0:00:02 > 0:00:03The polar bear.
0:00:05 > 0:00:08The world's largest and most dangerous carnivore.
0:00:11 > 0:00:12I'm Gordon Buchanan,
0:00:12 > 0:00:17and I've spent two decades filming predators in extreme locations.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21Now I've come to the Arctic to get closer to polar bears
0:00:21 > 0:00:22than anyone before.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25No way, mate! No luck.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29Oh, well. The next thing on the menu is the film crew.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33But this is the toughest project yet.
0:00:33 > 0:00:34Go, go, go, go, go!
0:00:36 > 0:00:38This bear is paying us too much attention.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40We just had to get out of there.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47I've been following a single polar bear family -
0:00:47 > 0:00:50Lyra and her cub, Miki -
0:00:50 > 0:00:52to see how they really live.
0:00:52 > 0:00:56Every single day is a series of challenges,
0:00:56 > 0:00:58a series of hardships.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01It's not been easy,
0:01:01 > 0:01:04and it's about to get a whole lot harder.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Following my bears in autumn could prove impossible,
0:01:11 > 0:01:13and they're on the edge of starvation.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20I'm here, one last time, to see if Miki will survive.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45It's September and I'm back in the Arctic.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52'I want to reconnect with my polar bear family.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54I last saw them in July.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57I'm dying to see how they're doing now.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02But finding two bears in this enormous wilderness
0:02:02 > 0:02:04is not going to be easy.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10We'll set up a base in a cabin on the shore
0:02:10 > 0:02:12and start our search from there.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15And, boy, this place has changed! Changed again.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19The warm summer has transformed the Arctic.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23Snow and ice has given way to barren ground.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29With me is Arctic expert Jason Roberts.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34Jason's had more experience with polar bears
0:02:34 > 0:02:35than almost anyone alive.
0:02:40 > 0:02:42Luxury accommodation, Gordon(!)
0:02:42 > 0:02:44I keep expecting to show up here
0:02:44 > 0:02:48and it's been flattened by the wind or by a huge polar bear.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53As we prepare to settle in, I see we aren't the only visitors.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56This is quite a sobering thought.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58A polar bear's pushed through this glass,
0:02:58 > 0:03:02exactly onto the position where I sleep.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04Imagine that - fast asleep,
0:03:04 > 0:03:07and you hear a noise and you look up,
0:03:07 > 0:03:10and a polar bear's bust this window right on top of you.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16Back in March, six months ago, I stayed in this very same cabin.
0:03:22 > 0:03:27It was incredible to film a moment few people have ever seen...
0:03:28 > 0:03:32..a mother polar bear and her cubs emerging from their birth den.
0:03:35 > 0:03:40This is the best thing ever really.
0:03:40 > 0:03:45Lyra and her two little ones, Miki and Luca.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50I knew that keeping cubs Miki and Luca alive
0:03:50 > 0:03:52would be a huge challenge for Lyra.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55For me, the challenge would be staying with them.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59Hi. Gordon.
0:03:59 > 0:04:00Very good to meet you.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02'I helped biologist Dr Jon Aars
0:04:02 > 0:04:06'fit a revolutionary satellite-tracking collar on Lyra.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09'He wants to learn how polar bears are coping
0:04:09 > 0:04:11'with a rapidly-warming Arctic.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16'For me, it was the start of a bond
0:04:16 > 0:04:19'that grew stronger as the months went by.'
0:04:19 > 0:04:22How does it sound if I follow you around,
0:04:22 > 0:04:25become good friends, until you get big enough to eat me?
0:04:27 > 0:04:31While Jon tracks Lyra's movements from his computer back in Norway,
0:04:31 > 0:04:34I've been on the ground, staying as close to my bears as I can.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39It's been an amazing journey.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43I've shared so much with these bears, both highs and lows.
0:04:46 > 0:04:51When I reported to Jon that Lyra had lost her weaker cub, Luca,
0:04:51 > 0:04:53I was devastated.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03I think it's just a testament to how incredible these animals are
0:05:03 > 0:05:06that she's been able to keep this one cub alive.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15When I last saw my bears,
0:05:15 > 0:05:18Lyra and Miki were stranded on a string of islands
0:05:18 > 0:05:20and close to starvation.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Now I'm back, I'm desperate
0:05:24 > 0:05:29to find my bear family again and to see whether Miki is still alive.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33It isn't going to be easy.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36Lyra and Miki are somewhere around here,
0:05:36 > 0:05:38but we don't know exactly where.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41'Lyra's collar has started to malfunction.'
0:05:42 > 0:05:46So when was the last fix we got on Lyra?
0:05:46 > 0:05:47It's not good news.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50The last fix is about four weeks ago,
0:05:50 > 0:05:55so it's going to be a bit of a guess where she's actually located.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01I'm worried that finding Lyra is going to be impossible.
0:06:01 > 0:06:06With winter approaching, we can't risk staying here too long.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15- Gordon.- Yeah.- Time to roll.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17OK.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20'Next morning, our search begins.'
0:06:20 > 0:06:21Sleep OK?
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Yeah, not bad actually.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25A little bit cold in the night.
0:06:25 > 0:06:30I don't know who was snoring, if it was one of us or the walrus outside.
0:06:34 > 0:06:38We'll head to the collar's last position and start from there.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42From then on, it's down to our knowledge of our bears.
0:06:45 > 0:06:49There's a real chance Miki won't have made it.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53This year, scientists observed less Arctic sea ice
0:06:53 > 0:06:55than since records began in the '70s,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58possibly the least amount of ice in 3 million years.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05Normally, the sea ice remains until late August,
0:07:05 > 0:07:08but this year, it melted almost two months early.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Polar bears eat seals.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20Seals breed and rest on the ice.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26Without the ice, Lyra can't hunt.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29She and Miki may not survive.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50We've been looking for Lyra and Miki all morning.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56We pass the radio collar position from four weeks ago
0:07:56 > 0:07:59and, not surprisingly, no sign of our bears.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06They could have travelled hundreds of miles in the last month.
