Hail Brave Hearts

International Polar Bear Day!  February 27.

This iconic species deserves the day.  A bear, but not just any bear.  it’s the polar bear of the high Arctic.  The huge, white furball from the great white  north, has achieved a special acclaim.  Long being the hunted trophy of Inuit and northern Aboriginals, this massive predator occupies the icy, northern climates, as a specialist in winter hunting skills and survival.  Although not yet endangered, this species is listed as vulnerable and is an indicator species of environmental health.  Canada has a population of 16,000 polar bears, and the world population is 26,000, polar bears.

So why is this animal so special?  It’s at the top of the food chain in the Arctic.  This bear lives mainly above the Artic Circle and Canada has 2/3 of the world’s polar bear population.  The other countries are Russia, Alaska, Norway and Denmark.  A polar bear can travel up to 5000 km in one year, in search of food, shelter and a mate.   Polar bears have webbed feet, making them a maritime mammal.   The front paws act as paddles and the back paws act as a rudder, while they are swimming.   One polar bear was recorded as swimming for more than nine days and covering a distance of 687 km. Their feet have no skid treads for travelling on ice.  These big paws are the size of dinner plates and keep them on top of snow and ice.  They mainly eat seals and can consume as much as 100 pounds of blubber in one meal.  Their hunting method is to find seal blowholes and wait for them to emerge, then attack.  The success rate of the hunt is only about 2%, so they spend about 50% of their time, hunting.  They hunt, mainly out on the sea ice, looking for seals.

Their fur is translucent and reflects sunlight to appear white to our eyes.

Polar bears mate in the spring, but can deter the implantation of the egg until the fall, when the female has had enough nutrient and is healthy enough to support the pregnancy.  The cubs will stay with the mother for up to 3 years, after which, they might roam as far as 2000 km, to find a territory away from their mothers.

These bears evolved 150,000 years ago as a variation of the brown bear, which it is still able to mate with.  The cubs are then raised as polar bears and learn these hunting  tactics and survival skills

Wapusk National Park (canada.ca)

But the other aspect of International Polar Bear day is not only about this fine species of Arctic bear.  It’s about the polar bear habitat and climate change.  The winter of 2024 has been recorded as the warmest winter on record.  The Arctic ice is thinner, melting more quickly in the spring and forming more slowly in the fall.  This severe climactic change, could see the polar bear extinct within a decade, as habitat loss is a key factor in reducing the numbers of polar bears.   This is a huge cry out for environmental preservation and a call for social change.

Some of the ways to do your part in polar bear survival is to reduce your carbon footprint, by reducing energy consumption and changing your energy usage, cutting down on plastics and responsibly disposing of trash and waste.  The three R’s of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, help to support environmental initiatives.

Polar Bear Dip 2020 (youtube.com)

And then there’s us, you awesome human.  Where will we be without snow and ice?

Written by Dr. Louise Hayes

March 17, 2024