By Matt Petronzio for Mashable.

The polar bear is more vulnerable than ever before.

The total population of the iconic Ursus maritimus is currently between 20,000 and 25,000, spread across 19 subpopulations in the Arctic. Polar bears in the U.S. Arctic have been listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act since 2008, and according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, at least three subpopulations of the species are in decline, with future decline predicted.

Climate change’s effect on sea ice extent is a significant factor. Rapid loss of Arctic sea ice is depriving polar bears of their habitats, because they depend on that ice to hunt prey — namely seals — and access areas to build dens.