0:08:09 > 0:08:14You can expect minus temperatures, snow at this time of year.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16It's very windy and very wet, quite cold,
0:08:16 > 0:08:19but it's a long way from freezing.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24It's hard to imagine that this place is actually going to freeze up
0:08:24 > 0:08:25over the next couple of months.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29This just seems like a wet afternoon in the west coast of Scotland.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33That's what the polar bears are waiting for -
0:08:33 > 0:08:36they are waiting for the first signs of winter.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39Winter is a time that they can start hunting again,
0:08:39 > 0:08:41but they need the sea to freeze
0:08:41 > 0:08:44and it feels a very, very long way away from that at the moment.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48We decide to scan the coastline.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52We're thinking it's the best place for Lyra to look for food now.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55Perhaps a walrus washed up on the shore.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19And it looks like our hunch might be right.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24A couple of polar bears up on the slope here,
0:09:24 > 0:09:28and the good thing about this area is it's quite sheltered,
0:09:28 > 0:09:31and it's maybe going to let us get ashore.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33I really hope this is Lyra and Miki.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35They look the right size.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38It's a female with a cub of this year.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41We'll have to get much closer to find out if it is them.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50Back out, Oskar.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59They're incredibly camouflaged when they're muddy and dirty but...
0:09:59 > 0:10:02I know, gosh! Blend in with the mountainside.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06They're the right size. We've got a smaller... We've got a cub up top.
0:10:06 > 0:10:08Looks like a mother further down.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10If we can pick up a collar...
0:10:14 > 0:10:18They've turned round, facing back towards us so...
0:10:20 > 0:10:22- Yeah, I can definitely see a collar. - Yeah?
0:10:22 > 0:10:24- It's definitely Lyra.- Is it her?
0:10:36 > 0:10:39It's a huge relief to have found them.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42Six weeks ago, they were together
0:10:42 > 0:10:45but anything could have happened in that time,
0:10:45 > 0:10:49and to find both of them still together is magnificent.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54But Lyra is not looking good.
0:10:57 > 0:11:01My two carnivores have resorted to eating hillside moss.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06For this time of year, we expect her to be lean,
0:11:06 > 0:11:10but she's looking a lot worse than I would have expected actually so...
0:11:10 > 0:11:14And it's only early in the autumn, so she still has four, five months
0:11:14 > 0:11:17before she has some good hunting,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20so she'll be scavenging for a long time still.
0:11:20 > 0:11:22So the chance is that, in the last six weeks,
0:11:22 > 0:11:24she hasn't had significant meal.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27I think in the last six weeks, she's basically eaten a bit of moss.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30There's not even grass on these mountains for her to eat.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33There's a bit of lichen on the rocks and a bit of moss,
0:11:33 > 0:11:34and that's about it.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39For a polar bear, moss has little nutritional benefit...
0:11:41 > 0:11:44..but it might just stave off Lyra's hunger pangs.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52It's a huge relief to have found both of them still alive,
0:11:52 > 0:11:56both together, but that relief is tinged with worry.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59It's going to be a long time before the sea re-freezes,
0:11:59 > 0:12:03before she's going to be able to hunt on the sea ice,
0:12:03 > 0:12:06the sea ice that polar bears need,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10and the big worry is whether she can actually last that long.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16As we film Lyra and Miki,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20they move down the hillside to the seaweed washed up on the shore.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28So I suppose a vegetarian diet for a carnivore
0:12:28 > 0:12:30- is not the best thing, Jason.- No.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34I think, occasionally, it helps them to eat some kelp, some seaweed -
0:12:34 > 0:12:37gets a bit of salt in their diet, so they like it as an extra,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41but as their prime source of food at the moment, it's not the best.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45You can see how narrow she is around the rear end there -
0:12:45 > 0:12:46really very, very slim.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50You see her top shoulder bone sticking up high.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52There's meat still there,
0:12:52 > 0:12:55but there's definitely no fat or blubber on her.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00If you contrast her with Miki,
0:13:00 > 0:13:02he's healthy and fat-looking,
0:13:02 > 0:13:05and that's because he's been feeding off of Lyra's milk.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07He's doing well.
0:13:07 > 0:13:11There's plenty for him to eat,
0:13:11 > 0:13:13or at least plenty for him to drink.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15Poor Lyra has been really...
0:13:17 > 0:13:19..deprived of all food.
0:13:21 > 0:13:26It's hard to be objective about an animal you've grown so close to.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31I know how hard Lyra has struggled to keep Miki alive.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34I really feel for her.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41She's been such a nice bear from the first moment
0:13:41 > 0:13:44we met her at a den when she put her head out.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46- I feel so comfortable with her... - Yeah.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49..that she's not going to turn on us or do anything.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51I mean, do you think we can trust her entirely,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54or do you think there's going to be a balance
0:13:54 > 0:13:57where her hunger is going to make her change her attitude towards us?
0:13:57 > 0:14:00There's always that final, do you trust her,
0:14:00 > 0:14:02do you not trust her, all the way?
0:14:02 > 0:14:05I trust her most of the way, but you never know with them.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07Especially at moments like this,
0:14:07 > 0:14:10- when she's obviously getting very hungry.- Mm.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15This family are desperate.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20They can survive like this for a while, but for how much longer?
0:14:31 > 0:14:33Seeing the Arctic like this,
0:14:33 > 0:14:36it seems like an unlikely place to find Lyra and Miki feeding.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38There's not any snow in sight,
0:14:38 > 0:14:42but when you think about the evolutionary history of polar bears,
0:14:42 > 0:14:44it makes a lot more sense.
