The largest predator among animals inhabiting the icy expanses.

This animal prefers to live alone. Sometimes it happens that two or three bears team up together. They must have found a large piece of prey lost in the ice and want to share it. Or severe frosts forced the bears to dig a den in the snow, where males and females without cubs can hide from the cold.

It is an excellent swimmer, but it also moves easily on land. He has wide paws with hardened, hard pads, which helps him not to slip or fall into the snow. Its main food is seals, which the polar bear hunts mercilessly. Seeing a seal stretched out in the sun, the bear, like a cat, crouches to the ground so that the seal does not notice him, crawls through the snow to the victim and unexpectedly attacks. Taken by surprise, the seal does not have time to dive into the water, where it could escape: the seal swims faster than the bear.

If a predator smells prey underwater, it changes tactics. The bear knows that the seal, before diving into the sea, made several holes in the ice, to which it rises and breathes. Therefore, the bear leaves one hole, closes the others and patiently waits for the seal’s head to appear in the only open hole, and then instantly grabs it with its paw.

So strong that he manages to pull a seal weighing 90 kilograms out of the water and break its spine with one blow.

However, polar bears can eat everything: eggs of polar birds, algae, carrion, and when they come to land in the summer, they do not disdain grass, lichens, berries, and small mammals. In Alaska, the polar bear, like its brown counterpart, catches salmon. The she-bear also prefers to live alone and only during the mating period (this happens in spring or summer) does she allow one of the males to approach her. But after a few days the male leaves, and the bear is left alone again.

At the end of autumn, when the bear feels that the time of giving birth is approaching, she moves to land, where she makes a den for herself in a snowdrift. Her shelter consists of a passage, which later, during a snowstorm, will be filled with snow, and a spacious chamber, where two cubs will be born in January-February.

The cubs are 18-30 centimeters long and weigh about 700 grams; they are protected from the cold by the mother bear’s fur and the warmth of the den in which they will spend the entire winter.

A female bear can go without food for 140 days. At the same time, thanks to the fat reserves accumulated over the summer, she feeds the cubs with very nutritious milk. The female loses about half her weight when she leaves the den in March-April, and her three-month-old cubs weigh 10 kilograms.

By this time, the cubs move confidently and are able to follow their mother. Imitating her, they begin to swim and try to arrange the first ambushes. The hours-long game has great importance in the life of bears, who, even having matured, do not give up their games: they climb the slopes of glaciers and slide down from them. When the second summer ends, the mother bear leaves the cubs, who will now have to live on their own.

Interesting:

Can live up to 30 years. He is a real giant. When the bear rises on its hind legs, which it often does, it becomes taller than the elephant. The length of an adult male ranges from 1.85 to 3 meters, and the weight is from 700 to 800 kilograms; there are larger specimens, more than 3 meters long.

In the spring, after leaving her winter shelter, the mother bear begins to teach her cubs how to swim and hunt seals.

He almost always wanders alone, sometimes he finds himself many kilometers from land, on a broken ice floe, drifting in the open sea. The bear has to swim for a long time to return to his territory, but this does not frighten him, because he is an excellent swimmer, and his structure makes it easier for him to move in the water. Thick, oil-soaked fur does not get wet, webbed toes turn the paws into large blades, the front paws help move forward, and the hind paws allow you to stick to the desired direction, Long neck and his small head also help him move easily in the water.

The polar or polar bear is the only one that is classified in most countries (USA, Norway, Greenland and Russia) as a marine mammal. The exception is Canada, which currently classifies the polar bear as a terrestrial mammal. Polar bears are found at the top of the Arctic, where they feed primarily on seals.

Who are polar bears?

According to the latest data from numerous studies, the ancient ancestor of polar bears is the brown bear. Their origin dates back to about 350 thousand to 6 million years ago. Unlike their brown relatives, who live on land, polar bears are perfectly adapted to survive in the Far North. There are different populations of polar bears. In total, there are 19 species of different subpopulations of polar bears. According to more recent studies, there are four main groups. This classification is based on the characteristics of the places where polar bears live: divergent ice, convergent ice, seasonal ice and archipelagos.

