In an alarming first, polar bears in the Arctic have been observed eating dolphins — certainly not a usual part of their diet.

Scientists in the Norwegian High Arctic witnessed an adult male not just eat a dead one, but actively hunt two white-beaked dolphins in April 2014 — and scientists believe global warming may be the culprit, according to a Huffington Post report.

An adult male polar bear was observed preying on two dolphins and then eating one of them, covering the other one with snow to save it for later. The findings were published in the journal Polar Research.

Another seven dolphin carcasses were also found that were likely scavenged on by six different polar bears, according to the report.

This new diet item for polar bears indicates an alarming change in behavior likely brought about by global warming as new species go farther north, said Jon Aars, one of the researchers behind the study.

Scientists believe a pod of dolphins wandered into the arctic due to the warmer waters and lessening ice, and were unable to escape when winds suddenly blew ice on top of them. The bear likely caught the dolphins when it tried to breathe in a whole in the ice.

The retreat of ice has caused more seals to leave, which is the polar bear’s usual diet. This means the bears have to find something to supplement the lack of seals, and they’ll eat anything they can find. However, it was surprising that the bears were able to get a hold of dolphins, and that the dolphins had become trapped before they could head south for the winter.