0:14:44 > 0:14:49All present day bear species evolved from a common ancestor.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53What that ancestor did was move out, branch, expand
0:14:53 > 0:14:57and populate different habitats across the world,
0:14:57 > 0:14:59and each one of those bear species
0:14:59 > 0:15:03became very good at living in a particular habitat.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10Grizzly bears are the polar bears' closest relative,
0:15:10 > 0:15:14but they've evolved for warmer landscapes.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17They'll happily eat plants as well as meat.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24Their diet is less specialised.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38But recent evidence suggests polar bears have spent
0:15:38 > 0:15:42four million years adapting to hunt seals on the ice.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52Now, the Arctic sea ice is vanishing so rapidly,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55it seems unlikely that polar bears can adapt in time.
0:16:01 > 0:16:07If the ice continues to disappear, their future looks uncertain.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27Back at the cabin, I call biologist Jon Aars on the satellite phone.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31- 'Hello.'- Hi, Jon, it's Gordon here.
0:16:31 > 0:16:38We've found Lyra and Miki, and both are alive but Miki looks great -
0:16:38 > 0:16:43very fat and healthy - but Lyra's looking really quite thin.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46You can tell that, since I was last here,
0:16:46 > 0:16:48she really hasn't had that much to eat.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51'OK, so she's eaten very, very little.'
0:16:51 > 0:16:53Cub survival rates are the best measure
0:16:53 > 0:16:56of the health of a polar bear population.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00And, this year, with so little ice,
0:17:00 > 0:17:04my observations are even more valuable for Jon.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11'He wants me to check exactly what Lyra is eating on the shoreline.'
0:17:11 > 0:17:15- OK, Jon, thank you very much. - 'Yeah, thank you. Thanks a lot.'
0:17:15 > 0:17:17Cheers. Bye. Bye.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27In the Arctic, we're at the mercy of the elements.
0:17:30 > 0:17:34With rough weather, our boat isn't safe anchored here.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39The Havsel has to pull out,
0:17:39 > 0:17:42and we don't want to get stranded at the cabin.
0:17:45 > 0:17:47The conditions have got much worse.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50The wind's picked up, so the sea has picked up.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Visibility is almost down to nothing,
0:17:52 > 0:17:55so we're not going to be able to get ashore and look for Lyra,
0:17:55 > 0:17:57so we're going to head back to the Havsel.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11This is the hardest place I've ever tried to work.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13It's not just the weather.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17It's so remote, wild, and unforgiving.
0:18:20 > 0:18:25Forget the polar bears, getting on and off this boat is about the most dangerous thing we can do.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41I really want to help Jon understand how Lyra and Miki are surviving...
0:18:43 > 0:18:45..but I can't do that if I'm stuck onboard.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04The next morning, we move the Havsel as close to Lyra's beach as we can.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18The crew scan the coast for any sign of the bears...
0:19:21 > 0:19:24..and eventually find them -
0:19:24 > 0:19:26two small dots on the shore.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30I just don't know what she's doing here.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35You've got an animal that can walk huge distances,
0:19:35 > 0:19:37can swim huge distances.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39Lyra could go anywhere that she wants,
0:19:39 > 0:19:43and I don't know whether that's been an error on her part,
0:19:43 > 0:19:46whether she came down here because it's a place that she knows,
0:19:46 > 0:19:49a place where she's done well in years before,
0:19:49 > 0:19:52but this year, she is not doing well here, not doing well at all.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03I can only imagine the incredible journey
0:20:03 > 0:20:06Lyra has taken over the last six months.
0:20:10 > 0:20:16In April, with two tiny cubs, she headed out onto the sea ice.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23She drifted west with the ice...
0:20:25 > 0:20:27..and then made her way up the coast.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32She probably had to swim long distances.
0:20:35 > 0:20:39It may have been on one of these swims that she lost Luca.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47Lyra and Miki have travelled over a thousand miles.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52She's returned to within a few miles of the den
0:20:52 > 0:20:56where her cubs were born - an amazing feat of navigation.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05At last the wind drops and we attempt to get to Lyra.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11It's too windy to get this boat in the water,
0:21:11 > 0:21:14so we're going to take the Zodiac into the shore.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17The ice makes conditions very difficult to work in,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20but, actually, it's worse when it's like this.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37'The water is only just above freezing,
0:21:37 > 0:21:39'the wind is biting.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44'Jason and I are wearing full survival suits.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46'If we fell into the water without the suits,
0:21:46 > 0:21:50'we'd be dead before the Havsel could send a boat to rescue us.'
0:21:51 > 0:21:53This is pretty bad conditions.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56The visibility isn't much of a problem,
0:21:56 > 0:21:59but the big problem is the sea state, the wind.
0:22:03 > 0:22:05If finding polar bears wasn't hard enough,
0:22:05 > 0:22:08when you add the weather conditions like this,
0:22:08 > 0:22:09it makes it almost impossible.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13We've actually run aground here. It's really very, very shallow.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16That's why we can't bring the big boat in close.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20What is this, less than a metre?
0:22:20 > 0:22:21Gosh!
0:22:23 > 0:22:27This is what makes filming polar bears so damn dangerous -
0:22:27 > 0:22:30these conditions, unchartered waters.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37There's something quite apocalyptic about this scene.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40These two dirty animals scavenging on the shoreline here -
0:22:40 > 0:22:43it's not an iconic animal in a pristine wilderness.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48And this may well be the future for polar bears.
0:22:48 > 0:22:52This may be a scene that is repeated throughout the Arctic -
0:22:52 > 0:22:57polar bears struggling to survive on land when they should be on ice.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01They're feeding on something, I can see something in the kelp.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05Don't know what that is, it kind of looks like eggs,
0:23:05 > 0:23:07but there's a cluster of them.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10There wouldn't be a cluster of eggs, not at this time of year.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14'It's hard to believe there's any food here for a polar bear.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23'But Lyra IS definitely eating something.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30This is where she was, she was right here.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33Look at this - it's all...fishing floats.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37She can't have been eating them.
