Has anyone ever thought about what color the skin of a polar bear is? Many will say that it is also white. But they are mistaken. This polar beast has black skin. It seems unbelievable. But just such a color allows the bear to survive in the Far North.
A bit of physics
Ever since school, everyone knows that white reflects the maximum of sunlight, and black absorbs them. Therefore, the earth warms up faster than the snow cover. For the same reason, dark clothes are much hotter in summer.
And one more thing regarding polar bears. In a transparent environment, light rays can travel a fairly large distance. This principle is used in the modern world to create optical fibers, which transmit information much faster than metal conductors. How does this relate to the hair and skin color of a polar bear?
Why are polar bears black?
Where ice and snow prevail, it is very important to always remain invisible. Of course, polar bears have no natural enemies. They do not need a protective mask from predators.
At the same time, bears are cruel hunters. They kill seals and seals to maintain their existence. It is extremely important for bears to get as close as possible to their prey unnoticed. For this reason, in the course of evolution, they formed white wool, which merges perfectly with ice and snow. But her hairs themselves are hollow. They perfectly transmit sunlight to the body of the beast.
And here the logical question arises: what color is the skin of a polar bear? It is black, because it can absorb the maximum heat emitted by the sun. This allows the animal to warm up and quickly dry its wet coat. The evidence that these predators actually have black pigment in their skin color is the nose, eyelids, lips and paws. They just demonstrate what color the skin of a polar bear. These are the most noticeable parts of his body that can give out disguise.
How it works
When the beast is in the sun, they penetrate the skin without obstacles, warming it. Scientists have proven that about 25% of all thermal energy bears get just from the sun. And this is not so small in conditions of severe frost. Now it’s clear what color the skin of the polar bear is and why. And so that he would not freeze in cold water and in the cold to -80 ° C, nature gave him a very thick and dense coat that does not get wet. In addition, the animal has small ears and tail, through them leaves a minimum of heat. This gives the bear the opportunity not only to sleep in the snow, but also to swim in cold water.
About wool color
We are used to thinking that the coat of this polar predator is pure white. In fact, it is transparent. And a large number of it creates the effect of a white color. From prolonged exposure to the sun, the hair turns yellow. But after all, during the summer period in the North, snow is also not the most snow-white. That is why yellowness does not affect the natural camouflage of a predator and allows it to obtain its own food just as effectively.
There are cases when in some southern zoos the wool sometimes acquired a green color. This is due to algae that settled in hollow hairs and began to actively multiply. Zoo workers then cleaned it using various means. Bears do not have such problems in the natural habitat, since there are no favorable conditions for the active life of green algae in the Antarctic.
Now you know exactly what color the skin of a polar bear is, and you can surprise your friends with such information. Not everyone will immediately believe this fact, but the article has irrefutable evidence of this. For the bear to survive, it is imperative to remain white outside and black under a layer of thick coat.