Mary Allen
The polar bear or polar bear is a species of mammal. The polar bear is the largest of all the predators that live on land. They only exist in the Arctic. There they normally come within about 200 kilometers of the North Pole.
Polar bears have been around for hundreds of thousands of years, descended from brown bears. A mature male polar bear will be over eight feet long. Like all bears, polar bears only have a short, stubby tails. When a polar bear rears up, it is much taller than adult humans. Polar bears can weigh up to 500 kilograms. In summer, when polar bears find little food, they are much lighter than in winter.
Most polar bears do not live to be more than 20 years old. Except for humans with their weapons, no other animals can harm the polar bear. Despite this, there are fewer and fewer polar bears. Only about 25,000 animals are currently alive. This is for the following reason: Due to climate change, the world is getting warmer and warmer. As a result, the ice in the Arctic is melting more and more. As a result, polar bears are finding it increasingly difficult to roam and forage.
How do polar bears live?
In their habitat, polar bears do not easily find food. Polar bears can travel long distances in search of prey. Swimming 50 kilometers or more without a break is also no problem for them. Their fur is dense and does not allow water to penetrate. The fur and a very thick layer of fat ensure that a polar bear does not freeze in freezing cold water.
The polar bears’ main food is harbor seals and other seals. A seal needs air to breathe, so it lives near holes or crevices in the ice sheet. There the polar bear lurks for him. In addition, polar bears occasionally kill smaller whales, fish, and also birds, and mammals, such as arctic hares or reindeer. As omnivores, they also like berries and grass.
Polar bears are loners. So they live alone, except when they want to have cubs. They mate between March and June. Then the male goes away again. The female digs a natal cavity sometime before giving birth. There it then gives birth to its young in the winter between November and January. Usually, there are two, very rarely three or four. The young are about the size of a rabbit at birth and weigh less than a kilogram.
The young remain in the natal cavity with their mother until March or April. Only then do they leave this cave together. The polar bear cubs stay with their mother and drink milk for up to two years. They travel across the ice with their mother and learn to hunt themselves. Life is so tough that only about half of babies live to be five years old. From this age, they can have young of their own.