Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus)
Management

Polar bears are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and are managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in cooperation with the Alaska Nanuuq Commission and the North Slope Borough. Since polar bears in the Bering and Chukchi seas region travel between Alaska and Russia, a bilateral agreement with Russia for bear research, management, and conservation exists. Similarly, Alaska Natives have also signed an agreement with the indigenous people of Canada regarding the hunting and management of the shared Southern Beaufort Sea sub-population of polar bears.