Auroras Over Old Faithful

This portrait of a huge, male polar bear was captured near Cape Churchill on the shores of Hudson Bay, November 21, 2008. Seeing large males like this is no longer predictable since our changing climate makes it virtually impossible to get out to Cape Churchill. Each year, Cape Churchill attracts polar bears from the southern and western Hudson Bay region. Fresh water pours into the bay from several rivers just north of the  Cape, and as many of us know, fresh water freezes faster than salt water. That frozen water starts to build and eventually gives the bears the frozen platform to get back onto the sea ice and hunt for the ringed and bearded seals they depend on.