Polar bears predators and preys8/21/2023 ![]() ![]() Their double-layered coats pack in plush, black hairs close to their bodies that trap heat, while translucent tube-like fur on the outer coat traps air for additional insulation. Weighing up to 1,500 lbs., with males reaching a length of over ten feet, polar bears have massive bodies insulated by a thick, four-inch layer of fat. Polar bear feeding offshore from Baffin Island near Sirmilik National Park ( Credit: Paul Gierszewski, via Wikimedia Commons ) So, to bulk up and protect their organs in temperatures that can drop to -58 degrees Fahrenheit (-50 Celsius), polar bears need to stay almost continuously on the move in search of their next meal. A polar bear is capable of consuming 100 pounds of seal blubber at once, but not every day in the Arctic Circle results in such a bountiful feast. This is in part due to the scarcity of prey in the Arctic and the massive quantity of food any polar bear needs to survive. Instead, they are nomads that spend much of their lives alone. Polar bears don’t have territories in the way that other top predators, such as Arctic wolves, do. While these prey animals have traditionally been non-migratory species, they do travel hundreds of miles to find their own food – which means that polar bears looking to eat them must do the same. They crave blubbery animals like seals, walruses, and narwhals for meals, as fatty meat is the quickest to break down and provides a highly concentrated load of calories. ![]() With one of the most extreme climates on Earth, the Arctic is an unforgiving environment that offers little stability in its temperatures or even its geographic makeup, forcing marine mammals to follow food. Found roaming the shorelines of Alaska or wandering the fjords of Greenland, they are apex predators whose domain transcends the borders of countries.Ī polar bear walking on the Arctic Ocean ice (Credit: Patrick Kelley, U.S. This is the home of the polar bear, the uncontested monarch of the Arctic. While Antarctica is a distinguishable continent centered around the South Pole, the Arctic reaches into eight different countries on three continents. The North Pole is identifiable on nearly every map or globe, but if you actually were to visit the region, you would have to wander panels of ice until your compass spun circles around itself. To learn more about the Arctic and the polar bears that roam through it, check out Fascinating Places: A Summer with Polar Bears at Hudson Bay. Polar bears reign supreme in the circumpolar North and leave their mark on their habitat, but the changing conditions of the Arctic are having an alarming impact on where polar bears can survive. Every now and then, a moving white figure, almost invisible against the ice, might cast a shadow, leaving miles of pawprints in its wake. It’s as barren as a sandy desert, uninhabitable for humans and consequently lacking the characteristic traces of our presence. With a diet sustained by underwater creatures, where do polar bears live and what does their future look like?įrom above, the Arctic is defined by jagged sections of white ice contrasting with the deep blue of chilled oceans. The Arctic’s vibrant ecosystem of seals and narwhals is a feeding ground for polar bears, the apex predator in the region. ![]()
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