The polar bear is the closest relative. Adult males usually weigh between 350 and 600 kilograms. Adult females are smaller - usually their weight ranges from 150 to 295 kilograms. Polar bears are considered long-lived. In the wild, they live on average 15 to 18 years, although biologists have recorded several 30-year-old individuals. In captivity, some long-lived bears reach 40 years of age. A striking example of this is the captive-bred Debbie bear from Canada, who lived to be 42 years old.

Where do polar bears live?

The polar bear's habitat is his habitat, where he can hunt for food and reproduce, constructing snow dens for hibernation and protection of the cubs. Polar bears are found throughout the Arctic. They most often live in areas where there is a population of ringed seals. The polar bear's habitat covers the entire circumpolar Arctic.

These large mammals have adapted to live in water and on land. Unlike other bears, the polar bear is an excellent swimmer and can sometimes be seen more than 160 km from land or ice. Currently, more than 40 percent of all polar bears live in Northern Canada, on the ice along the shores of numerous islands.

Threat of extinction

Polar bears are considered a fairly vulnerable species in terms of extinction. In Russia, animals are listed in the Red Book, which includes rare or endangered animals. In the United States, polar bears are listed as an endangered species on the Endangered Species List. Canada believes that they require increased attention within national species are under threat. Measures to protect animals are taken at the legislative level.

Habitat loss due to climate change is a cause for concern. Scientists predict that due to intense melting of ice, two-thirds of the world's polar bears could disappear this century. The study also shows that the situation can still be improved if measures are taken soon to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Polar bear habitats should not be polluted by commercial exploitation of the Arctic.

Polar bears: habitat

Bears are adapted to arctic climates, where winter temperatures can drop to -45º C. These animals have two insulated layers of fur that help them retain body heat. In addition, in good times they also have a thick layer of fat. Compact ears and a small tail also prevent heat loss. In fact, polar bears have more problems with overheating than with cold, especially when running. An excellent sense of smell helps them hunt, and their claws can hold prey weighing 40-90 kg.

The polar bear's place in the food chain

The habitat of these furry predators is the Arctic deserts. The polar bear is at the top of the Arctic food chain. In this way, natural balance is achieved in order to prevent overpopulation of the habitat. When an adult bear is in good shape, the established fat reserves support the body between meals.

Bears hunt ringed seals sea ​​hares, baleen whales. These white and furry mammals are excellent swimmers: they use their front legs as oars while their back legs act as a rudder. In addition, they have a wonderful sense of smell: they can smell their prey from a distance of one kilometer.

Offspring

Depending on the condition of the body, females usually reproduce two to three cubs every 4-6 years. Because of this, polar bears have one of the slowest reproductive cycles in nature, typically producing offspring no more than five times during their lives. The habitat of a polar bear allows you to choose a suitable shelter for the birth of cubs. Cubs are born in November or December in snow caves called birth dens.

At birth, babies resemble large white rats, which reach 30-35 centimeters in length and weigh just over half a kilogram. Blind, toothless and covered in short, soft fur, they are completely dependent on their mother for warmth and food. The cubs grow quite quickly thanks to their mother's high-calorie milk, which contains about 31% fat. Little bears stay with their mother until they are 2.5 years old.

Habitat Features

The polar bear's habitat may change as the animals may make long-distance migrations over land and water along continental coasts or islands. Some individuals spend most of the year on land. Most pregnant females spend the fall and winter on the ground in their natal dens.

Air temperatures in the Arctic average -34°C in winter and 0°C in summer. The coldest zone in winter is the northeastern part of Siberia, where temperatures drop to -69°C. The warmest areas in summer time Inland areas of Siberia, Alaska and Canada are considered, where temperatures can reach + 32°C.