0:23:37 > 0:23:42Oh, actually you can see there's tooth marks on these floats.
0:23:42 > 0:23:46They'd have been entirely covered in plastic -
0:23:46 > 0:23:48it's a kind of rigid polystyrene -
0:23:48 > 0:23:52and she has been chewing away on that.
0:23:52 > 0:23:57This is something that is filling her stomach full of plastic,
0:23:57 > 0:23:59possibly full of toxins,
0:23:59 > 0:24:03something that has absolutely zero nutritional benefit.
0:24:06 > 0:24:08That's what she's been doing.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12What an absolutely grim vision -
0:24:12 > 0:24:16these two animals reduced to, not just scavenging on the beach,
0:24:16 > 0:24:18but actually eating plastic,
0:24:18 > 0:24:22eating stuff that human beings have thrown over the side of ships.
0:24:25 > 0:24:31I really am worried about Lyra and the next couple of months.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35This is the hardest time for polar bears in a normal year.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37She is down on her luck,
0:24:37 > 0:24:41she has hardly fed on a substantial meal for months now.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43The fact that she's chewing on this stuff
0:24:43 > 0:24:46just shows that she is literally starving.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52I really worry whether she is able, whether she has the reserves
0:24:52 > 0:24:55to see it through the next couple of months,
0:24:55 > 0:24:59and Miki, despite the fact that he looks healthy enough,
0:24:59 > 0:25:01without his mother, he's doomed.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12Back on the bridge of the Havsel, we want to report back to Jon.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15He needs to know what we've seen.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20The fact that Lyra's eating plastic just shows how she's struggling.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25I'm worried that Lyra's milk will dry up.
0:25:30 > 0:25:34When I was last here, I filmed Miki suckling.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44He'll need his mother's milk for another year.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52But Lyra has to eat to produce milk.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00There's no ice for her to hunt on,
0:26:00 > 0:26:02and she's used all of her fat,
0:26:02 > 0:26:05and is now converting her own muscle into milk.
0:26:07 > 0:26:09Lyra is wasting away.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31When we next get back to Lyra, she looks worse than ever.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44It's heart-breaking to see Lyra like this.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50And if she's in trouble, Miki's in danger, too.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55I wonder if she's going to let Miki suckle.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07Miki wanted to suckle but...
0:27:08 > 0:27:12She recognised that look in his eyes.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20Lyra's refusing to let Miki suckle.
0:27:20 > 0:27:22It's the first time we've seen her turn him down.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28For Lyra, this is terribly hard.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33She wants to keep feeding him, but she can't produce enough milk.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44Eventually, Lyra's milk will completely dry up.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48Miki may not survive.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55Ah, they are beautiful.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44The next morning, I want to get straight back out.
0:28:46 > 0:28:50I'm worried Lyra may stop feeding Miki altogether.
0:28:50 > 0:28:54But the weather closes in and we're stuck onboard.
0:29:02 > 0:29:07Every moment that passes, I'm losing vital time with my bear family.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19I keep thinking we're the only ship out here,
0:29:19 > 0:29:20but listening to the radio,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23there's weather warnings, some ships in trouble.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27Just behind us, a big Russian fishing ship's come in to shelter.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31One thing's for sure - there won't be a single ship that's not at anchor.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35Anyone that's in this part of the Arctic is doing what we're doing,
0:29:35 > 0:29:37looking for the safest, most sheltered place.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40- Everything OK?- Yeah, we're just dropping a second anchor.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44- A second anchor. - We can stay forever.
0:29:44 > 0:29:45THEY CHUCKLE
0:29:45 > 0:29:48Forever! We might have to stay forever.
0:29:48 > 0:29:51It's better to do it right now because later on...
0:29:51 > 0:29:53- It could get worse?- Yeah.
0:30:11 > 0:30:14We lose a whole day to the wind and rain,
0:30:14 > 0:30:17and, the next morning, Lyra's gone.
0:30:20 > 0:30:25Without a working collar, we don't know where to start looking for her.
0:30:25 > 0:30:27If she was still up on that ridge,
0:30:27 > 0:30:29we'd be able to see her from here, wouldn't we?
0:30:29 > 0:30:32Each morning, we have to try and relocate Lyra,
0:30:32 > 0:30:35and we're hoping she's on the same stretch of coastline.
0:30:35 > 0:30:38The only means of transport, really, that we have,
0:30:38 > 0:30:40beyond walking, are the boats,
0:30:40 > 0:30:42and if she does go into the middle of the island,
0:30:42 > 0:30:44she can walk much faster than us,
0:30:44 > 0:30:48and trying to keep up with her on foot is going to be next to impossible.
0:31:02 > 0:31:04We head back out.
0:31:07 > 0:31:11But no joy. She's moved off and we can't find her.
0:31:14 > 0:31:15This is bad news.
0:31:17 > 0:31:19I only have just over a week left in the Arctic.
0:31:21 > 0:31:26If we can't locate Lyra and Miki, that's it, the end of our project.
0:31:37 > 0:31:41In hopes of finding her, we head for a nearby glacier.
0:31:43 > 0:31:46Maybe she's come here in search of seals.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58We've got this beautiful glacial wall here.
0:31:58 > 0:32:00It just looks like marble.
0:32:00 > 0:32:05This is snow that fell 10,000 years ago, high up in the mountains.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08These glaciers are constantly moving,
0:32:08 > 0:32:11some at a very, very slow rate, and when they meet the sea,
0:32:11 > 0:32:15the sea water - which is much warmer - causes them to calve,
0:32:15 > 0:32:20for ice to fall in, and it forms icebergs that float out to sea.
