Hunting quotas for Canada's southernmost population of polar bears have been drastically cut.
Inuit and Cree hunters have agreed to reduce their harvest of the southern Hudson Bay population to 45 bears a year — a drop of 25 per cent.
Polar bear scientists say the quota may still be too high for the bears, which live in northern Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.
Although the number of bears is considered stable at just over 900, their health and survival rates are declining.
The southern Hudson Bay bears are thought to be one of the populations most affected by climate change.
