The polar bear is an animal whose habitats are limited. Perhaps for this reason, information about him is of interest. About which natural area dwells polar bear what lifestyle he leads, read the article.

General information

The polar bear is considered to be a unique mammal that is on the verge of extinction. This predator is called a polar bear, umka, nanuk, oshkuy. Where does the polar bear live? The mainland, coastal zones and drifting ice - polar bears live here. Their habitat is the north, and their food is fish, small animals. There are cases of attacks on people. The number of polar bears several centuries ago numbered in the hundreds of thousands. But at present, due to their systematic destruction, the number of unique animals has significantly decreased, which is alarming.

Polar bears are the largest land mammals predators on earth. Their ancestors were giant animals of this species, the length of which reached four meters, and their weight was more than a ton. Modern bears inferior to them in size. It depends on which natural area the polar bear lives in and on which mainland. For example, the largest animals of this species are found on the coast of the Bering Sea. Their length reaches three meters, and body weight - 500 kilograms.

These animals are very hardy. Despite their clumsiness, they move very quickly on land and water, have excellent hearing and an excellent sense of smell. Prey is smelled at a distance of one kilometer. Their life span in natural environment- from 20 to 30 years, and in captivity, the zoo - about 45-50. This is due to the fact that the food supply is significantly reduced, the ice melts every year, because of which the bears have to leave the more southern regions, and the extermination of bears by humans for the sake of skin and meat does not stop. In our country, hunting for this animal is prohibited.

Where does the polar bear live, in what zone?

The habitats of this animal are the arctic and tundra zones of Russia, the USA, Greenland, and Canada. Most polar bears inhabit areas where perennial drifting ice has become widespread with their permanent inhabitants - walruses and seals. These animals spend a lot of time near large polynyas. They stand on its edge and wait for it to appear on the surface. fur seal or a seal.

Polar bears in subpolar latitudes

In what natural area does the polar bear live? Animals can be found in the Northern Hemisphere, in the Arctic natural zone. Their habitat is the subpolar latitudes. They live in the ice floating off the coast of America and Eurasia. Polar bears are the only large predators in the Arctic that have adapted to live normally in harsh conditions. For example, they safely wait out snow storms in deep holes dug in snowdrifts.

Where does the polar bear live, on what continent?

Until now, the exact habitat of the polar bear has not been established. They are determined by the main accumulation of the population. Most predators prefer to settle:

  • On the eastern shores of such seas as the East Siberian and Kara Seas, in the cold waters of the Laptev Sea, as well as on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago and the New Siberian Islands. A population called "Laptev" lives here.
  • In the cold waters of the Chukchi and northern Bering Seas, on the Herald and Wrangel Islands. A population called "Chukotka-Alaska" lives here.
  • On the shores of the Barents and the western part of the Kara Seas, on the islands of Novaya Zemlya, Svalbard, Frans Josef Land. The population living here is called the "Kara-Barents Sea".

Many people associate the Arctic with polar bears. This is not entirely correct. The fact is that predators are extremely rare there. They prefer to live near warmer, south seas here they have a better chance of survival. Predators have no permanent habitat. It changes depending on the boundaries. polar ice. For example, if during the prolonged polar summer the ice melts, then the animals do not stay in this place - they go north, to the pole. When winter comes, they again come to the south, as more preference is given to the continents and coastal zones covered with ice. In addition, the ice during melting is extremely unstable, which also forces the animals to leave these places, they go to the coast. But there is not enough food for them, as a result of which the bears lose weight, and this negatively affects future cubs.

Lifestyle

The polar bear is a fierce predator. Animals live alone, individuals of different sexes come together only during the mating season. For movement, they use their own territory, conquered from their relatives, including from females with offspring. It does not matter in which natural area the polar bear lives, but when the Arctic winter ends, little bear cubs are born. For their birth, females prepare in advance, gathering together.

They equip dens and hibernate in them. They wake up just before the birth. After the appearance of the cubs, they stay with them in the den for several weeks. Surprisingly, the cubs are born very small, their weight barely reaches half a kilogram.

Polar bear habitat

Polar bears live in the Arctic, Greenland and northern regions North America and Asia. They prefer to stay in the area of ​​ice with open water. These animals are well adapted to life in the icy Arctic environment. Their thick and long white or yellowish fur provides excellent protection from the cold.

