Like polar bear’s skull, polar bear paws are massive in size. The front paws points inwards as the polar bear walks. It does seem like a pigeon-toed. Polar bears most often walk rather than trot. They do however gallop on their paws. Do you want to know how big is a polar paw as compared to other animal’s paws?
How Big is a Polar Bear Paw? – Polar Bear Paw
The polar bear’s paw measures 30 cm (12 inches) in width—almost four times the size of a human’s paw. The Siberian tiger’s paw measures only 15 cm that is only half the size of a polar bear paw. Similarly, African lions have 12.9 wide paws. Clearly, polar bears have got the biggest paws of all land carnivores.
There are small soft papillae or bumps that cover the paw pads. These bumps essentially play a vital role in providing traction on the ice. The polar bear paws resemble other bear’s paws but the former are surprisingly dexterous.
While polar bear’s white fur camouflages it into the white snowy background its black skin primarily serves to keep the bear warm nearly all the time. The reason why polar bears have black skins is that black color (as you probably know) absorbs heat and sunlight inasmuch as they can. That is why most people usually do not wear dark-colored clothes in summer. Now let us study in detail as to what color skin do polar bears have.
Why Do Polar Bears have Black Skin?
Polar bears inhabit one of the coolest places on planet earth. Like most other Arctic mammals, polar bears have quite many adaptations to survive the freezing cold of the North. One such useful adaptation is a bear’s black skin. The polar bear’s skin soaks up as much sunlight as it possibly can and so it keeps the animal warm.
The polar bear’s black skin is quite visible under its white fur. Why do polar bears have black skins? Photo by worldwildlife.org
Black color generally does not reflect light, it absorbs the light. Polar bears live in Canadian Arctic as well as Denmark, Russia, Norway, and Alaska—places where sun doesn’t shine like in Southern Hemisphere. Thus, it turns out to be extremely effective feature in absorbing the available sunlight.
Polar bears do not hibernate. They are not true hibernators. They just go into a temporary torpor or dormancy state where their metabolic rate slows down but this is not exactly hibernation. Hibernation is a sort of activity (or maybe inactivity) which enables the bear to save its energy because the ambient temperatures are extremely low that the average body temperature, basal metabolic rate and foraging goes out of the question. All these normal activities turn out to be either impossible or energetically too costly. Let’s see how long do polar bears hibernate or remain inactive in a 365-day period.
How Long Do Polar Bears Hibernate?
Polar bears remain inactive for as long as 4 – 5 months in a year. But the polar bear’s hibernation does not mean a continuous sleep. Although their heart rate drops down from 46 to 27 beats per minute they are probably not as dead as rodents. Lately scientists have observed that summers in the Arctic appear to be longer than winters probably due to the global warming.
This indeed affects the overall behavior of the hibernating animals. Long summers mean less time for polar bears to store considerable energy reserves or fats to go by so-called hibernating months. Polar bears are most likely to face food shortage in the years to come.
How long do polar bears hibernate?
The hibernating animals like bats and rodents enter into a deep sleep so much so that it’s not possible for them to react quickly if the predator is nearby.
In case of polar bear’s dormancy (not hibernation) they do not only respond actively even during inactivity they do move around to look for any possible threats outside the den.
Polar bears, like emperor penguin or arctic fox, can afford to forage in extreme Arctic chilling for they are not only perfectly insulated—they have stored reasonable energy reserves and they do compete quite successfully for a continuing food source.
Grolar bear is a hybrid animal which is born as a result of inbreeding between a grizzly bear and polar bear. It is also called pizzly bear or nanulak. It is not a subspecies of a bear. The polar bear and grizzly bear hybridis extremely rare in the wild. Scientists confirmed the grolar bear in 2006 by testing the DNA of an individual bear which was shot in the Canadian Arctic, Sachs Harbor.
We do not know for sure if there are any grolar bears living in the wild. However scientists do believe that since both polar bear and grizzly bear live under the same habitat conditions and their range often overlaps, chances are that there might still be grolar bear in the wild. Nonetheless, polar bears and grizzly bears will probably avoid each other in the natural habitat.
One of the mysterious bears was seen in 1864 which looked exactly like a grolar bear. It appeared yellowish-white in color.
According to scientists, polar bears have lately been pushed southward by melting of the ice cap—indeed bringing them closer (ever than before) to grizzly bears.
Grizzly Polar Bear Characteristics
Grolar bear is primarily recognized by its creamy white fur which is a polar bear’s trait. Like grizzly bear, the grolar bear displays brown patches around its eyes, foot, and back.
The grolar bear also possesses long sharp claws—an adaptation of a grizzly bear.
Grolar Bear. Photo by Wonderopolis
Grolar Bear Cub
Two grolar bears were born in Osnabruck Zoo, Germany in 2004. One of them was a male while the other a female. The grolar bear cubs had smaller bodies as compared to polar bear cubs but they were bigger than the grizzly bear cubs.
The grolar bear cubs had slightly leaner head resembling polar bear’s and it has marginally broader head like grizzly bear.