Polar bears, whose habitat is in the northern circumpolar regions, are often depicted alongside penguins in illustrations in popular fiction and children's books. However, they live at different poles. Polar bears do not live in Antarctica: penguins live there on an ice-covered continent surrounded by oceans, and the habitat of polar bears is the Arctic.

That's what they are, these amazing animals - polar bears.

Polar bear habitat

Polar bears live in the Arctic, Greenland and northern regions North America and Asia. They prefer to stop in areas 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 polar bear's main diet includes seals. Bears hunt alone. Through a hole in the ice, they, like spies, penetrate closer to the victim, who is carefree resting on the ice floe. During such a hunt, the behavior of a bear can be compared to that of a cat, such as a lion or a tiger. Hiding behind blocks of ice, the polar bear gets closer and closer to the prey, and when the distance becomes small, several large steps separate the predator from the prey. Polar bears are very strong and one blow from their 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 disdain carrion and often walk along the coast in search of dead animals.

Sizes and dimensions of a 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 half the size and weigh between 150-300 kg. and 1.9-2.1 m in length. After birth, little cubs weigh only 600-700 grams.

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

Currently, 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 down them, using his hind legs to brake at the right moment.

· Mother bear's 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 survive under water for up to 2 minutes.

· Polar bears have an excellent sense of smell. They can smell odors 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 polar bear's skin is completely black, in contrast to its white or yellow fur.

· Wool polar bear turns yellow with age.

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

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

· Although polar bears are usually born on land, they spend most of their lives at sea. Their official name is 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 more of their original instincts and properties than other predators. However, these animals are considered endangered. rare species, since their numbers range from 20 to 25 thousand individuals worldwide.

· Although the polar bear holds the title of the largest predator in the world, cute polar bear cubs are born even smaller than human children. Babies are capable and smart because they quickly learn, for example, how to remain completely still so as not to scare away prey while their mothers hunt.

· Polar bears are the only type of bear that does not hibernate; 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 proven by 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 is 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 attract public attention to the need for their protection. And for this date, environmental and environmental organizations traditionally prepare various public events and educational events. It also talks about the need to address the melting problem polar ice- the main reason for the threat of extinction of polar bear populations.

Reading about polar bears!

Yuri Yakovlev “Umka”

The polar bear cub Umka is just beginning to explore the world. He learns to build a good den and catch seals, and when the cheerful sunfish arrives, Umka, together with his mother, the big bear, will set off on an ice floe across the northern seas. But on the shore he will be remembered by a friend - a small two-legged bear cub who knows how to shed his skin.

The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) belongs to the class Mammals, order Carnivores, family Ursidae. Very close to dogs, bears appeared about 5 million years ago. The lonely ruler of the Arctic, the polar bear reigns on the floating ice off the northern shores of Eurasia and America. This is his element! He wanders all day long, covering vast distances, enjoying rolling in the snow or sleeping.
The polar bear can only be classified as a “terrestrial” mammal only conditionally, since these animals appear on land very rarely, only on the Arctic islands and the sea coast. They spend most of their time wandering across the ice of the Arctic Ocean. The polar bear is perfectly adapted to life in the polar seas. Snow storms often occur in the Arctic. To escape from them, polar bears dig holes in the snowdrifts, lie down in them and come out only after the storm subsides.

This is a real amphibious beast!

