Polar bears are popular in fiction, particularly in books for children or teenagers. [207][208] Some estimates of the global population are around 5,000 to 10,000 in the early 1970s;[209] other estimates were 20,000 to 40,000 during the 1980s. The findings reveal the most up-to-date information for polar bear populations. [3] The United States government has proposed that polar bears be transferred to Appendix I of CITES which would ban all commercial international trade in polar bear parts. Increased human-bear interactions, including fatal attacks on humans, are likely to increase as the sea ice shrinks and hungry bears try to find food on land. [23] However, evidence of hybrids between polar bears and brown bears, and of the recent evolutionary divergence of the two species, does not support the establishment of this separate genus, and the accepted scientific name is now therefore Ursus maritimus, as Phipps originally proposed. [92], The polar bear is the most carnivorous member of the bear family, and throughout most of its range, its diet primarily consists of ringed (Pusa hispida) and bearded seals (Erignathus barbatus). [177] The Government of the Northwest Territories maintain their own quota of 72 to 103 bears within the Inuvialuit communities of which some are set aside for sports hunters. The world record polar bear--the largest bear species--fell to Shelby Longoria in 1963 in Kotzebue, Alaska. [33] Polar bears can breed with brown bears to produce fertile grizzlypolar bear hybrids;[5][34] rather than indicating that they have only recently diverged, the new evidence suggests more frequent mating has continued over a longer period of time, and thus the two bears remain genetically similar. The late spring hunting season ends for polar bears when the ice begins to melt and break up, and they fast or eat little during the summer until the sea freezes again. This polar bear was spotted in Kotzebue Sound, Alaska in 1960. Polar bears are 8-10 ft (2.4-3 m) long. When the ice melts, and the polar bear is in the surroundings of a grizzly bear, the grizzly bear has sufficient advantages to battle with the Polar bear, so grizzly is the winner . [40] The largest polar bear on record, reportedly weighing 1,002 kg (2,209 lb), was a male shot at Kotzebue Sound in northwestern Alaska in 1960. The resulting high concentrations cause hypervitaminosis A,[157] Hunters make sure to either toss the liver into the sea or bury it to prevent their dogs from being poisoned. It was believed that the "little nephew" (the brown bear) would not dare to attack a man wearing the tooth of its powerful "big uncle", the polar bear. This specimen, when mounted, stood 3.39 m (11 ft 1 in) tall on its hindlegs. The largest polar bear ever recorded was a 12-foot Alaskan polar bear. polar bear Geographic ranges of living species of bears If the seal does not notice, the bear creeps to within 9 to 12m (30 to 40ft) of the seal and then suddenly rushes forth to attack. This behaviour, if it happens, is rare although the story exists in the oral history of northern peoples and in accounts by early Arctic explorers, there is no record of an eyewitness account of the behaviour in recent decades. (Image credit: Lev Fedoseyev/Contributor via Getty Images) Polar bears ( Ursus maritimus) are the largest bear species and the biggest . [175] Between 1987 and 2004, the Western Hudson Bay population declined by 22%,[194] although the population was listed as "stable" as of 2017. For about 12 to 15 days, the family spends time outside the den while remaining in its vicinity, the mother grazing on vegetation while the cubs become used to walking and playing. Michio Hoshino, a Japanese wildlife photographer, was once pursued briefly by a hungry male polar bear in northern Alaska. [148][149] A rather unlikely killer of a grown polar bear has reportedly included a wolverine (Gulo gulo), anecdotally reported to have suffocated a bear in a zoo with a bite to the throat during a conflict. These were traded in the villages of the lower Yenisei and Khatanga rivers to the forest-dwelling peoples further south, who would sew them into their hats as protection against brown bears. [158], In Russia, polar bear furs were already being commercially traded in the 14th century, though it was of low value compared to Arctic fox or even reindeer fur. In 2005, the government of Nunavut increased the quota from 400 to 518 bears,[173] despite protests from the IUCN Polar Bear Specialist Group. Nevertheless, polar bears are listed as "Vulnerable" under criterion A3c, which indicates an expected population decrease of 30% over the next three generations (~34.5 years) due to "decline in area of occupancy, extent of occurrence and/or quality of habitat". [94] Studies have also photographed polar bears scaling near-vertical cliffs, to eat birds' chicks and eggs. In October 2019, the Polar Bear Specialist Group of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released a new assessment of polar bears. For the polar bears that currently den on multi-year ice, increased ice mobility may result in longer distances for mothers and young cubs to walk when they return to seal-hunting areas in the spring. [152][153], Polar bears have long provided important raw materials for Arctic peoples, including the Inuit, Yupik, Chukchi, Nenets, Russian Pomors and others. [16][14] The Yupik also refer to the bear as nanuuk in Siberian Yupik. [150] Polar bears are sometimes the host of arctic mites such as Alaskozetes antarcticus.