What does a polar bear eat

The main diet of the polar bear includes seals. Bears hunt alone. Through the hole in the ice, they, like spies, penetrate closer to the victim, who carelessly rest on the ice floe. On such a hunt, the behavior of a bear can be compared with that of a cat, such as, for example, a lion or a tiger. Hiding behind blocks of ice, the polar bear gets closer and closer to the victim, and when the distance becomes small - a few big steps separate predator from prey. Polar bears are very strong and one blow of the paw is enough to kill the victim.

In summer, the bear's menu is replenished with berries, mosses and other plants available at this time. They do not shun carrion and often walk along the coast in search of dead animals.

Dimensions and dimensions of the polar bear

Most adult males weigh from 300 to 800 kg (and even more than one ton!) and reach a length of 2.4-3.0 m. The height at the withers of an adult male polar bear reaches from 1.3 to 1.5 m. If an adult predator stands on its hind legs, then will reach 3.4. m. Females are usually two times smaller and weigh between 150-300 kg. and 1.9-2.1 m long. After birth, little cubs weigh only 600-700 grams.

The largest polar bear weighed over a ton. This record male was caught in northeast Alaska in 1960. The weight of the animal was 1002 kg.

IN this moment The polar bear population is estimated at 20-25 thousand individuals.

Do you know that…

· The polar bear feels great on smooth slippery glacial slopes. He lies on his stomach and rolls over them, using his hind legs to brake at the right moment.



Bear milk contains a lot of fat. Thanks to this, the cubs grow very quickly and almost never freeze.

These animals are excellent swimmers and divers and can easily withstand up to 2 minutes under water.

· Polar bears have an excellent sense of smell. They can smell smells even under a meter layer of ice.

This predator can reach speeds of up to 40 km/h

· Cubs at birth are no larger than an adult rat.

· The skin of a polar bear is absolutely black, in contrast to its white or yellow fur.

· Wool polar bear turns yellow with age.

· Another interesting color related fact is that the skin of polar bears is actually black. This helps them keep warm.

· The tongue of polar bears is also highly pigmented, sometimes dark blue in color, partly because this organ is well supplied with blood.

· Even though polar bears are usually born on land, they spend most of their lives at sea. Their official name Ursus Maritimus, which means "sea bear".

· Polar bears diverged from their brown relatives about 5 million years ago. Polar bears have begun to evolve unique features that help them survive in the cold Arctic region.

· Due to the absence of humans in remote habitats (beyond the Arctic Circle), polar bears have retained most of their original instincts and properties than other predators. However, these animals are endangered, rare species, since their number ranges from 20 to 25 thousand individuals worldwide.

Although the polar bear bears the title of the most large predator in the world, cute polar bear cubs are born even smaller than human babies. Babies are capable and quick-witted because they quickly learn, for example, how to remain completely still so as not to scare away prey while their mothers are hunting.

· Polar bears are the only species of bears that do not fit into hibernation; they are active all year round.

· Some researchers believe that the intelligence of polar bears may be as high as that of monkeys. This is proved by the unique hunting methods, as well as the ingenuity and ability of bears to change their habits and behavior depending on changing environmental conditions.

February 27 - International Polar Bear Day
(International Polar Bear Day) or, in the more familiar Russian version, Polar Bear Day. The main purpose of the Day is to disseminate information about polar bears and draw public attention to the need for their protection. And by this date, traditionally environmental and environmental organizations various public actions and educational events are being prepared. It also talks about the need to solve the problem of melting polar ice - the main reason for the threat of extinction of polar bear populations.

Reading about polar bears!

Yuri Yakovlev "Umka"

white bear cub Umka is just beginning to explore the world. He learns to build a good lair and catch seals, and when the cheerful sunfish arrives, Umka, together with her mother, a big bear, will go on an ice floe through the northern seas. But on the shore, a friend will remember him - a small two-legged bear cub that knows how to shed its skin.

The polar bear is the largest terrestrial mammal of the carnivore order. Its length reaches 3 m, weight up to 1000 kg. Usually males weigh 400-600 kg; body length 200-250 cm, height at the withers up to 160 cm. Females are noticeably smaller (200-300 kg). The smallest bears are found in Svalbard, the largest in the Bering Sea.