Its body has a streamlined shape: a pointed muzzle easily cuts through the water, very warm, thick fur and layer subcutaneous fat allow a well-swimming predator to stay in the water for a long time cold water swimming across long distances between ice fields. The hind legs serve as a rudder, and the front legs, densely covered with hair, form continuous paddle blades. The specific gravity of a bear's body is close to the specific gravity of water. The fur in the water does not get wet and retains air, supporting the body of this giant in the water, allowing it to swim for hours and even sleep without getting out on the ice. Bears can swim 100 km from land!
The eyes, ears and nose are located significantly higher on its relatively small head than on its more rounded head brown bear, so all the polar bear's main senses are above the water. He is also a good diver. A swimming bear reaches a speed of 5-6 km/h, and when diving, it can stay under water for about two minutes.
The polar bear is the largest land predator and the largest bear species in existence. Adult males reach 3 m in length and weigh 500 - 700 kg, but giants are known that weighed 1000 kg! For comparison: the weight of even the largest lions and tigers does not exceed 400 kg. The height at the withers is up to 1.5 m, the tail length is from 8 to 15 cm. It lives in nature for about 25 years, but in zoos, where conditions are much less harsh, it can live up to 40 years.
The bear feels confident on the ice surface.

Extremely dexterous, it jumps over cracks up to 3.5 m wide and never breaks the ice, as it evenly distributes its weight, spreading its paws widely.
Its coloring is protective, its white fur with a yellowish tint is hardly noticeable against the background of ice and snow. The hollow hairs of the bear's fur work like light guides, through which the weak radiation of the northern sun reaches the bear's skin and warms it. Sharp, curved claws help them easily climb slippery ice blocks. Polar bears even grow hair on their paw pads, which allows them to prevent slipping on ice and keeps their paws warm.
The polar bear is an unsurpassed hunter of sea animals. He has keen eyesight, excellent hearing and an excellent sense of smell and is able to smell the scent of a prey from 7 km away. Thanks to its keen sense of smell, a bear can learn a lot from the tracks left by its relatives, for example, their gender or readiness to mate.
The polar bear is selective in its diet among bears and is the only bear that feeds primarily on meat. He is able to travel long distances in search of his favorite food - seal. Polar bears have come up with different hunting techniques. Most often they watch for seals near their ventilation holes in the ice. While swimming underwater, seals periodically need to take in air. For this purpose, a hole is maintained in the ice. A polar bear stands guard at its edge, often for several hours.
As soon as the seal carelessly surfaces, the bear throws it out of the water with a powerful blow of its paw or jumps into the hole itself, killing the prey underwater. Sometimes, just one blow with a paw is enough to kill a seal. Often seals do not rest in the water, but on the edge of their holes. Then the polar bear carefully creeps up to them. Sometimes it even crawls on its belly, hiding behind snow drifts and ice floes. However, he makes a jerk from a distance of 20-25 m. After all, if a seal discovers him, he will quickly slide into the water.
In the spring, female seals make burrows in the snow, almost invisible from the outside, with access to water. In them, seals whelp and leave their young when going fishing. With an exceptionally keen sense of smell, a polar bear is able to smell a seal among the ice. With a powerful jump, he breaks through the icy roof or breaks it with his paw. In this case, the seal, as a rule, has no chance of escape.
These predators catch larger animals - young walruses, beluga whales - less often. It also feeds on fish, lemmings, musk ox calves, eggs and carrion. Even plants are eaten during the summer months. Polar bears have an excellent sense of smell, which allows them to smell carrion at a distance of more than 30 km. Arctic foxes and gulls often feast on the leftovers of a bear's meal.
In the summer, he uses a different tactic: he swims underwater for a long time, then suddenly emerges and attacks seals lying on an ice floe or geese, swans, and ducks resting on the waves. Bears usually do not hunt on the shore.
Polar bears have a large supply of fat under their skin, which protects them from the cold and allows for a long time do not eat. But if a bear catches prey, it can eat 10-25 kg at once. An experienced bear catches a seal every 3-4 days.
Their decent size does not prevent these animals from running at a speed of 40 km/h. On average, they travel about 15,000 km per year in search of food.
Male polar bears roam the Arctic all year round. They live on their own, making an exception only for mating season. Going on a hunt or in search of a female to prolong the family, they move across endless icy expanses and sometimes walk many tens of kilometers a day. Females live in small family groups with their young, usually two and sometimes more.
By the beginning of the mating season, the bear becomes restless, and her walking routes lengthen. When the male comes across her droppings or traces of urine, he senses that the female is ready to mate and takes her trail. At the first meetings, the bear demonstrates inaccessibility and rejects him with a roar or a blow of her paw. Standing on its hind legs and growling loudly, the bear tries to impress its partner. He stubbornly follows her, and gradually the female lets him closer. The bears are together for some time, frolicking and playing. But after a few days their paths diverge. After one or two days, mating occurs. Both animals later mate with other partners. It may happen that cubs from the same litter have different fathers.
If several males follow the trail of a female bear ready to mate, then the issue is decided by the size and self-confidence of the applicant. Each of the males shows what they are capable of, rising to their full height, exchanging blows with their paws and growling loudly.
During the summer, the female polar bear stores fat under its skin to survive the long winter. After the mating season, the female hibernates during the coldest months of the year. It digs a den in the snow or climbs into naturally formed snow voids to hibernate. The bear makes her den not among the ice, but on the land of the Arctic islands.
The bear does not eat or drink for months, gaining energy by “burning” the fat reserves accumulated by the fall. A mother bear feeding her cubs during hibernation may lose more than half of his weight. Her body temperature remains normal - unlike animals that go into real hibernation.
It is very warm in the den (the temperature reaches + 30 °C), and here by December the bear gives birth to cubs. A female bear usually gives birth to 2-3 cubs every 3 years. Polar bear cubs are born weak and blind and are cared for by their mothers. great love. The newborn weighs only 700 g and is 20 cm long. Mothers fiercely protect their babies, especially from male bears, which, if hungry, can kill and eat the cubs.