0:32:20 > 0:32:23If these longer summer conditions - lack of sea ice - persist,
0:32:23 > 0:32:26these glacier areas are going to become
0:32:26 > 0:32:29increasingly more important for polar bears.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33This gives them a set of circumstances that
0:32:33 > 0:32:35might give them a chance to hunt seals.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39There you go. Obviously, a seal couldn't get up on to something
0:32:39 > 0:32:42like that, but this bit that's fallen off - a perfect place.
0:32:42 > 0:32:44A seal could easily get out there,
0:32:44 > 0:32:47lie there, thinking it's safe and secure,
0:32:47 > 0:32:51and, unknown to that seal, it might be being watched by a polar bear.
0:32:51 > 0:32:53ICE BANGS THE BOAT
0:32:54 > 0:32:56And the band played on!
0:32:56 > 0:32:57GORDON LAUGHS
0:32:57 > 0:33:02What's the name of that big ship that had a problem with one of these things?
0:33:05 > 0:33:07There's no sign of Lyra and Miki.
0:33:09 > 0:33:13We head back to the Havsel, away from the shelter of the glacier.
0:33:17 > 0:33:21'But, as the water gets rougher, we spot a bear.'
0:33:21 > 0:33:23Come on, Lyra, is that you?
0:33:24 > 0:33:26'I'm desperate for it to be Lyra.'
0:33:26 > 0:33:29Hang on, did I see a collar?
0:33:29 > 0:33:32I thought I just caught a glimpse of a collar
0:33:32 > 0:33:34but it's hard to tell, the boat's moving about so much.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36There's definitely a cub there.
0:33:38 > 0:33:41Come on, girl!
0:33:41 > 0:33:42Is that you?
0:33:44 > 0:33:47- That's not her, is it? - It's not her. I don't believe it.
0:33:47 > 0:33:50You can even see in her face it's not, it's not Lyra.
0:33:50 > 0:33:52Ah, man!
0:33:52 > 0:33:54I don't believe it.
0:33:56 > 0:33:57Oh, no!
0:33:57 > 0:33:59I just...
0:33:59 > 0:34:02I thought when we caught a glimpse of these bears,
0:34:02 > 0:34:05I just so wanted it to be her.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08We don't know where she is. We really don't.
0:34:08 > 0:34:10There's two cubs, yeah. There's one behind it.
0:34:10 > 0:34:14Oh, look at them! They are good-looking cubs.
0:34:14 > 0:34:17She's done a spectacular job in getting these cubs to this size.
0:34:17 > 0:34:21Two cubs in this area is no mean feat.
0:34:21 > 0:34:24The female is big for this time of year
0:34:24 > 0:34:26and the cubs are just looking wonderful.
0:34:28 > 0:34:31'These two cubs are a full year older than Miki.'
0:34:31 > 0:34:34I've got a feeling both the cubs are males.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36Yeah, they've got that look about them, don't they?
0:34:36 > 0:34:38Yeah, and they're both so inquisitive.
0:34:38 > 0:34:42There may be enough food that they're scavenging off the beaches -
0:34:42 > 0:34:45things, animals that have died and washed up on the shore.
0:34:45 > 0:34:49It just seems really strange that we've got this healthy mother
0:34:49 > 0:34:53and two healthy cubs marooned here on this island.
0:34:53 > 0:34:55It's just... I don't understand it.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59This does give me hope for Lyra and Miki,
0:34:59 > 0:35:02because if a mother with two cubs can survive down here,
0:35:02 > 0:35:04a mother with one hopefully can as well.
0:35:05 > 0:35:07It's just a question of where is she?
0:35:07 > 0:35:10I think we skirt the islands and keep looking.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16As we move around the shore searching for Lyra,
0:35:16 > 0:35:20we discover why the other bears look so healthy.
0:35:22 > 0:35:23A whale carcass.
0:35:25 > 0:35:27Oh, it smells very, very ripe.
0:35:29 > 0:35:32This is a smell that will carry on the wind,
0:35:32 > 0:35:36and polar bears in this area will know will know that it's here.
0:35:36 > 0:35:38It could well be that this whale carcass
0:35:38 > 0:35:40has actually been here for most of the year.
0:35:40 > 0:35:44For a hungry polar bear in desperate times, this is a magnificent find.
0:35:44 > 0:35:46There's lots of blubber there.
0:35:46 > 0:35:50Most of it's gone, but there is still something to eat.
0:35:50 > 0:35:54Some polar bears' favourite song is the old wartime classic,
0:35:54 > 0:35:56"Whale Meat Again."
0:36:03 > 0:36:06In other parts of the Arctic, traditional whale-hunting
0:36:06 > 0:36:09provides a rich source of food for polar bears.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26The hunters drag the whales up onto the ice,
0:36:26 > 0:36:29take the blubber and leave the rest.
0:36:33 > 0:36:37A lifeline for hungry bears at this time of year.
0:36:42 > 0:36:46It may well be that with these longer periods of no sea ice,
0:36:46 > 0:36:49it's those bears that are living close to indigenous hunters
0:36:49 > 0:36:52who hunt whales are actually doing better.
0:36:54 > 0:36:58It's an intriguing thought and maybe a glimmer of hope.
0:36:58 > 0:37:00Climate change may be bad for polar bears,
0:37:00 > 0:37:03but that doesn't mean people have to be.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09I just hope Lyra can smell this carcass
0:37:09 > 0:37:11and get herself and Miki here.
0:37:12 > 0:37:15It might be their only hope for survival.
0:37:20 > 0:37:25We try a nearby island that polar bears have been lured to for decades.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28On the shore stands a deserted cabin.
0:37:30 > 0:37:33This cabin was actually built by people that had
0:37:33 > 0:37:35an interest in polar bears.
