Ancient People of the Arctic
by Robert McGhee
Traces the lives of the Palaeo-Eskimos, the bold first explorers of the Arctic. Four thousand years ago, these people entered the far northern extremes of the North American continent, carving a living out of their bleak new homeland. From the hints they left behind, accessible only through the fragmented archaeological record, Robert McGhee ingeniously reconstructs a picture of this life at the margins.
Arctic Dreams
by Barry Lopez
One of the best books we’ve read on any destination, this celebrated meditation on the Arctic draws Lopez’s travels throughout the North, including Baffin Island, Siberia, and Greenland. A dazzling writer and compassionate observer, Lopez weaves biology and history into his storytelling, including extended chapters on the polar bear and narwhal.
Arctic Icons: How the Town of Churchill Learned to Love its Polar Bears
by Ed Struzik
For nearly a quarter century, the polar bears of Churchill were routinely run down and shot by the military, by residents, and by conservation officers who were brought in during the late 1960s to protect people. According to one scientist who was there at the time, polar bears were treated more like “great white rats” than the world’s largest predator. But then something remarkable happened in the 1970s. Churchill residents, most of whom are aboriginal, decided that it was time to find a more peaceful way of living with polar bears. The plan that was eventually penned by a committee of concerned citizens and a handful of Manitoba government officials, resulted in what amounted to a polar bear jail for so-called “problem bears” that would otherwise be shot. A more humane protocol for deterring bears was recommended, and opportunities for wildlife viewing were envisioned. The committee also insisted that scientific research and public education needed to guide future management decisions. In the years that followed, scientists conducted studies on the polar bear’s social behaviour, their responses to sound and pain, and the impact that three to four months of fasting has on their health. In relatively short order, the bears of Churchill became the most studied group of large predators in the world.
Churchill Hudson Bay – A Guide to Natural and Cultural Heritage
by Lorraine Brandson
This publication contains various aspects of the natural and cultural heritage of the region. It’s focus is on various themes including aboriginal history, the fur trade, the Hudson Bay railway, geology, paleontology, atmospheric science, flora, Hudson Bay, and the abundant biodiversity of life.
Ice Walker: A Polar Bear’s Journey through the Fragile Arctic
by James Raffan
Author and geographer James Raffan invites us to inhabit in Ice Walker. In precise and provocative prose, he brings readers inside the polar bear Nanu’s world as she treks uncertainly around the heart of Hudson Bay, searching for nourishment for the children that grow inside her. She stops at nothing to protect her cubs from the dangers she can see—other bears, wolves, whales, human beings—and those she cannot.
Never Look a Polar Bear in the Eye
by Zac Unger
Zac Unger takes readers on a spirited and often wildly funny journey to a place as unique as it is remote, a place where natives, tourists, scientists, conservationists, and the most ferocious predators on the planet converge. In the process he becomes embroiled in the controversy surrounding "polar bear science" -- and finds out that some of what we've been led to believe about the bears' imminent extinction may not be quite the case. But mostly what he learns is about human behavior in extreme situations . . . and also why you should never even think of looking a polar bear in the eye.
Polar Bears of Churchill
by Kelsey Eliasson
Polar Bears of Churchill is a 64-page, full-colour handbook that follows one year in the life of the polar bears of western Hudson Bay, including what we call ‘bear season’ in Churchill, Manitoba – a.k.a the Polar Bear Capital of the World. It is the result of eight years of guiding polar bear tours along Hudson Bay, by Tundra Buggy, on foot and from a wilderness lodge. It is a simple yet comprehensive resource about these amazing and unique creatures, combining the latest scientific research, personal experience, and some colourful Churchill history.
Polar Bears: A Complete Guide to their Biology and Behaviour
by Andrew E. Derocher
The polar bear, king of the Arctic, is one of the world’s most recognizable animals. Images of the majestic beasts roaming across the ice cap, plunging into frigid waters, and playing with furry cubs have come to symbolize the beauty and grandeur of the Arctic. Andrew E. Derocher and Wayne Lynch have spent decades following the bears, and this book offers the most comprehensive and readable review of their biology, ecology, behaviour, and conservation. With gripping photographs by Lynch, a preeminent wildlife photographer, and the personal stories of Derocher, this book is as stunning to look at as it is fascinating to read. It weaves together their remarkable experiences with the latest research to tell the amazing story of these Arctic predators, tracing the animals back to their evolutionary roots and looking ahead to the future of polar bears on a warming planet Earth.