Babies open their eyes about a month after birth, and take their first steps at the age of one and a half months. For the first few months, the cubs are in a snow den and feed on rich mother's milk. Bear cubs are born completely without hair, but after a while it grows back and becomes thick and dense.
Four-month-old cubs weigh 10 kg and still suckle their mother (sometimes for up to a year), but the mother bear is already beginning to feed the cubs with seal blubber. Despite all the efforts of the female, out of three cubs, usually only one survives.
With the end of the polar night, the cubs come out with their mother from the cramped ice den and frolic with pleasure in the open air.
Now they can come out of hiding, and no frost will be scary for them. The she-bear will teach them to hunt and swim. While they are small, the mother allows them to sit on her back and happily rides them, like on a steamboat.
At two years old, a young bear begins to live independently. At this age, the risk of death is still quite high, since he is still an inexperienced hunter and often remains hungry.
In Russia, the polar bear is distributed on the islands of the Arctic Ocean: Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya, Severnaya Zemlya, the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island.
The polar bear prefers to stay among floating ice or near wormwood, where seals can be caught. Largest quantity snow dens in which cubs are born are established on Franz Josef Land and Wrangel Island. In November - December, female bears usually give birth to two cubs. In March - April, the cubs leave the den with their mother. By this time, their weight reaches 10-12 kg. A bear family persists for about two years.
In nature, the polar bear has no enemies. He is quite peaceful towards humans. When defending its prey (for example, a caught seal) or bear cubs, it can rush at a person, trying to scare him. Loud muttering serves as a warning possible danger. There are very few actual cases of attack. On Novaya Zemlya, over more than 100 years of its development, three people died for this reason, and on Wrangel Island there were not a single casualty.
The acquaintance of a person with a polar bear has a long history. These animals were known to the ancient Romans in the 1st century AD. A written source containing information about polar bears dates back to 880.
In the XII-XIII centuries. Russian settlers who settled on the shores of the White and Barents Seas hunted polar bears and supplied bear skins to Veliky Novgorod and Moscow. As long as bears were hunted by residents of the Far North, the damage to the livestock was small.
In the XVII-XVIII centuries. Hunting vessels began to regularly penetrate the Arctic seas and hunting for polar bears began. It increased especially sharply in mid-19th c., when the reserves of bowhead whales were depleted and the attention of the miners switched to walruses and bears. At the beginning of the 20th century. the hunt was carried out on an unusually wide scale.
On Spitsbergen for 1920-1930. More than 4 thousand animals were killed. According to rough estimates, only in the north of Eurasia from the beginning of the 18th century. until the middle of the 20th century. the production amounted to over 150 thousand bears.
Back in the seventies of the last century, polar bears were hunted with impunity in Canada, Greenland, Norway and Alaska.
By the beginning of the 70s. XX century 5-7 thousand polar bears lived in the Russian sector of the Arctic, and throughout the Arctic their number did not exceed 20 thousand. In 1973, an International Agreement on the Conservation of the Polar Bear was signed. Ten years later, the number of bears increased and amounted to over 25 thousand.
Around North Pole About 25,000 polar bears live in different packs; their populations are stable. But they suffer from sea pollution and global warming. Today they are protected by international agreements, hunting them is prohibited, and the polar bear itself is listed in the Red Book. The polar bear is also protected in the nature reserve on Wrangel Island and is included in the IUCN-96 Red List and the Red Book Russian Federation.
Rapid climate warming has threatened the existence of the polar bear population off Hudson Bay in northern Canada. The sea began to freeze a month later, and this prevents them from hunting seals. Hungry bears approach villages and rummage through garbage dumps.
Studying bears is not easy: they live scattered over large areas, are cautious and too dangerous to approach. Researchers now have effective sedatives. Polar bears, which are aggressive and very active, are euthanized from the air: the bears are driven onto open ice by snowmobiles, and then arrows containing a tranquilizer are shot from a helicopter. The stunned animal is measured, examined for scars, teeth imprinted, and blood drawn. Analyzes of the integument and fat provide information about the state of his health. In female bears, based on a blood test, it can be determined whether she is ready for mating or is already pregnant.