Spreading

It lives in the subpolar regions in the Northern Hemisphere of the Earth.

Distributed circumpolar, to the north - up to 88 ° N. sh., south - to Newfoundland, on the mainland - in the zone arctic desert to the tundra zone.

Lifestyle and nutrition

Inhabits drifting and landfast sea ​​ice, where it hunts its main prey: ringed seal, bearded seal, walrus and other marine animals. He catches them, sneaking up from behind shelters, or near the holes: as soon as the animal sticks its head out of the water, the bear stuns the prey with a blow of its paw and pulls it out onto the ice. First of all, it devours the skin and fat, the rest of the carcass - only in case of severe hunger. The rest of the prey is eaten by Arctic foxes. On occasion, it picks up carrion, dead fish, eggs and chicks, and in inhabited places it feeds on garbage dumps. There are cases of robbery by him of food warehouses of polar expeditions. From the prey the polar bear receives a large number of vitamin A, which accumulates in its liver: cases of polar bear liver poisoning are known.

It makes seasonal migrations in accordance with annual changes in the border of polar ice: in summer it retreats closer to the pole with them, in winter it moves south, entering the mainland. Although the polar bear keeps mainly on the coast and ice, in winter it can lie in a den on the mainland or on the islands, sometimes 50 km from the sea.

In hibernation, lasting 50-80 days, mainly pregnant females lie down. Males and single females hibernate on short term and not annually.

Swimming polar bear and "spectator"

Despite the seeming sluggishness, polar bears are fast and agile even on land, and easily swim and dive in the water. Very thick, dense wool protects the bear's body from cold and getting wet in icy water. An important adaptive role is played by a powerful layer of subcutaneous fat. white coloring contributes to the camouflage of the predator. The sense of smell, hearing and vision are well developed - a bear can see its prey for several kilometers. According to the observations of Russian submariners, a swimming polar bear, pursued by a submarine, is capable of reaching speeds of up to 3.5 knots. .

Social structure and reproduction

Polar Bear Clash (Canada)

Solitary animals. As a rule, they are peaceful towards each other. Adult males may attack cubs.

Race from March to June. A female in estrus is usually followed by 3-4 males. In October, females dig a lair in coastal snow drifts. Bears have favorite places where they gather en masse for puppies, for example, Fr. Wrangel or Franz Josef Land, where there are 150-200 lairs annually. Bears occupy dens only in mid-November, when the latent stage of pregnancy ends. The entire period of pregnancy is 230-250 days; cubs appear in the middle or end of the arctic winter. At the same time, the female remains in hibernation until April.

Polar bears have a low breeding potential: the female gives birth for the first time at the age of 4-8 years, gives birth once every 2-3 years and has 1-3 cubs in the litter, thus bringing no more than 10-15 cubs during her life. Newborns are helpless, like all bears, and have a mass of about 750 g. After 3 months, the female leaves the den with them and switches to a wandering lifestyle. The cubs stay with her for up to 1.5 years. Mortality among cubs reaches 10-30%.

Life expectancy is a maximum of 25-30 years; in captivity, the longevity record is 45 years. Polar bears are able to interbreed with brown bears and produce fertile (able to produce offspring) hybrids.

And do you know that...

"Umka" in Chukchi means - a bear, or more precisely "an adult male polar bear"

Economic importance

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See what "White Bear" is in other dictionaries:

    Polar bear ... Wikipedia

    Polar bear- Polar bear. POLAR BEAR (look), predatory mammal. Body length 2 2.5 (up to 3) m, weight up to 1000 kg. Distributed on the coast of the Arctic Ocean and in the ice of the Arctic. In Russia, the most numerous on Franz Josef Land and the island ... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

    White: White color. Porcini(lat. Boletus edulis) or Borovik edible mushroom 1st category from the genus Borovik. White historical term for representatives of the counter-revolutionary movement. White geographically west ... Wikipedia

    BEAR, bear (bear wrong), husband. 1. Large carnivorous omnivore with long hair. Brown bear. Polar bear (polar, with white wool). 2. trans. A clumsy, clumsy person (colloquial joke). 3. Bear fur, clothes from ... ... Dictionary Ushakov

    polar bear Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

    white polar bear- baltasis lokys statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Ursus maritimus engl. polar bear; white bear wok. Eisbar; Polarbar eng. polar bear; white polar bear; sea ​​bear; look around; polar bear;… … Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

One of the most large mammals considered to be a polar bear. With its size, it surpasses all predators in the world. But such dimensions do not prevent the animal from deftly moving through the snow, swimming and diving.