Grolar bear cubs have small shoulder humps like grizzly bears. They have long necks similar to the polar bear’s neck.
Unlike polar bears, the grolar bear cubs have got feet only partially covered with hairs. Grizzlies do not have hairs on their soles.
The grolar bear’s hairs are also slightly hollow but they are probably not as hollow as polar bear’s hairs which are due to the grizzly bear’s trait.
The grolar bear’s back hairs are fairly hollow whereas the paw hairs are solid just like grizzlies.
The overall behavior of a grolar bear is closer to the polar bear’s behavior rather than grizzly’s behavior.
Grolar bears also resemble polar bears in lying-down posture. Their bellies touch the ground while their rear legs are splayed.
Yes, polar bears eat walruses but they don’t feed on adult walruses for they are too big to fall prey to polar bears. Polar bears are the supreme predators of the Arctic—they are the lord of the Arctic. However, there are a few Arctic mammals that are way too big as compared to polar bears. Walrus is one of them, in fact it is the heaviest mammal of all Arctic mammals. Let us see how do polar bears eat walruses in the wild.
Do Polar Bears Eat Walruses?
Walruses are definitely one of the polar bear’s preys but they are equally dangerous too. For that reason, polar bears are less likely to hunt walruses and only male polar bears can take the risk of predating walruses.
Walruses are huge, they are massive in size. The female walrus which is only half the size of a male, weighs no less than 1,870 pounds.
The adult male polar bear weighs only 800 pounds—half the weight of an adult female walrus.
Adult male walrus averages 3,740 pounds which is 4 to 5 times the weight of an adult male polar bear. That indeed makes adult walruses almost immune to polar bear predation.
Walruses are not only safe by virtue of their mammoth size, they have strong defense too. All walruses, let alone adult males, have tusks. Males have greater tusks than females. However, they don’t really use it against polar bears. The walrus’ tusks typically serve as sledge to feed on bottom dwelling species.
An adult polar bear is looking for a walrus calf. Do Polar Bears eat Walruses? Photo by THE POLAR BEAR PROGRAMME
The range of walruses and polar bears often overlaps in Baffin Bay, Foxe Basin, Barents, Chukchi, Laptev, Lancaster Sound, Kara, western Beaufort Seas, and Bering Seas. Walruses are shallow divers and they are protected by a 2 – 4 cm thick skin.
Therefore, only the largest polar bear can afford to take on adult walruses but that too happens in extreme circumstances. Generally polar bears are most likely to feed on walrus’ calves.
Walruses usually congregate in large groups consisting of thousands of individuals. It is not easy for a polar bear to hunt a walrus’ calf that lies among the largest walruses. And so, polar bear sometimes stampedes a large herd and by so doing, they can get a chance to grab a calf.
The large herd runs towards the sea as the polar bear intrudes them. On their way they sometimes kill their own calves which indeed become the polar bear’s meal.
Walruses on land are thought to be rather more vulnerable to polar bears as compared to those that occur in water or on ice. The reason why they are so susceptible on land is that walrus, unlike polar bears, are not really agile on land.
Although I have seen a lot of both polar bears and walruses in the same areas in Franz Josef Land, I have never seen a bear chase a walrus. The walruses were absolutely indifferent to the bear; it could go close by them without their noticing it. They obviously feel quite safe and superior…Fridtjof Nansen, a 19th century Norwegian Explorer
Many polar bear populations are unable to prey on walrus for they live far apart. However those that live near walrus population likely prey on walrus but only adult male bears do the hunting.
Studies suggest that male polar bears attempt about 60% of attacks on walrus, while females attempt only 17%. The subadult bears attempt the remaining 23% of the attacks but most, if not all, of their hunts ends up in waste.
Scientists estimate that on Wrangel Island, about 6% of polar bear’s predation ends up in success. The walrus’ calves turn out to be the most common target.
Why Do Polar Bears Eat Walruses?
Now, you would probably be wondering as to why polar bears eat walruses when they know it’s a dangerous meal. They will hunt walrus only as a last resort. That is to say that when polar bear’s primary prey becomes scarce, they go after the walrus. It so happens that sometimes the polar bear starves for months and thus it becomes so desperate that it doesn’t afraid to take more chances.
Walrus’ meal is particularly dangerous because it can sometimes cause serious injuries to a polar bear. The meal is heavy and so is the price. The bottom line is that the polar bears must have been much larger than they actually are, in order to hunt walruses pretty safely.
Do Polar Bears Eat Walruses? – Video showing adult polar bear intruding a walrus colony
In the late eighteenth century two subspecies of a polar bear were recognized and documented. The two species were Ursus maritimus maritimus and Ursus maritimus marinus.
How Many Species of Polar Bears are there?
The Ursus maritimus maritimus was primarily discovered by Constantine J. Phipps back in 1774 whereas the Ursus maritimus marinus was identified by Peter Simon Pallas in 1776.
Decades later, scientists did not approve the recognition and the original distinction had become undone since then. Paleontologists also unearthed the fossils of another polar bear subspecies named Ursus maritimus tyrannus which was then thought to be extinct. The then scientists also concluded that the Ursus maritimus tyrannus might have possibly died out during the Pleistocene epoch.
