There exist images throughout history that capture the human psyche, encapsulating the height of tragedies, be it war, famine or climate crisis.

The likes of images such as the 'Napalm Girl' or the starving child being stalked by a vulture during a ruthless famine in Sudan, will be etched into everyone’s memories forever.

This time, a group of filmmakers have shared images of the gut-wrenching moment they stumbled across a starving polar bear clinging to life in the wild as it scavenged for food.

The scene was recorded by the conservation group Sea Legacy during a late summer expedition in Baffin Island, reports Guardian.

“My entire Sea Legacy team was pushing through their tears and emotions while documenting this dying polar bear,” photographer Paul Nicklen wrote on social media after publishing the footage this week.

“It’s a soul-crushing scene that still haunts me, but I know we need to share both the beautiful and the heartbreaking if we are going to break down the walls of apathy,” he wrote.

“This is what starvation looks like. The muscles atrophy. No energy. It’s a slow, painful death.”