0:37:35 > 0:37:36It was built by trappers.
0:37:36 > 0:37:40This area was selected because there was a high density at that time.
0:37:40 > 0:37:45Hundreds, thousands of polar bears were shot from cabins like this,
0:37:45 > 0:37:47and there's little traces of it.
0:37:47 > 0:37:52You can see someone's actually scratched a polar bear head in here.
0:37:52 > 0:37:56Another one here, and initials PJ.
0:37:56 > 0:38:01That's Per Jonsson, who over-wintered here '68 into '69.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03One thing that trappers would do -
0:38:03 > 0:38:07they'd stick just a simple big pole up by the cabin.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10The trappers would take advantage of a polar bear's curiosity
0:38:10 > 0:38:12and they'd erect these poles.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16This is something that could be seen for miles and miles.
0:38:16 > 0:38:20A polar bear in this fairly featureless landscape would see this
0:38:20 > 0:38:23and just naturally be drawn to it.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26You can see here a polar bear has been chewing,
0:38:26 > 0:38:30and some huge, enormous polar bear has stretched all the way up there.
0:38:30 > 0:38:34This post is in a direct line of sight, across the sound,
0:38:34 > 0:38:36to where Lyra had her den.
0:38:36 > 0:38:39This island undoubtedly is a place that she's come to
0:38:39 > 0:38:41many, many times in the past.
0:38:42 > 0:38:45The posts lured the bears to the island.
0:38:45 > 0:38:47But, of course, it was a trap.
0:38:49 > 0:38:51So the trap would have been mounted on a post,
0:38:51 > 0:38:55a rifle mounted on top, with the barrel going down through here.
0:38:55 > 0:38:59You need a fairly high-powered rifle to kill a polar bear outright.
0:38:59 > 0:39:03Inside the box, there would have been lump of seal meat or blubber,
0:39:03 > 0:39:04tied to this string.
0:39:04 > 0:39:09Driven by hunger, the polar bear would have come forward,
0:39:09 > 0:39:13stuck its head in, grabbed the meat with its mouth,
0:39:13 > 0:39:15pulled the string, pulled the trigger
0:39:15 > 0:39:18and been shot through the back of the head.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22This is a place where thousands of polar bears
0:39:22 > 0:39:24have come for generations,
0:39:24 > 0:39:30and if Lyra and Miki were alive when polar bear hunting continued here,
0:39:30 > 0:39:33they would almost certainly visited this island,
0:39:33 > 0:39:37almost certainly come to something like this for food,
0:39:37 > 0:39:39and almost certainly been killed.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41Using this method,
0:39:41 > 0:39:45polar bears in this region were almost driven to extinction.
0:39:48 > 0:39:51In the heyday, trappers killed around
0:39:51 > 0:39:54400 polar bears on Svalbard every year.
0:39:56 > 0:40:00The dead bears were loaded onto boats and shipped to the mainland.
0:40:02 > 0:40:04They were sold for their fur.
0:40:09 > 0:40:13Cubs were kept alive and sent to zoos.
0:40:15 > 0:40:19There are probably more polar bear bones littering these beaches
0:40:19 > 0:40:21than anywhere else in the world.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25By the early 1970s, polar bear numbers here
0:40:25 > 0:40:28were so low that their future was uncertain.
0:40:30 > 0:40:34In 1973, the Norwegian government stepped in
0:40:34 > 0:40:36and banned all hunting of polar bears.
0:40:38 > 0:40:43It's taken 30 years, but today, the bears here have recovered.
0:40:43 > 0:40:47The Svalbard population is stable, at least for now.
0:40:47 > 0:40:50But, incredibly, polar bear hunting
0:40:50 > 0:40:55still continues in the USA, Canada and Greenland.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01Most hunting is by native peoples,
0:41:01 > 0:41:04but I wonder if any hunting is sustainable.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11Polar bears face so many challenges,
0:41:11 > 0:41:15almost all of them brought about by us.
0:41:23 > 0:41:27Every day, the conditions change.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30The next morning, the wind is coming from a different direction.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33It'll make landing at Lyra's beach easier.
0:41:35 > 0:41:38I'm really hoping Lyra and Miki will have returned.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42And we're in luck.
0:41:44 > 0:41:45Our family is back,
0:41:45 > 0:41:48but Lyra's behaviour is different.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53- That's interesting - she's coming towards us.- Yeah.
0:42:13 > 0:42:14Here she goes.
0:42:22 > 0:42:24OK, Lyra is...
0:42:26 > 0:42:28..getting a little bit closer.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31This is when I start getting nervous. Just a bit.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37OK, Lyra, I can see that you're smelling the air,
0:42:37 > 0:42:40and I'm just a little bit worried that it's the smell
0:42:40 > 0:42:44that's coming from me that's holding your attention.
0:42:45 > 0:42:47This is not a bear that is at all scared.
0:42:48 > 0:42:53This is a bear that's figuring out what's going on,
0:42:53 > 0:42:56whether there is an opportunity to feed here.
0:42:56 > 0:42:58We are completely downwind,
0:42:58 > 0:43:01so Miki's getting quite a good scent of us here.
0:43:01 > 0:43:03Lyra's always actually moved away from us
0:43:03 > 0:43:06and kept her personal distance, and right at the moment,
0:43:06 > 0:43:09it's the first time in the last year of being with her
0:43:09 > 0:43:13that she's actually turned around and come towards us, and her...
0:43:13 > 0:43:17It's her body movement and her stance that worries me a little bit.
0:43:17 > 0:43:21When she's tense, she basically puts her front paws forward
0:43:21 > 0:43:26and builds up a stance that's like a spring ready to take off, you know.
0:43:26 > 0:43:30When they come at you, their initial speed is incredibly fast.
0:43:31 > 0:43:35This is the first time I've felt threatened by Lyra.
