Polar Bear (Russia) is the largest representative of its large family. Moreover, it is the largest predatory mammal in the world. The growth of a polar bear (male) can reach 3 meters. Its weight sometimes exceeds a ton.
Giant polar bear
This huge animal lived on our planet more than 100 thousand years ago. Now the view is lost. Its size can be judged by the ulna found in the UK. His height exceeded 4 meters, and this giant polar bear weighed about 1200 kg. Most likely, he was a cross between a brown beast and a northern one, which we can see today.
Polar Bear Description
Images of this dangerous predator are familiar to many from childhood. They are frequent visitors to the pages of books for babies. Even the wrapper of many sweets loved by many is adorned with a portrait of this giant. The giant polar bear has black skin, like that of its brown counterpart. But the color of the skin can vary from white to light yellow. The wool of this giant has a characteristic feature: its hairs are hollow inside.
Sometimes the description of the polar bear gives the wrong impression about this beast. The bear is represented by a clumsy and awkward booby. But this is fundamentally wrong. Despite their more than impressive dimensions, polar bears run fast enough in the Arctic, and they are also excellent swimmers.
A polar bear travels more than 30 km a day . His paws are unique. This beast does not care deep snow. The dimensions of his feet and pillar-shaped legs allow him to very quickly and fairly deftly overcome ice and snow barriers. It affects the resistance of these animals to the cold. Not only hollow hairs protect the bear from the cold. This is facilitated by a thick layer (up to 10 cm) of subcutaneous fat.
Therefore, polar bears are big fans to take an ice bath. The painless predator overcomes up to 80 km in icy water. It is not uncommon for a giant polar bear to sail to the mainland on an ice floe in summer. In this case, they put him to sleep and send him back by helicopter.
The polar bear is the closest relative of the brown inhabitant of our forests. The bear, who lives in the north, has a streamlined body - it is ideally suited for life in the water. He has a long neck, small head, legs are powerful and long, feet with hairy soles, allowing you to feel quite comfortable on ice or snow. Nose, claws and eyes are black. On the paws between the fingers there are swimming membranes. No more teddy bear can boast of this.
As already mentioned, a giant polar bear does not have a very large head (in relation to the body). It is narrow and somewhat flat. The muzzle is sharpened in front. The nostrils are always wide and the ears are rounded. Eyelashes are missing for centuries. The tail is small, barely noticeable.
In the North, polar bears feel quite comfortable. In the Arctic, they are reliably protected by white thick fur. It helps maintain the body's heat balance. Young cubs differ from their parents not only in size, but also in a fur coat. Their coat is very beautiful, with a silver tint, while in old animals it is yellowish. Its color does not depend on the season.
Nutrition
The main food of the northern predator is seals. An adult eats up to 50 of these animals per year. It is not an easy job to catch a seal, but a giant polar bear has mastered it perfectly. He can watch his prey at the hole for hours, waiting for a seal to appear in it. Once an unfortunate animal emerges to take a breath of air, the bear instantly hits it with its paw and throws it onto the ice. During the meal, first of all, the predator eats fat and skin. He usually leaves everything else, although if he is very hungry, which often happens in winter, he eats the carcass completely.
It is interesting to observe how easily a bear moves from one ice floe to another, deftly jumping over the crevices. He is in search of a seal. If the hunt does not go well, he will not give up seals or fish. In very rare cases, a bear can attack a beluga whale, arctic fox, walrus or bird. As soon as he noticed his future prey, he begins to monitor it due to ice or snow shelter. If the animal feels something is wrong and alert, the predator freezes for a while, literally squeezing into the snow.
Seal hunting
It is funny that in doing so he covers his nose and eyes with his furry paw , which can give him away. Left unnoticed, a huge predator crawls very close to its prey and already then makes a decisive throw. Sometimes he has to dive in order to later appear in front of an unsuspecting seal, which is conveniently located on an ice floe. Paradise time comes for our hero with the advent of spring. Sea animals have babies. Inexperienced and still very weak, they do not resist the white giant, often do not even try to run away from him.
Breeding
The offspring of a polar bear happens every three years. Pregnant bears leave sea ice in November. They need to find a secluded place for the den, where they can raise offspring. While the bear feeds the baby, she practically does not leave the den and during this time loses half of her weight.
The first "appearance" occurs at the age of 3 months. Kids go after the bear, which immediately begins to teach them survival, hunting and other skills that they will need in adulthood. Meanwhile, the mother never forgets about the protection of the cubs and their nutrition.
Population and protection
The high mortality of young animals and low birth rates made this animal easily vulnerable. True, in recent years, the population is considered stable and even slightly growing.
In our country today there are about 7000 polar bears. At the same time, we must not forget that every year poachers shoot up to 200 individuals. Due to the fact that the population of Dixon has decreased, the extinction of the white predator has slightly decreased.
Danger to humans
From reports and notes of polar explorers, there are known cases of a polar bear attacking a person. For example, members of the expedition of Willem Barents, a Dutch explorer and explorer, when the group spent the night on Novaya Zemlya (1597), people were forced to repeatedly fight off polar bears using muskets.
Once in places where a meeting with a polar bear is possible, care must be taken. When it comes to populated villages in the Far North, it is necessary to ensure that there are as few landfills as possible in these areas, where the beast can easily find food waste.
You need to know that polar bears do not have facial expressions, so its attack cannot be predicted. In the Canadian province of Manitoba, there is a special “prison” where polar bears are temporarily detained as they approach the city. I must say that Greenpeace activists are sounding the alarm about the threat of extinction of these animals.
More recently, a parade of animal advocates led by a giant polar bear took place in the UK capital. True, it was mechanical. Its weight was three tons. It was made for several months, and 35 puppeteers were needed to revive the bear.