#76 🐻‍❄️ Polar bears are getting thinner and having fewer cubs

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by Ulisses Wehby de Carvalho

Polar bears are getting thinner and having fewer cubs — Textos Mastigados #76

Venha ler e traduzir comigo o artigo Polar bears are getting thinner and having fewer cubs. Melting sea ice is to blame. Você vai aprender e/ou rever o significado e a pronúncia de climate, crisis, species, seal, den, mate, findings, outline, cub, fishery, endangered, shrink, habitat, average, rate, shore, store, fast, litter, breakup, norm, promising, spot, stalk, hunger, pace, startling, entre muitas outras.

Enriqueça seu vocabulário sobre o meio ambiente, aperfeiçoe sua pronúncia e amplie seus conhecimentos gerais. As dúvidas são esclarecidas na seção de comentários.

Polar bears are getting thinner and having fewer cubs

The impact of the climate crisis is becoming more and more obvious to humans and their animal neighbors. But among all species, polar bears might be some of the hardest hit.

• CLIMATE (n.) /ˈklaɪmət/ = the type of weather that a country or region has [clima]
• CRISIS (n.) /ˈkraɪsɪs/ = an urgent, difficult, or dangerous situation [crise] — Cf. CRISIS x CRISES
• OBVIOUS (adj.) /ˈɑbviəs/ = clear to almost anyone [óbvio, evidente, claro]
• SPECIES (n.) /ˈspiʃiz/ /ˈspisiz/ = a plant or animal group whose members all have similar general features and are able to produce young plants or animals together [espécie]
• HIT (v.) /hɪt/ = (often passive) to have a bad effect on someone or something [atingir, afetar]

The bears rely on sea ice for nearly every aspect of their survival: It’s where they hunt seals, travel, make dens and mate. So the earlier in the season the ice begins to melt, the less time they have to eat and procreate.

• RELY ON (phrasal verb) = (rely on something) to need something in order to continue living, existing, or operating [depender de, contar com]
• SEAL (n.) /sil/ = a large ocean animal that eats fish and lives mainly in cold parts of the world [foca]
• DEN (n.) /den/ = the home of some wild animals [toca]
• MATE (v.) /meɪt/ = if one animal mates with another, or if two animals mate, they have sex [acasalar]
• MELT (v.) /melt/ = to change a solid substance into a liquid [derreter]

The findings were outlined in a new study published in Ecological Applications.

• FINDINGS (n.) /ˈfaɪndɪŋz/ = information that you discover, or opinions that you form after doing research [conclusões, resultados] — Cf. FIND x FOUND x FUND
• OUTLINE (v.) /ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/ = to give the main ideas of a plan or a piece of writing without giving all the details [esboçar, delinear, traçar]
• STUDY (n.) /ˈstʌdi/ = a research project that examines a problem or a particular subject [estudo, pesquisa]
• ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS (n.) = scientific, peer-reviewed journal published by the Ecological Society of America [Ecological Applications]

Researchers found polar bears are becoming thinner and having fewer cubs, and their declining health was tied to melting sea ice.

• THIN (adj.) /θɪn/ = someone who is thin has very little fat on their body [magro, magra]
• CUB (n.) /kʌb/ = a young bear, lion, fox, wolf, or other wild animal [filhote]
• TIE (v.) /taɪ/ = to combine things, or to form a connection between them [vincular, associar, ligar]

“Climate-induced changes in the Arctic are clearly affecting polar bears,” study author Kristin Laidre, professor of aquatic and fishery sciences at the University of Washington, said in a statement. “They are an icon of climate change, but they’re also an early indicator of climate change because they are so dependent on sea ice.”

• PROFESSOR (n.) /prəˈfesər/ = a teacher in a college or university [Professor, Professora] — Cf. TEACHER x PROFESSOR
• FISHERY (n.) /ˈfɪʃəri/ = the industry or occupation devoted to the catching, processing, or selling of fish, shellfish, or other aquatic animals [pesca]

Polar bears are considered a vulnerable species, one level below “endangered.” If the climate trends continue, their populations will almost certainly deplete even further. Seeing the effect that a shrinking habitat has on polar bears could convince conservationists to take more immediate action.

• ENDANGERED SPECIES (n.) /ɪnˌdeɪndʒərd ˈspiʃiz/ = a type of animal or plant that may soon become extinct [espécie ameaçada de extinção]
• TREND (n.) /trend/ = a gradual change or development that produces a particular result [tendência]
• DEPLETE (v.) /dɪˈplit/ = to reduce the amount of something or the number of things [esgotar, reduzir]
• SHRINK (v.) /ʃrɪŋk/ = to become smaller in size [encolher]
• HABITAT (n.) /ˈhæbɪˌtæt/ = the type of place that a particular animal usually lives in or a particular plant usually grows in, for example a desert, forest, or lake [habitat]
• TAKE ACTION (expr.) = to do something, to act in order to get a particular result [agir, tomar uma atitude, tomar providência]
• IMMEDIATE (adj.) /ɪˈmidiət/ = happening or done now, without any delay [imediato]

And studying how the melting ice affects them could have broader implications for how it’ll eventually affect other species. “These bears inhabit a seasonal ice zone, meaning the sea ice clears out completely in summer and it’s open water,” she said. “Bears in this area give us a good basis for understanding the implications of sea ice loss.”

• BROAD (adj.) /brɔd/ = wide; including many different things or people [amplo, largo]
• EVENTUALLY (adv.) /ɪˈventʃuəli/ = at the end of a process or period of time in which many things happen [um dia, mais cedo ou mais tarde, uma hora, futuramente] — Cf. 10 Erros de Tradução Imperdoáveis – Ft. Carina Fragozo
• CLEAR OUT (phrasal verb) = to make a place or container clean or neat by removing things that are not wanted and getting rid of any dirt or dust in it [remover, esvaziar]
• BASIS (n.) /ˈbeɪsɪs/ = the important ideas, facts, or actions from which something can develop [base, fundamento]
• LOSS (n.) /lɔs/ = the state of not having something anymore because it has been taken from you or destroyed [prejuízo, perda] — Cf. LOSE x MISS

The bears are spending less time on land and losing weight

Laidre and her colleagues tracked the movements of adult female polar bears in Baffin Bay, a body of water off the west coast of Greenland, over two periods of time in the 1990s and 2010s.

• TRACK (v.) /træk/ = to follow the development or progress of something [rastrear, monitorar, acompanhar]
• ADULT (n.) /əˈdʌlt/ /ˈædʌlt/ = someone who is no longer a child and is legally responsible for their actions [adulto]
• OFF (prep.) /ɔf/ = close to something; in a part of the ocean that is near the land [na (costa)]
• GREENLAND (n.) /ˈgrinlənd/ = an autonomous Danish territory located between the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans [Groenlândia]

Between 2009 to 2015, the bears spent an average of 30 more days on land than they had in the 1991 to 1997 period. That’s because sea ice is melting at a faster rate and earlier in the season now than it did even 23 to 29 years ago.

• AVERAGE (adj.) /ˈæv(ə)rɪdʒ/ = the amount, level, standard, etc. that is typical of a group of people or things [média]
• MORE (adv.) /mɔr/ = used for showing that something is in addition to what already exists, what has been used, or what has already been mentioned [mais] — Cf. Como se diz “mais um” em inglês?
• RATE (n.) /reɪt/ = the speed at which something happens within a particular period of time [velocidade, ritmo, rapidez]

Polar bears are getting thinner and having fewer cubs