0:43:35 > 0:43:36If she comes, you drop everything.
0:43:36 > 0:43:39You drop the monitor, you drop the camera.
0:43:44 > 0:43:48- WOMAN:- Jason, is he safe there?
0:43:49 > 0:43:52Let me just grab one more shot of Lyra.
0:43:52 > 0:43:56- I don't like it. - OK, shall we move back, then?
0:43:56 > 0:43:58If you don't like it, I'd rather move back now.
0:44:00 > 0:44:02- Please. Gordon?- OK.
0:44:06 > 0:44:09Right, Lyra, that's close enough for now.
0:44:12 > 0:44:16Despite the fact that she hasn't been aggressive towards us at all,
0:44:16 > 0:44:20there may well come a point where she views me differently,
0:44:20 > 0:44:22that she sees me and thinks, possibly,
0:44:22 > 0:44:25"This is something that I can eat. Maybe this is my next meal."
0:44:29 > 0:44:33We may be safe, but I'm so worried about Lyra and Miki.
0:44:47 > 0:44:49It's really hard to see Lyra suffering.
0:44:50 > 0:44:53I'd love to be able to feed her,
0:44:53 > 0:44:56but it's illegal to feed any wildlife on Svalbard.
0:44:59 > 0:45:03I don't want Lyra to associate humans with food.
0:45:03 > 0:45:07It could be dangerous for people and for her.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18With less ice, it means harder times for polar bears,
0:45:18 > 0:45:22and they will have to find new, different sources of food,
0:45:22 > 0:45:23and that may very well mean
0:45:23 > 0:45:27it brings them closer to people living and working in the Arctic.
0:45:27 > 0:45:30So our relationship with these huge predators
0:45:30 > 0:45:32may well become more troubled.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36With the conditions so bad this year,
0:45:36 > 0:45:38I want to know whether polar bears
0:45:38 > 0:45:41have been driven closer to humans in search of food.
0:45:43 > 0:45:47There are a few places on Svalbard where people live year round.
0:45:47 > 0:45:50One of them is the Polish research station at Hornsund.
0:45:52 > 0:45:56They've had bears visit them this year, but no fatal run-ins,
0:45:56 > 0:46:00thanks to a tried and tested polar bear warning system.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05- Hello, girl.- Lola. - Lola - that's my daughter's name.
0:46:05 > 0:46:10'Liliana Keslinka-Nawrot has worked at the base for almost a year.'
0:46:10 > 0:46:12She's the bravest one.
0:46:12 > 0:46:15So if a polar bear walks in, the dogs start barking,
0:46:15 > 0:46:18- and do they scare it off most times?- Yes.- Really?- Yeah.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24Dogs like Lola bark as soon as they get a whiff of a bear.
0:46:25 > 0:46:29This gives the researchers time to come out with a flare gun
0:46:29 > 0:46:30and scare it off.
0:46:32 > 0:46:35For Lola here, how close has she been to a polar bear?
0:46:35 > 0:46:38- Well, she was attacked three years ago.- Was she?- Yes.
0:46:38 > 0:46:43She had some stitches on her... Here, over here! ..on the leg.
0:46:43 > 0:46:44SHE SPEAKS IN POLISH
0:46:44 > 0:46:47After she was attacked by the polar bear,
0:46:47 > 0:46:50did her attitude change towards them, was she more scared?
0:46:50 > 0:46:54- No, she just got more brave. - She just got on with her job?- Yes.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57From the polar bears that you've seen come through here,
0:46:57 > 0:47:00have you noticed that some are more curious,
0:47:00 > 0:47:02that they do have different personalities?
0:47:02 > 0:47:08Yes. Yeah, some are scared once and they go away,
0:47:08 > 0:47:13but some are really just so starving, so hungry.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16I do think it's great the way that the dogs' senses are used
0:47:16 > 0:47:18to keep people safe from polar bears.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21They've got excellent hearing, fantastic sense of smell,
0:47:21 > 0:47:24and there's absolutely no technology in the world
0:47:24 > 0:47:27that can detect polar bears as good as a dog can.
0:47:29 > 0:47:31It's a small sign of hope.
0:47:31 > 0:47:35There are ways to keep both people and polar bears safe.
0:47:43 > 0:47:48I want to get back to Lyra and Miki once more, but time is running out.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51Now it's all down to the weather.
0:47:53 > 0:47:57As autumn progresses, storms become more frequent.
0:47:57 > 0:48:02Soon, it will be too treacherous for us to stay.
0:48:02 > 0:48:06Our time with the bears is coming to an end.
0:48:06 > 0:48:09- We've got a strong gale...- OK.
0:48:09 > 0:48:13- ..and rain, so what we've got may be a bit worse.- OK.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17I'd hoped to spend more time with Lyra,
0:48:17 > 0:48:19but, before we can get back to the shore,
0:48:19 > 0:48:23a storm rolls in and we have to strap everything down.
0:48:38 > 0:48:41It seems like it's bad everywhere in this area.
0:48:41 > 0:48:43We just got the forecast through.
0:48:43 > 0:48:46"Cyclonic gale 8 to storm 10, occasionally violent storm,
0:48:46 > 0:48:50"11 for a time, becoming mainly northwesterly 6 to scale 8 later.
0:48:50 > 0:48:54"Very rough or high. Becoming very high for a time.
0:48:54 > 0:48:56"Rain or showers.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59"Poor," it says. Poor. Very poor.
0:49:08 > 0:49:12We're stuck onboard the Havsel and it's not looking good.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19We lose two full days to the bad weather.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34I can't stand it any longer.
0:49:34 > 0:49:36We decide to try and get ashore...