Other data about the life of bears is obtained from paw prints, analysis of fur, dens and droppings, from which the type of food can be determined. Observations of behavior provide additional information. In this way, it is possible to monitor the development of the bear population in a certain area over many years.
Bear trails and areas are explored using telemetry. Animals receive radio collars, thanks to which their location can be determined. Many collars are additionally equipped with sensors that record the animal's body temperature and movements.
From them, the researcher can determine whether the bear is resting or active. Every six hours, the exact coordinates of its location are transmitted to the satellite, and from there to the scientists’ computers. Many transmitters even send data constantly, so that the coordinates they provide are projected onto the map, and the movements of the bears can be monitored on the screen.
In order to determine the age of a bear, a small, non-functional tooth in the lower jaw is removed from a euthanized animal.
Bears' teeth form annual circles, like tree trunks. Inside they consist of dentin. The crown of the tooth is covered with dental enamel, the root is covered with dental cement. To ensure that the tooth always remains firmly anchored in the jaw, a layer of cement continually grows throughout the bear's life. Depending on the time of year, the growth of cement occurs in different ways: in winter it is slower, at this time only a thin dark layer forms around the tooth. At the beginning of the year and in the summer, a wider light layer appears. Both lines form a layer that grows in one year. The older the bear, the slower the cement grows and the smaller the distances between the annual rings become.
Polar bears have been studied quite well: the approximate size of their territories, types of food and mating behavior. Scientists were able to observe how mother bears raise their cubs.
Are polar bears threatened by the greenhouse effect?
Greenhouse effect And global warming are primarily a consequence of the release of gases. Carbon dioxide and other gas compounds rise into the high layers of the atmosphere, forming a layer above the Earth that traps heat near the surface of the planet, like in a greenhouse. The consequences are already visible in the Arctic: over the past 100 years, air temperatures there have risen by about 5°C. Square arctic ice is decreasing every year.
Pollution environment- a problem for polar bears. Around oil rigs and oil harbors sea ​​water often contaminated with oil. Thick fur protects polar bears from cold and dampness. But oiled wool loses its ability to hold air, so half its insulating effect is lost. The bear cools down faster, and in the sun there is a danger of overheating. If, while swimming, a bear swallows oil-contaminated water or licks it from its fur, this will lead to kidney damage, intestinal bleeding and other serious diseases. Harmful substances such as chlorinated hydrocarbons were found in the tissues of polar bears. They accumulate from food and are deposited in fur, teeth and bones. In the future, harmful substances affect not only health, but also the ability of animals to procreate.
The life of polar bears depends on the presence of ice. Only if they go out into the ice to hunt seals in the summer do they manage to accumulate sufficient fat reserves for the winter. If the ice melts earlier in the summer or crumbles into ice floes, the animals have to return to the mainland, where there is less food. This affects the ability to procreate: bears that are less well-nourished have fewer offspring or no offspring at all. If warming continues at the same rate, then the cover summer ice in the Arctic Sea will disappear by 2080 at the latest. The polar bear will have to adapt to completely different living conditions or face the threat of extinction.