[79]. [68] Unlike the brown bear, polar bears in captivity are rarely overweight or particularly large, possibly as a reaction to the warm conditions of most zoos. [125] This was the case for 40% of cubs there in the early 1980s; however by the 1990s, fewer than 20% of cubs were weaned this young. Its Latin name, Ursus maritimus, means 'sea bear': an apt name for this amazing species which spends much of its life in, around, or on the water - predominantly on the sea ice. [97], The polar bear's most common hunting method is called still-hunting:[98] the bear uses its excellent sense of smell to locate a seal breathing hole, and crouches nearby in silence for a seal to appear. While the algae is harmless to the bears, it is often a worry to the zoos housing them, and affected animals are sometimes washed in a salt solution, or mild. [137], Polar bears appear to be less affected by infectious diseases and parasites than most terrestrial mammals. The polar bear is one of the largest of its kind, with the adult male weighing between 772 and 1,543 pounds. [54][111] Current estimates put the global population at between 20,000 and 25,000[45] or 22,000 and 31,000. [79] When sprinting, they can reach up to 40km/h (25mph). These legends reveal a deep respect for the polar bear, which is portrayed as both spiritually powerful and closely akin to humans. [192], The effects of climate change are most profound in the southern part of the polar bear's range, and this is indeed where significant degradation of local populations has been observed. During these four months, the pregnant female eats prodigious amounts of food, gaining at least 200kg (440lb) and often more than doubling her body weight. For decades, large-scale hunting raised international concern for the future of the species, but populations rebounded after controls and quotas began to take effect. [221][222][223] The Eisbren Berlin hockey team uses a roaring polar bear as their logo, and the Charlotte, North Carolina hockey team the Charlotte Checkers uses a polar bear named Chubby Checker as their mascot. Polar bears sometimes have problems with various skin diseases that may be caused by mites or other parasites. U.m. As a carnivore, which feeds largely upon fish-eating carnivores, the polar bear ingests large amounts of vitamin A that is stored in their livers. Multiple cases of adoption of wild cubs have been confirmed by genetic testing. [10] Although most polar bears are born on land, they spend most of their time on the sea ice. Weight: Polar bears are the largest land predators alive in the world today (Lynch 1993, p 58). [123] One scientist found that 71% of the Hudson Bay bears had fed on seaweed (marine algae) and that about half were feeding on birds[102] such as the dovekie and sea ducks, especially the long-tailed duck (53%) and common eider, by swimming underwater to catch them. Depending on the timing of ice-floe breakup in the fall, she may have fasted for up to eight months. [155][156] Polar bear remains have been found at hunting sites dating to 2,500 to 3,000 years ago[158] and 1,500-year-old cave paintings of polar bears have been found in the Chukchi Peninsula. The only bear that comes close is the . In their southern range, especially near Hudson Bay and James Bay, Canadian polar bears endure all summer without sea ice to hunt from. [156] Only the liver was not used, as its high concentration of vitamin A is poisonous. The largest polar bear weighed as much as 1,002 kilograms (2,209 pounds), twice the weight of male bears living today. North Spitsbergen is the site of a 2011 tragedy where British teenager Horatio . The largest males can reach a height of 10 feet and weigh up to a ton. The largest polar bear on record, reportedly weighing 1,002 kg (2,209 lb), was a male shot at Kotzebue Sound in northwestern Alaska in 1960. [128] Her body temperature does not decrease during this period as it would for a typical mammal in hibernation. [204], Polar bears diverged from brown bears 400,000600,000 years ago and have survived past periods of climate fluctuation. ", "Ecological risk assessment of persistent organic pollutants in the arctic", "Chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminants and metabolites in polar bears (, "Rebuttal of "Polar Bear Population Forecasts: A Public-Policy Forecasting Audit", "The Energetic Value of Land-Based Foods in Western Hudson Bay and Their Potential to Alleviate Energy Deficits of Starving Adult Male Polar Bears", "Can polar bears use terrestrial foods to offset lost ice-based hunting opportunities? The Western Hudson Bay subpopulation is unusual in that its female polar bears sometimes wean their cubs at only one and a half years. [97], Problematic interactions between polar bears and humans, such as foraging by bears in garbage dumps, have historically been more prevalent in years when ice-floe breakup occurred early and local polar bears were relatively thin. [169], Polar bears were designated "Not at Risk" in April 1986 and uplisted to "Special Concern" in April 1991. [111][129], Between November and February, cubs are born blind, covered with a light down fur, and weighing less than 0.9kg (2.0lb),[127] but in captivity they might be delivered in the earlier months. The family remains in the den until mid-February to mid-April, with the mother maintaining her fast while nursing her cubs on a fat-rich milk. [66], Compared with its closest relative, the brown bear, the polar bear has a more elongated body build and a longer skull and nose. [40] The polar bears that do not den on land make their dens on the sea ice. [130] On average, each litter has two cubs. The cheek teeth are smaller and more jagged than in the brown bear, and the canines are larger and sharper. It has been claimed that polar bears will be able to adapt to terrestrial food sources as the sea ice they use to hunt seals disappears. The world record polar bear was the result of a hunt out of Kotzebue, Alaska in 1963. Adult males are somewhat larger than adult females. [79], Mature bears tend to eat only the calorie-rich skin and blubber of the seal, which are highly digestible,[99] whereas younger bears consume the protein-rich red meat. However, polar bears tend to. The Polar Bear, the world's biggest bear. If you're under the illusion that polar bears, grizzly bears, and pandas are comparable in size, you're wrong. 24% had eaten moss recently, 19% had consumed grass, 34% had eaten black crowberry and about half had consumed willows. The polar bear has been categorized on the IUCN Red List as a vulnerable species since 2005. Only one case of a polar bear with rabies has been documented, even though polar bears frequently interact with Arctic foxes, which often carry rabies. [124], Courtship and mating take place on the sea ice in April and May, when polar bears congregate in the best seal hunting areas. The shoulder height of an adult polar bear is 122 to 160 cm (4 ft 0 in to 5 ft 3 in). The largest species of bear, polar bears, generally weigh twice or even over five times as much as the Floridian black bear which weighs about 300 pounds. [95] The Arctic is home to millions of seals, which become prey when they surface in holes in the ice in order to breathe, or when they haul out on the ice to rest. [166] In September 2015, the polar bear range states agreed upon a "circumpolar action plan" describing their conservation strategy for polar bears. . Females communicate with their young with moans and chuffs, and the distress calls of both cubs and subadults consists of bleats. The bear was able to reach the truck and tore one of the doors off the truck before Hoshino was able to drive off. If a sport hunter does not kill a polar bear before his or her permit expires, the permit cannot be transferred to another hunter. Polar bear milk is the fattiest found on land, at about 31 percent fat when the cubs are born. Location: Polar bears are the largest bears and largest land carnivores on the planet. [199] Halocarbons (also known as organohalogens) are known to be toxic to other animals, because they mimic hormone chemistry, and biomarkers such as immunoglobulin G and retinol suggest similar effects on polar bears. [92][93] The pair wrestled harmlessly together each afternoon for 10 days in a row for no apparent reason, although the bear may have been trying to demonstrate its friendliness in the hope of sharing the kennel's food. [187], Polar bear population sizes and trends are difficult to estimate accurately because they occupy remote home ranges and exist at low population densities. [191], In addition to creating nutritional stress, a warming climate is expected to affect various other aspects of polar bear life: changes in sea ice affect the ability of pregnant females to build suitable maternity dens. Their scientific name means "maritime bear" and derives from this fact. [39] The 14 North American subpopulations range from the Beaufort Sea south to Hudson Bay and east to eastern Greenland and account for about 54% of the global population.
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