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Joe
Lv 6
Joe asked in EnvironmentGlobal Warming · 6 years ago

If polar bears and other species are dying out due to global warming what has happened to the theory of adaptation ?

16 Answers

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  • 6 years ago

    Polar bears are not about to go extinct. They are threatened, but the threat is not eminent. Some populations may die off sooner than others, but the species as a whole is not on the brink of extinction.

    Adaptation requires the right mutations at the right time. If the environment changes slowly, it's easier for the right mutations to come along and there is a more gradual adaptation. But when the adaptation changes quickly, as it is with climate change, it's more of a 'sink or swim situation'. There is a great loss of diversity simply because a lot of species cannot adapt quickly enough.

  • 6 years ago

    Polar bears tried to adapt by coming into villages but were relocated back to the arctic. People are afraid bears will cause problems in towns and this is true but sending them back might not be a good idea either. Finding an alternative area would be best for them and people. Unfortunately, global warming is happening faster than it was thought so solutions haven't been made for the species that are affected.

  • 6 years ago

    You can only adapt so much. If it's too hot for you to survive, you will die. No living being can live in a one million degree farenheit or celsius environment. It's just too darn hot to survive. No amount of adaptation can change that, and you can only adapt so much.

  • Kano
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    Polar bears are doing just fine now, now that laws on hunting them are being enforced, it is difficult to adapt to a 30.06 bullet in your heart.

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  • Anonymous
    6 years ago

    Adaptation takes many generations and the global warming seems to be happening too quickly. Polar bears are very similar to grizzly bears and occasionally interbreed.

  • Anonymous
    6 years ago

    They made it through the Medevial Warm Period and the Little Ice age .

  • Thorn
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    some species fail to adapt

  • 6 years ago

    It takes 100s of generations to see evolutionary adaptation. Global warming has only been with us for 200 years

  • 6 years ago

    Well, adaptations can occur within just a few generations in many cases...

  • 6 years ago

    adaptation takes a long time, this is happening way too fast for the animals to catch up

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