The Polar Bear

Image via hickerphoto.com

POLAR BEARS

Polar bears are very dangerous in fact they are the most aggressive of the worlds bears. Their size and strength are no match to even the bigger seal lions that they some times attack. The polar bear eats almost anything that moves, this is because of the habitat they live in. The icy north and south pole in the circumpolar areas have few inhabitants, such as the snow fox, the snow rabbit and penguin’s and seals. The polar bear will eat any of these if they cross their path or happen to stumble across them. Outside the circumpolar regions the further they go out the less chance of them finding any of these animals.

The polar bear is a phenomenal swimmer and able to hold its breath for up to 3 minutes this helps the polar bear to fish with ease. Once their prey such as the penguin or seal reach the water they always get away because of their sheer speed and agility under water the polar bear doesn’t stand a chance in catching them. In most cases the prey escapes the bear off the ice and into the water and this leaves the bear frustrated. Polar bears just don’t stay in one area in a habitat simply because they scare off the prey from the area and have to spend their lives walking around the north and south poles in search of food.

Image via hickerphoto.com

During the winter months in these areas yes they have seasons just as we do in the rest of the world, but during these winter months they don’t hibernate because of the fact that there is no shelter from the winds and food is scarce all year round and each season brings new animals to the shores. The weather is much colder and the storms are more intense but the polar bear has no choice but to continue on.

Polar bears rely on the ice forming so  they can hunt unnoticed above the water but the ice is melting instead of freezing over causing the polar bears habitat to shrink considerably over the years. Most polar bears are found near land masses around the edge of the polar region. It is very rare to see them as far inland as the poles themselves but as the ice melts they have been wandering inland regularly and been spotted more often by the scientists that are monitoring the areas. Polar bears don’t stray to far from the main land as a rule but in the summer months they find the chunk of ice they are inhabiting has broke away from the main land and find themselves floating out to sea, even though they are great swimmers they find it hard to find an area to get back up onto the main land and sometimes drown.