Space use of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in Davis Strait in relation to sea ice and harp seals (Pagophilus groenlandicus)

The dataset is associated with a study outlined in the following abstract:
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) rely on seals as their primary prey, yet predator-prey spatial relationships are poorly understood. We examined the spatial relationship between Davis Strait polar bears and harp seals (Pagophilus groenlandicus), using satellite-telemetry for both species. We analyzed sea ice trends using remote sensing (1979-2021) to examine how their environment may be changing using four sea ice seasons (freeze-up, winter, break-up, and summer). Sea ice cover decreased and summer season lengthened over time. Polar bears (n=18) tracked in 1991-2001 for 7-12 months had a mean 95% minimum convex polygon home range size (MCP) of 108,146 km2 (SE=18,252 km2) and a mean 95% kernel density home range size (KDE) of 76,863 km2 (SE=12,260 km2). Harp seals (n=22) tracked for 5-8 months in 1993-2005 had a mean 95% MCP of 693,403 km2 (SE=74,384 km2) and a mean 95% KDE of 395,316 km2 (SE=48,688 km2). During freeze-up, the core-use areas of both species did not overlap, but the broad-use areas did. During break-up, the broad-use areas overlapped more than the core-use areas. The space use of both species was influenced by the sea ice seasons and these seasons have changed over time.

Additional information:
Spreadsheets are separated into species (polar bears vs harp seals) and analysis (home ranges, overlap during break-up season, and overlap during freeze-up season). Polar bear home ranges were created for individuals with >=30 fixes and at least 4 months of data. Harp seal home ranges were created for individuals with >=30 fixes and 5-8 months of data. This makes up two separate spreadsheets (one per species). We then compared the seasonal overlap between species for both the break-up and freeze-up seasons. In each season we pooled all data for each species together. This makes up the additional 4 spreadsheets: 2 seasons per species.