Appearance of a polar bear

His body and even the soles of his paws are covered with thick dense hair, which helps to endure the harsh climate. Also wool protects from getting wet.

The body length of a bear is more than 200 cm, weight is from 200 to 400 kg, but there are cases when an adult male weighs almost a ton. The tail is small, it is difficult to see it under a layer of fur. In winter, the color is snow-white, in summer - with a yellowish tint.

The body is narrowed in front, massive in the back. The neck is long and mobile. The head is small with a narrow forehead and high-set eyes. On large and strong paws, powerful claws. The skin of a polar bear is almost black. Under it is a thick layer of fat, which protects from the cold and helps to easily stay afloat.

Polar bear habitat

For a polar bear, you need to be near the sea. Therefore, he spends his life near the ice-covered Arctic seas. This predator is mainly distributed in the Arctic Ocean, Hudson and Baffin Bays, in the north of the Bering Sea and on the Arctic islands.
White bears lead a nomadic lifestyle. Sometimes they are transported over long distances.

In habitats, bears are placed in different ways. Some regions are overpopulated with representatives of this species, while in others they can be found very rarely. It depends on the conditions. The main criterion by which animals choose their territory is the amount of food.

What do polar bears eat

The main prey of bears are seals, which predators lie in wait near the holes. When the seal sticks its head out, the polar bear throws the animal out with a powerful blow. Uses only bacon and seal skin. Only in times of famine can eat the whole carcass.
In addition to seals, polar bears feed on fish, chicks, and carrion. May prey on large animals such as walruses. Sometimes they can climb into the warehouses of travelers to feast on their provisions.

In summer, it can consume cloudberries, algae, willow shoots and sedge leaves.

Reproduction of polar bears

The mating season lasts from early spring to late summer. At this time, females begin to build dens in large snowdrifts. There they are settled from the beginning of pregnancy. The period of bearing a child lasts 250 days.
Bear cubs are born very tiny. Females bring from one to three babies. Their weight is less than a kilogram. Blind and helpless, they cannot do without their mother.

Vision and teeth in children appear at the age of 1-2 months. Around this time, they are already beginning to leave the den and explore the territory.
At the age of six months, children follow their mother everywhere. At this time, males pose a danger to cubs. Because of them, the death of babies is very high. Almost 50% of cubs die in their first year of life.

The mother feeds the cubs with milk for up to a year. Then they move on to marine animals. Children stay with the female until the age of two, after which they begin to live independently.

Why the number of polar bears is declining

The small number of polar bears is primarily due to low breeding rates. The first pregnancy of the female occurs at the age of 4 years. Then the next time she will give birth only after 3 years.

The main reasons for the decrease in the number of polar bears:

  • IN natural conditions Polar bears are not threatened by anyone but humans. Since these animals are very curious, many cases are known when they entered settlements or came close to the ships, becoming easy prey for hunters. A big threat to polar bears is poachers who can hunt cubs.
  • Pollution also contributes to population decline. environment. This leads to an underestimation of reproduction, reduces immunity and delays the development of animals.
  • Climate change is a big threat. Due to a sharp drop in temperature, the ice cover began to decrease. This led to a decrease in the population of seals, walruses, which are the basis of polar bears' food. For these reasons, the protection of this animal is of great importance.

Undoubtedly, polar bears are one of the most amazing animals that have ever roamed our planet. For the mere fact that these magnificent creatures manage to survive in extreme climatic conditions they are already worthy of admiration. Polar bears are formidable predators, but can be irresistibly cute, show remarkable quick wit and surprise again and again. We suggest reading Interesting Facts about polar bears for children and adults to see these extraordinary animals in a new light!

natural born sailors

Interesting facts about polar bears tell us that although these animals are born on land, they spend a considerable part of their time traveling at sea. No wonder their scientific name sounds like Ursus maritimus and means "sea bear". These mighty beasts are excellent swimmers, capable of covering distances of more than 100 km in water and swimming longer than a day. In this they are helped by large paws (up to 30 cm wide), with which they work like oars.

