Requiem for the polar bear: a remarkable slide show for young and old

Every autumn for the past six years Revelstoke resident JP McCarthy has been heading north and east to Churchill, Manitoba, to show visitors that small town’s magnificent polar bears.  But now the bears are in trouble and may be on their way to extirpation as the Arctic warming trend continues. Concerned about their gradual disappearance, JP McCarthy is holding a slide show of his remarkable polar bear photos at the Community Centre on October 6. David F. Rooney photo

By David F. Rooney

Every autumn for the past six years JP McCarthy has been heading north and east to Churchill, Manitoba, to show visitors that small town’s magnificent polar bears.

But now the bears are in trouble and may be on their way to extirpation as the Arctic warming trend continues. Concerned about their gradual disappearance, McCarthy is holding a slide show of his remarkable polar bear photos at the Community Centre this Saturday, October 6, at 7 pm.

“They’re on their way out and it’s not hard to see why,” he said in an interview at Sangha Bean cafe on Monday.

“Six years ago when I first arrived there, you had to wear a down jacket in October and November, now all you need is a fleece.”

The warming trend set in motion by climate change has shrunk the ice cap by well over 30 per cent and the bears are suffering and dying.

“It’s pretty emotional and it’s telling us something,” he said. “I’m not going to be preachy but the climate change is very real.”

McCarthy is not a scientist, but after six years of guiding some of the 10,000 people who flock to Churchill each year to see these magnificent animals he ing the bears and he has gained some insight into the lives of these animals and what appears to be their probably future.

“Part of the point I’m trying to make is that people — Canadians — should go and see them while they can,” he said. “This is one of those trips people should take.”

Admission to McCarthy’s slide show is free but he is also holding a raffle and all proceeds from that will go to Polar Bear International, a conservation and research organization focused on the fate of the great white bears. Prizes in this raffle include $2,400 ski package put up by Mustang Powder as well gift certificates and other items put up by local businesses.

McCarthy is sure his slide show will appeal to families and hopes plenty of local children will be in the audience to see animals that could well be gone by the time they are adults.

Here are some of the images you can expect to see:

Meet Mr. Polar Bear. JP McCarthy photo
A polar bear sow and her cubs catch 40 winks on the ice. JP McCarthy photo
Up close and personal with Mr. Polar Bear. The windows on this tundra buggy are 11 feet above the ground. JP McCarthy photo
Visitor Derek Kyostia meets a red fox in the arctic. JP McCarthy photo
A snowy owl in flight over the tundra. Churchill is also a Mecca for birders. JP McCarthy photo
The sun may be setting on these kings of the north. JP McCarthy photo