Bears and people
Today, zoos try to provide animals with housing appropriate to their species. Zoos serve an important role in maintaining endangered species by researching animal habits, educating the public about endangered species, and coordinating breeding programs internationally.
To keep the animals occupied, more and more zoos are developing entertainment programs for their bears. Bears are not couch potatoes at all. In nature, they are constantly busy exploring and searching for food. Animals that cannot satisfy their need for movement often demonstrate behavioral disturbances: they mark time, shake their heads, jump up every now and then, or show the same type of rhythmically repeating movements.
Food is no longer served in a feeder, but is scattered throughout the enclosures, buried or hidden in tree hollows or under roots.
So the bears have to look for it or catch it with their paws. Balls made of straw or hay are filled with food, honey is placed on the very tops tall trees. Bears love frozen food. For example, carrots, apples and fish carcasses are placed in buckets of water or fruit juice and frozen.

(Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774)

The most major representative bear family (Ursidae Gray, 1825).

Oshkuy, Umki, Yavvy, Uryung-ege, Nanuk, Sir Vark - all these are the names of the polar bear in languages different nations, inhabiting the Russian Arctic.

Main external difference The polar bear differs from other bears in having white fur. In fact, the hairs of a polar bear are colorless, and each hair has a spiral-shaped cavity filled with air, which helps the animal retain heat very well. In many bears, over time, six acquires a yellowish tint.

Adult females grow up to 2 m in length and 200–250 kg in weight. Males are much larger. They average 2.5 m in length and 350–600 kg in weight.

The cubs are born about 30 cm tall and weighing about 500 g.

Bear cubs (1–3, but more often 2) are born in the middle of winter in a den that a pregnant bear makes in late autumn. In March, the family leaves the den. The female takes care of the cubs for the first two years, during which they no longer go to the den.

In the third year of life (spring), the cubs leave their mother and begin independent life. The lifespan of a polar bear in nature is up to 40 years.

The life of a polar bear is closely connected with sea ice, its main habitat. On it, bears hunt their main prey - ringed seals and bearded seals.

At the end of autumn, on the mainland coast and on the Arctic islands, pregnant females set up “natal” dens in which they give birth to offspring. The rest of the polar bears do not lie in dens.

The polar bear is a slow breeding species. A female can bring no more than 8–12 cubs in her entire life. The mortality rate among bear cubs in their first year of life is very high. The IUCN polar bear team estimates that there are 19 subpopulations of the species worldwide, with a total population of 20,000–25,000 individuals.

Status

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List status: Vulnerable A3c, which means a population decline of 30% over 3 generations (45 years).

The polar bear is a subject of CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), where it is listed on the second schedule. It includes species that given time are not necessarily endangered, but may become so if trade in specimens of these species is not strictly regulated to prevent use that is incompatible with their survival.

Status of the polar bear in Russia (according to the Red Book of the Russian Federation):

Polar bear hunting in the Russian Arctic has been prohibited since 1957.

