Module 6　Animals in Danger

　　一头16岁的雄性北极熊活活饿死在北极，像一张"毛毯"。你知道为什么吗？

　　A Polar Bear Starved to Death

　　A dead polar bear found on the Arctic island has shocked experts who say climate change may be to blame for the animal's death.The starved polar bear in Norway was said to be in good health in April when the Norwegian Polar Institute examined and tagged it.However，the animal was reduced to skin and bones by the time a group of explorers happened to find his body in July.

　　"From his lying position in death the bear appears to simply have starved and died where he dropped，"polar bear expert Dr.Ian Stirling told The Guardian."He had no any remaining fat，having been reduced to little more than skin and bones."

　　Stirling believes the bear starved to death as a result of a lack of sea ice，which the animals use as a platform for hunting seals.That may also explain why the 16­year­old male bear was found about 155 miles north of where it was seen in April.

　　Arctic sea ice reached a record low in 2012，according to a report released this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration，which pointed to continued signs of climate change.

　　The International Union for Conservation of Nature currently has put polar bears into its Red List of Threatened Species.

　　The Endangered Species Act states that the government must act immediately to help save the polar bear from extinction.According to the World Wildlife Fund，only 20，000 to 25，000 polar bears remain on the planet.

1．be to blame 应受责备