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Facts and figures on the 15,500 polar bears in Cda, world’s largest population

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Aurora the polar bear walks in her enclosure at the Toronto Zoo on February 21, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

OTTAWA – Facts and figures on Canada’s polar bears:

— Canada has about 15,500 of the world’s estimated 20,000 to 25,000 polar bears.

— In 2012, 740 polar bears were killed in Canada. The annual average over the previous five years was 663 bears killed.

— Around 70 per cent of the legal polar bear harvest globally occurs in Canada.

— In 2009, 87 per cent of all commercially-exported polar bear skins came from Canada.

— Prices for polar bear hides have quadrupled since 2007 to as much as $22,000 per bear skin.

— Canada is the only country in the world that permits trophy hunting for polar bears by allowing Inuit hunters with tags to sell those tags to non-aboriginal sport shooters on Inuit-guided hunts.

Source: Center for Biological Diversity

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