food intake affecting polar bear population dynamics. Polar bears consume diets consisting of high proportions of marine mammal blubber that they access from the sea ice.
This is a graphical abstract for a publication by the USGS and collaborators that examines the role of diet and food intake affecting polar bear population dynamics. Polar bears consume diets consisting of high proportions of marine mammal blubber that they access from the sea ice.
Todd Atwood speaks to Brown University Environmental Leadership Lab Students
Staff from the USGS Alaska Science Center and Volcano Science Center met with a group of high school students on August 3, 2022, in Anchorage who are participating in the 2022 Brown Environmental Leadership Lab. The students traveled throughout southcentral Alaska with a team of instructors to learn ab
Staff from the USGS Alaska Science Center and Volcano Science Center met with a group of high school students on August 3, 2022, in Anchorage who are participating in the 2022 Brown Environmental Leadership Lab. The students traveled throughout southcentral Alaska with a team of instructors to learn ab
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government