0:49:37 > 0:49:39..despite the terrible conditions.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45We've been sitting out, waiting for the weather to clear up,
0:49:45 > 0:49:46and it hasn't cleared up,
0:49:46 > 0:49:48but I'm desperate to get ashore and look for Lyra,
0:49:48 > 0:49:52and the only way to do that is to get into the Zodiac and go ashore,
0:49:52 > 0:49:55but it's incredibly dangerous conditions.
0:49:56 > 0:49:58But, you know, what can I do?
0:49:58 > 0:50:00It's either just sit here and wait,
0:50:00 > 0:50:03without a single hope of seeing Lyra,
0:50:03 > 0:50:05or at least try the only option that we've got,
0:50:05 > 0:50:07and I'm prepared to do that.
0:50:21 > 0:50:25The winds are 50 knots, the waves are short and steep.
0:50:25 > 0:50:29If we get too much air under the Zodiac, we'll flip.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37Jason has to keep the boat pointed into the wind,
0:50:37 > 0:50:40and I have to keep my weight forward.
0:50:44 > 0:50:48We can't go too slowly or we'll be swamped by the waves from behind.
0:51:02 > 0:51:05Oh, my God! Oh, my God!
0:51:05 > 0:51:09Come back, come back, come back, come back, come back, come back!
0:51:14 > 0:51:16'I'm OK but badly winded.'
0:51:17 > 0:51:20'It's just too dangerous to continue.'
0:51:34 > 0:51:37It's so hard to work here,
0:51:37 > 0:51:41and it's for this reason that we know so little about polar bears.
0:51:44 > 0:51:49At every turn, we're scuppered by the terrain and the weather.
0:51:49 > 0:51:52It's getting too risky to stay in the Arctic much longer.
0:52:02 > 0:52:04- You all right?- Yeah.
0:52:04 > 0:52:07Bloody impossible. There's just too much wind, too many waves.
0:52:07 > 0:52:10What happens is, the wave hits the front of boat,
0:52:10 > 0:52:13the boat lifts up and it becomes like a huge sail.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15We were very close to just tipping right over.
0:52:15 > 0:52:18And despite the fact we've got this big boat here,
0:52:18 > 0:52:20if we go in the water in these conditions...
0:52:22 > 0:52:24I don't want to think about it.
0:52:31 > 0:52:33Overnight, the wind begins to drop.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40And, by daybreak, the clouds have started to lift.
0:52:43 > 0:52:45It's my last chance to get ashore.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11Lyra's here on the same stretch of beach.
0:53:17 > 0:53:19But I can't see Miki.
0:53:32 > 0:53:36Gosh, Lyra, you have done an incredible job!
0:53:38 > 0:53:41There's been an unbelievable transformation in this cub
0:53:41 > 0:53:45since I first met him, way back at the start of the year.
0:53:45 > 0:53:49He was a tiny ball of fur back then.
0:53:52 > 0:53:55If Miki does make it to adulthood,
0:53:55 > 0:53:59it will be entirely down to the hard work of Lyra.
0:54:07 > 0:54:11Lyra is 17 years old - she's getting on as a mother.
0:54:12 > 0:54:15I doubt she will have another litter of cubs.
0:54:17 > 0:54:19Miki could be her last.
0:54:24 > 0:54:27It would be so good to think that she could get him through.
0:54:35 > 0:54:39But my time with Lyra and Miki is over.
0:54:40 > 0:54:43We've been through so much together.
0:54:45 > 0:54:49I can honestly say it's been a privilege.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56They have endured all that this, the toughest of years,
0:54:56 > 0:54:58has thrown at them.
0:55:07 > 0:55:11Their story isn't over
0:55:11 > 0:55:14but, for me, it's time to go.
0:55:22 > 0:55:26Soon, there will be only a few hours of light each day.
0:55:28 > 0:55:33Then storms and perpetual darkness will engulf the Arctic.
0:55:37 > 0:55:40I can't stay until the ice returns.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42It's just too dangerous.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49I'm forced to leave Lyra and Miki.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56I'll never see them again.
0:56:10 > 0:56:13My time with Lyra and Miki has shown me
0:56:13 > 0:56:16how vulnerable polar bears really are.
0:56:18 > 0:56:21They belong here and only here.
0:56:21 > 0:56:26They are part of this extraordinary Arctic world,
0:56:26 > 0:56:28but their world is changing,
0:56:28 > 0:56:31and their future is unsure.
0:56:33 > 0:56:35Having followed Lyra and her family,
0:56:35 > 0:56:39they've given me this rare insight, not just into their lives,
0:56:39 > 0:56:43but they've helped me better understand polar bears as a whole.
0:56:43 > 0:56:46For thousands of years, polar bears have been shaped,
0:56:46 > 0:56:48been fine-tuned by this landscape,
0:56:48 > 0:56:51the climate, the ice, the seals that they hunt,
0:56:51 > 0:56:55to the extent that polar bears aren't just a symbol of the Arctic,
0:56:55 > 0:56:58they are the embodiment of ALL life here in the Arctic.
0:56:58 > 0:57:02It's easy to understand how polar bears have become
0:57:02 > 0:57:06this powerful emblem and it is almost unimaginable
0:57:06 > 0:57:08that there could be a future without them.
0:57:21 > 0:57:25But Lyra and Miki's story has one final twist.
0:57:29 > 0:57:33Six weeks after I returned home, I heard news from Svalbard.
0:57:36 > 0:57:41Lyra's broken collar had sent one last update.
0:57:43 > 0:57:46She had travelled 100 miles north,
0:57:46 > 0:57:51to a place where a whale carcass had been seen from the air -
0:57:51 > 0:57:54enough food to see her through the winter.
0:58:01 > 0:58:04I'll never know for sure if Miki was with her.
0:58:12 > 0:58:18But I've seen him defy the odds again and again.
0:58:18 > 0:58:20I think he made it, too.
0:58:45 > 0:58:48Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd