Content
- where the polar bear lives
- Polar Bear Characteristics
- polar bear feeding
- polar bear behavior
- Polar Bear Conservation
- Curiosities
O White Bear or sea ursus, also known as Polar Bear, is the Arctic's most imposing predator. It is a carnivorous mammal of the bear family and is, without a doubt, the largest terrestrial carnivore on planet Earth.
Despite their obvious physical differences from the brown bear, the truth is that they share great genetic characteristics that would allow, in a hypothetical case, the reproduction and fertile offspring of both specimens. Even so, we must emphasize that they are different species, due to both morphological and metabolic differences and social behavior. As an ancestor of the white bear, we highlight the Ursus Maritimus Tyrannus, a large subspecies. To learn more about this wonderful animal, don't miss this PeritoAnimal sheet, where we talk about the polar bear characteristics and we share amazing images.
Source
- America
- Asia
- Canada
- Denmark
- U.S
- Norway
- Russia
where the polar bear lives
O polar bear habitat they are the permanent ices of the polar cap, the icy waters surrounding the icebergs, and the broken plains of the Arctic ice shelves. There are six specific populations on the planet that are:
- The Western Alaska and Wrangel Island communities, both belonging to Russia.
- Northern Alaska.
- In Canada we find 60% of the total number of polar bear specimens in the world.
- Greenland, Autonomous Region of Greenland.
- The Svalbard archipelago, belonging to Norway.
- The Land of Francis Joseph or Fritjof Nansen archipelago, also in Russia.
- Siberia.
Polar Bear Characteristics
The polar bear, along with the Kodiak bear, is the largest species among the bears. if you want to know how much does a polar bear weigh, the males exceed 500 kg in weight, although there are reports of specimens weighing more than 1000 kg, that is, more than 1 ton. Females weigh just over half that of males, and can measure up to 2 meters in length. Males reach 2.60 meters.
The structure of the polar bear, despite its large size, is slimmer than that of its relatives, the brown and black bears. Its head is much smaller and tapered towards the muzzle than other bear breeds. In addition, they have small eyes, black and shiny as jet, as well as a sensitive snout with enormous olfactory power. the ears are small, hairy and very rounded. This very specific facial configuration is due to a double motive: camouflage and the possibility of avoiding as much as possible the loss of body heat through the mentioned facial organs.
Thanks to the snowy coat that covers the huge body of the white bear, it blends in with the ice that constitutes its habitat and, consequently, its hunting territory. thanks to that perfect camouflage, it crawls across the ice to get as close as possible to the ringed seals, which are its most common prey.
Continuing with the characteristics of the polar bear, we can say that under the skin, the white bear has a thick layer of fat that isolates you perfectly from the ice and the icy arctic waters through which you move, swimming and also hunting. The polar bear's legs are far more developed than those of other bears, as they evolved to walk many miles on vast boreal ice and also to swim long distances.
polar bear feeding
The white bear feeds mainly on young specimens from ringed seals, prey that hunts indistinctly on ice or under water in an exceptional way.
the polar bear there are two typical ways to hunt: with his body close to the ground, he gets as close as possible to a seal resting on the ice, gets up suddenly and after a short run, launches a blazing claw strike into the seal's skull, which finishes off with a bite. in the neck. The other type of hunting, and the most common of all, consists of peeking through a seal vent. These vents are holes that seals make in the ice to cycle out and breathe during their fishing forays into waters covered by an ice cap. When the seal sticks its nose out of the water to breathe, the bear delivers a brutal blow that shatters the prey's skull. Also uses this technique to hunt belugas (marine cetaceans related to dolphins).
Polar bears also detect seal pups hidden in galleries dug under the ice. When they find the exact position using their sense of smell, they throw themselves with all their strength against the frozen roof of the den where the cub is hiding, falling on top of it. During the summer they also hunt reindeer and caribou, or even birds and eggs in the nesting areas.
For more details, don't miss this article on how the polar bear survives in the cold.
polar bear behavior
the polar bear does not hibernate as do their counterparts of other species. White bears accumulate fat during winter and lose it in summer to cool their bodies. During the breeding period, females do not eat food, losing up to half their body weight.
As for the polar bear breeding, between the months of april and may it is the only period in which females tolerate males, due to their heat. Outside this period, behavior between the two genders is hostile. Some male polar bears are cannibals and may eat cubs or other bears.
Polar Bear Conservation
Unfortunately, the polar bear is in serious danger of extinction due to the human factor. After evolving for more than 4 million years, it is currently estimated as highly likely that the species could disappear by the middle of this century. Oil pollution and climate change seriously threaten these magnificent animals, whose only antagonistic predator is humans.
The main problem currently suffered by the polar bear is the effect caused by climate changes in its ecosystem. The gradual rise in temperature in the Arctic Ocean causes a faster thaw of the Arctic ice floes (an extensive area of floating ice) that constitute the hunting ground of the polar bear. This premature thaw causes bears to be unable to build up the fat stores needed to properly transition from season to season. This fact influences the fertility of the species, which in recent times decreased about 15%.
Another problem is the pollution of its environment (mainly oil), since the Arctic is an area rich in this pollutant and finite resource. Both problems lead polar bears to raid human settlements to feed on the garbage produced by their inhabitants. It is sad that a being as majestic as this super predator is forced to survive in this way by man's harmful action on nature.
Curiosities
- In fact, polar bears don't have white fur. Their fur is translucent, and the optical effect makes them appear white as snow in winter and more ivory in summer. These hairs are hollow and filled with air inside, which guarantees enormous thermal insulation, ideal for living in the radical Arctic climate.
- The polar bear's fur isblack, and thus better absorbs solar radiation.
- White bears do not drink water, as the water in their habitat is salty and acidic. They get the necessary fluids from the blood of their prey.
- The life expectancy of polar bears ranges between 30 and 40 years.