Polar bears can swim at a speed of 10 km / h, which is almost twice as fast as the known champions of the competition. Even Olympic champions show results in 6 km/h. However, this is still not enough to catch a seal in open waters. Therefore, the bear prefers to lie in wait for prey on a hard surface, where it has an advantage in speed and agility.

On land, the polar bear prefers to move with a leisurely gait at a speed of about 5 km / h. But this predator cannot be called slow: when it wants, it can accelerate up to 40 km/h.

But this is not all interesting facts from the life of polar bears. Go ahead.

Rare, but apt

With luck, polar bears usually catch prey every four to five days. If fortune turns against a predator, its subcutaneous fat acts as a backup energy storage system. The icy expanses of the Arctic cannot be called rich hunting grounds. But a subtle scent helps the bear to find a victim. The animal can smell a seal that crawled out onto the ice 20-30 km away.

Like ten people

Want to learn more interesting facts about the polar bear? This polar animal is the largest land predator on our planet. He doesn't even have natural enemies. And no wonder: an adult male, armed with sharp fangs and claws, usually weighs from 351 to 544 kg, which corresponds to the weight of 5-7 people.

But there are also real giants. The largest polar bear ever recorded, living in northwest Alaska in 1960, weighed about 1000 kg!

Males reach their maximum size at 8 to 14 years of age, while females reach their maximum size at 5 to 6 years of age. The latter weigh half as much as their gentlemen - up to 290 kg.

Pregnancy for later

An amazing biological process known as delayed implantation ensures that polar bears have cubs at the earliest. auspicious time years when their chances of survival are greatest. mating season in these animals it lasts from April to May, but the development of embryos is inhibited by early stage and continues only by autumn, when the female will gain enough weight and will be ready for the arrangement of the winter den.

But the interesting facts about the polar bear did not end there.

Kitten size

Polar bears almost never hibernate like their brown relatives. The only exceptions are pregnant females, who are forced to build dens and spend time in them until February-March. After all, their cubs, like those of other bears, are born very small and helpless, and they have to be protected from the harsh conditions of the Arctic. It is curious that at birth the largest land predators on the planet have a body length of about 30 cm and weigh only half a kilo, almost like a guinea pig.

Bears usually give birth to a couple of cubs. However, it happens when there is only one baby or there are three of them.

Until the offspring gets stronger, the female bear remains in the den in a state of hibernation: she does not eat or drink anything. The cubs then stay with their mother for about two years, during which they learn the skills necessary to successfully survive in the harsh Arctic.

Close relatives

Over time, more and more interesting facts about the polar bear in the Arctic are being discovered. For example, in 2006, an unusual animal was discovered on the territory of this region, which turned out to be only half a polar bear.

Geneticists claim that the polar bear had to stand apart as a species hundreds of thousands of years ago. This is shown by relevant studies. But, despite this, it turned out that polar bears are able to have joint offspring with. Moreover, this offspring will be fertile, unlike other offspring of interspecific crossing (for example, mules). Such hybrids appear in wild nature, and in captivity, but very rarely.

The first such animal that was born in the wild was discovered in 2006. However, by that time, scientists had already had the opportunity to observe an animal similar to it in captivity, in the zoo of Osnabrück in Germany, where the polar and brown bears lived in the same enclosure. As of 2010, 17 hybrid bears were already known. And in 2012, there were five reports of observations of such hybrids in the wild.

Black polar bears

Polar bears look white, but as the saying goes folk wisdom appearances can be deceiving. The bear's coat (the so-called guard hair) and its undercoat are actually almost transparent. But the fact is that inside each guard hair there is a cavity filled with air. Due to such a complex structure, light waves of any length are well reflected from the hairs. As a result, the polar bear looks white.

However, depending on the time of year and the position of the sun, the animals may appear yellowish or even brown. Sometimes, in an unusual warm climate, bears even turn green thanks to algae settling in their fur.

However, if you shave off his hair from a bear, an amazing sight will open: in fact, the polar bear has black skin. It effectively absorbs solar heat, helping the animal to maintain a stable body temperature even in severe arctic cold. Now, the next time you see a polar bear's black nose, remember the interesting facts about the polar bear: in fact, this is its true color.