The extinct polar bear was also believed to be much greater in size in comparison to the living subspecies. Nonetheless, the modern scientists rejected any such study and claimed that the extinct subspecies actually belong to the brown bear lineage instead of a polar bear. Those were the fossils of a brown bear subspecies.
Yes, polar bears have partially webbed feet one that facilitates them in swimming longer distances. However, the polar bear feet are not even close to the penguin’s or duck’s feet. These birds have fully developed webbed feet. The polar bear’s feet are broad and heavy because the bear must run equally fast on land as it swims. The wide feet help the bear to walk on the sea ice rather efficiently. Polar bears are strong swimmers, probably the strongest of all land carnivores.
A polar bear learning to swim. Do polar bears have webbed feet? Photo by DailyMail
Thanks to their powerful wide paws which allow them to propel through water. Siberian tigers are also excellent swimmers but their feet are not so well adapted to swimming and so they can only swim for short distances. Polar bears, on the other hand, can continuously swim for days. They are pretty comfortable in water so much so that scientists are beginning to wonder if they are marine mammals or land mammals. They typically use their feet to steer while front paws are primarily used in swimming.
Polar bears have pretty large feet—they are quite heavy too. Polar bear’s 12-inch wide feet are all covered with dense hairs that are not only meant to keep the bear warm it also provides perfect grip on the ice. The reason as to why polar bears have large feet is that their feet must be large enough to lift the 800-pound-animal. The larger feet also spread the entire weight of a polar bear over deep snow and thin ice to prevent it from falling into the water.
The large polar bear feet however does not prevent the bear from sprinting in that the bear can achieve the speed of 30 miles per hour in short bursts. Usain Bolt, the fastest human runner, can run at a speed of 27.49 miles per hour so there’s no chance that you can ever outrun a polar bear. While polar bear’s feet appear to be quite different from ours they walk in pretty much the same way as we humans do. This is quite rare in land predators. Let’s find out why do polar bears have such big feet.
Why Does a Polar Bear have very Wide Large Paws?
The polar bear paws are designed to assist it not only to carry the massive weight—it also provides an additional grip so that the bear doesn’t slip on the ice. Polar bears can also stand on their paws which they usually do whilst searching for the prey. Their paws also help them to climb up the hill but they are probably not so perfectly designed for climbing as the black bear’s paws.
Polar bears typically sprint on their paws but they also use it in walking. Unlike most other land carnivores, the polar bears are great travelers—covering as much as 70 to 80 miles on foot. They are thought to cover that much distance in a single day. Thanks to their wide paws and large feet without which they might not be able to walk comfortably on the sea ice.
A baby polar bear is no different from a baby brown bear, baby black bear, or a baby Kodiak bear. The baby polar bear is called a cub in pretty much the same way as lion’s baby. We often use the term cubs for most mammals’ offspring. Polar bear is just another land mammal. A baby polar bear remains a cub for the first few months since it grows quite rapidly in its initial days.
Polar bear cubs are way too smaller in comparison to polar bear adults. In fact, they resemble the size of an adult ground squirrel. That is why the mother polar bear keeps a close eye on her cub for as long as it doesn’t reach adulthood. A baby polar bear stays for the most part of its life in a den not only to remain safe from predators—they stay warm inside the den.
Polar bears sit at the top of the food chain in the Arctic—they are the apex predators. Adult bears do not seem to have any potential predators in the wild. Nonetheless, polar bear cubs are quite vulnerable to the dominant male bears. Polar bears do certain things that protect themselves from probable predators. Sometimes aggressive male polar bears eat their cubs particularly when they are starving. We’re going to discuss as to how do polar bears protect themselves from predators.
How Do Polar Bears Protect Themselves?
Although adult polar bears are strong enough to take down any arctic predator, the subadult bears let alone cubs are not that safe. They ought to choose quite many actions to prevent themselves from predators such as wolves and foxes.
Just to let you know that polar bears are not true hibernators. They just enter into a torpor state in which they can recover quickly and actively respond to predators and so they are not really vulnerable even during deep sleep.
A Polar bear female is about to give birth any time sooner. How do polar bears protect themselves. Image credits: Sergey Uryadnikov/Shutterstock
Polar Bears Camouflage
Polar bears are blessed with a dense white coat that almost makes the bear disappears into the white snowy background of the Arctic. The camouflaging ability is pretty effective not only in polar bear cubs—it also protects the female polar bear from powerful dominant males. The female is only half the size of a male which is why it can barely fight with the mature male.
Polar Bear Cubs Hide into the Den
The female polar bear keeps her cubs not only close to herself—it rarely allows them to get out of the den. Outside the den the cubs do play but under the watchful eye of their mother. Hungry male bears can find out the den and likely kills the cubs.
But if the cubs stay inside the den they are relatively safer for male polar bears are too big to get into the den.
The cave-like den has several entrances and it’s not possible for a male to get easy access to the cubs.
How Do Polar Bears Protect Themselves from Predators? – Video