Federal Law No. 150-FZ of July 2, 2013 “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation” introduced a new article 2581 into the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, providing for criminal liability for illegal extraction, maintenance, acquisition, storage, transportation, forwarding and sale especially valuable wild animals and aquatic biological resources belonging to species listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation and (or) protected by international treaties of the Russian Federation, their parts and derivatives. The list of fauna includes mammals, birds and fish listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation or subject to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), to which the Russian Federation is a party. The polar bear is one of the species included in this list, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of October 31, 2013 No. 978.

On the initiative of the Ministry natural resources and ecology of the Russian Federation and with the support of the World Fund wildlife(WWF Russia) in 2008, work began on preparing a Strategy for the Conservation of Polar Bears in the Russian Federation and an Action Plan. Leading polar bear experts in Russia took part in the work on the Strategy and Action Plan. The strategy was approved by order of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources dated July 5, 2010 No. 26-r. The goal of the national Strategy is to determine mechanisms for the conservation of polar bear populations in the Russian Arctic in the context of increasing anthropogenic impact on marine and coastal ecosystems and climate change in the Arctic. The strategy is official document, which determines state policy for the conservation of the species. The main task in implementing the Strategy will be the preservation of polar bear populations in the Russian Arctic in the face of the ongoing impact of anthropogenic factors and climate warming.

International Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears

An exceptionally important role in preserving the global population of polar bears was played by the Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears, which was signed in 1973 by representatives of five Arctic countries - Canada, Norway, the USA, the USSR and Denmark. The Polar Bear Specialist Group, established in 1968 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), took an active part in the preparation and subsequent implementation of this agreement.

Russian-American Polar Bear Agreement

In addition to the Great International Agreement, there are agreements between individual Arctic countries on the management of their common polar bear populations. Russia has such an agreement with the United States, signed on October 16, 2000. It is called the “Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the United States of America on the Conservation and Use of the Chukchi-Alaskan Polar Bear Population” and entered into force on September 27, 2007. The main purpose of the Agreement – preservation of the Chukotka-Alaska polar bear population in the long term. Special attention Both countries should pay attention to areas where bears den and concentrations of bears during foraging and migration. To do this, they take measures to prevent the loss or destruction of polar bear habitats, which could lead to the death of the animals and a decline in the population.

Modern threats to the polar bear

1. Reduction of sea ice area in the Arctic.

Polar bears prefer to be on sea ​​ice. In summer, when the ice begins to retreat north, most of the population remains on it, but some animals spend the season on the shore.

Global climate change is leading to a reduction in sea ice in the Arctic, a key habitat for the polar bear. As a result:

• Pregnant female bears spending the summer on sea ice may have problems accessing the coast and islands to lie down in maternity dens. This leads to the loss of the embryo or the female bear lies in a den in unfavorable conditions, which also reduces the likelihood of offspring survival.
• more bears are forced to spend time on the coast, as a result of which they often experience problems with obtaining food, and there is also an increase in conflict interactions with humans.

2. Negative anthropogenic factors.

• Illegal mining. Complete ban for the hunting of polar bears was introduced in the Russian Arctic on January 1, 1957. Illegal hunting has always occurred, but the number of bears harvested is very difficult to estimate. Presumably, currently throughout the Russian Arctic it amounts to several hundred animals annually.
• Worry factor. It is especially critical for pregnant females and female bears with cubs in their first year of life in areas where maternity dens are constructed.
• Anthropogenic pollution. Being at the top of the trophic pyramid in Arctic marine ecosystems, the polar bear accumulates in its body almost all pollutants that enter the ocean (persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals, petroleum hydrocarbons).

Compiled by: Boltunov Andrey Nikolaevich

Expert on marine mammals and polar bears in the scientific body CITES of Russia. Member international group Polar bear specialists of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Deputy Chairman of the Regional public organization"Marine Mammal Council". Expert of the Russian-American scientific working group on the Chukotka-Alaskan polar bear population, presenter Researcher All-Russian Research Institute of Nature