Where are polar bears located? How much do polar and brown bears weigh? Survival in extreme conditions

The polar or polar bear is the largest land predator living on our planet. He lives in the polar regions, in harsh conditions. In order to replenish their strength and continue to live, these animals must be able to find the food that will help them with this. Since there is very little vegetation in the polar bear’s habitat, this animal feeds almost exclusively on food of animal origin. We can safely say that this animal is a skilled hunter.

The main food for polar bears are ringed seals. This is a real treat for them. But in order to catch them, the bear sometimes has to sit for a long time near vents on the ice. And there can be many such holes, so the predator needs to have great patience in order to notice the emerging seal. As soon as the potential victim is within the reach of the bear, it crushes the animal with force with its paws.

They can hunt seals and watch for prey near the ice floe on which these animals are usually located. Sometimes a predator sneaks up on its prey by crawling towards it on its belly. The polar bear has another hunting tactic. From time to time, he tears apart the seals' homes, which they build under thick snow. The predator finds the habitat of prey and their cubs by smell.

To replenish lost energy, the polar bear first eats fat, which will be converted into energy over time. More often, the remains of the seal are eaten by other predators, such as the arctic fox. Every 5-6 days the bear needs to get a seal for itself. In addition to this prey, the predator can feed on a bearded seal, birds, and on land it can deal with a walrus.

Tough times for polar bears

This mighty beast does not always have the opportunity to catch a large animal. A particularly difficult time for them is the period when the ice melts, and bears have no opportunity to get close to their prey. At this time, the polar bear does not disdain both algae and carrion, and hunts birds and their eggs.

After hibernation, it is also difficult for a polar bear to find suitable food. But sometimes the waters of the cold seas present them with a gift - the carcass of a sperm whale. At this time, usually solitary polar bears can gather in groups of several individuals.

Often these predators go to the wintering grounds of researchers or travelers. Here they, without much hesitation in their actions, literally rummage everywhere in search of food.

Recently, due to global warming, the life of the polar bear is under threat. Melting ice has a detrimental effect on the availability of the main prey of this animal.

There are many large creatures living on Earth - fish, birds, animals.

One of the most outstanding representatives of the animal world is the bear: in terms of size, it is one of the most impressive creatures on our planet. From time to time, inquisitive people ask the question “how many kilograms does this animal weigh?”

Bear weight awareness can be useful in various situations and even professions. For example, you can compare it with other species and determine the degree of impressiveness and thereby give yourself an account of the degree of danger of meeting with it. The information obtained about the weight of this animal will be very useful for hunters or carcass skinners. Information about how much a bear weighs will also be useful for search and rescue teams, who often look for missing or lost people in forests where bears live. This is also an important and interesting question for overall development.

What determines the weight of a bear?

It is not immediately possible to give an unambiguous figure that would show how much the bear weighs, since The weight of a polar, brown or grizzly bear directly depends on:

• their habitat,
• age,
• breeds,
• time of year.

Individuals from various habitats can have a weight of about 150 kg - 1000 kg. However, such an impressive figure does not in the least prevent this respectable beast from possessing a high level of speed and agility.

The animal can move at a speed identical to that of a racehorse - up to 60 km/h. The dexterity with which these animals move through the trees is the envy of every acrobat. Our hero climbs without excessive effort to a height of up to 30 meters (the traditional height of a nine-story building). Among people, only a professional athlete or climber equipped with special equipment can climb to such a height. We should also not forget that the hero of our article wins not only in the mountaineering dispute, but also in athletics. Man, undoubtedly, loses to the owners of the forest in almost all respects, except intelligence.

By the way, let’s touch on the question of intelligence and try to find out who among the bears themselves can rightfully take the place of the strongest, largest and smartest.

Northern bear

White relative from the north. How much does this animal - a resident of the north - weigh and what indicators are typical for a polar bear?

Although the brown representative of this species is large, it still has a larger competitor. The polar bear inhabits the snowy expanses of the Arctic. The snow cover is deeply crushed under the weight of this largest predator on the planet, with the females of these frost-resistant animals weighing 200-300 kg.

How much do male northern whites weigh? It is not surprising, but males are only twice as large, and their weight is about 300-450 kg. The most outstanding representatives of this species can reach a weight of up to half a ton. Both males and females are undoubtedly noticeably larger than their warm-loving brown brothers.

The appearance of a polar bear is also impressive. The large body of this predator can reach a length of up to 2.5-3 meters. Even the tallest people on modern earth will be only shoulder-high to this white giant in the best case scenario, if this animal, of course, stands on its hind legs.

The owner of the snowy lands only looks white, but in reality the skin color of this animal has a black tint. The fur covering this animal, of course, looks white to the human eye, but at the same time it is completely transparent to ultraviolet light.

All these features make it possible to ensure ideal thermoregulation. The hairs do not prevent the penetration of ultraviolet radiation, and the sun's rays, in turn, warm the skin. In addition, this light coat color is an excellent camouflage suit in the snow-white and icy northern world.

This frost-resistant animal is not only excellent at camouflaging itself: it is also an outstanding fighter, with a paw span of more than three meters. Despite its considerable weight, the polar bear is an excellent runner and moves no worse than its brown counterpart.

How much does a brown bear weigh?

Mass and size of brown forest dweller directly related to whether he is a female or a male. Female brown bears are several times smaller and lighter than representatives of the opposite sex of their species. Their weight reaches only no more than 150 kg. The male component of this bear family exceeds the weight of the female half by a little less than half, sometimes exactly 2 times, and ranges from 200 to 300 kg.

The largest specimens, the size of which may be determined by genetic reasons or fate, can boast a mark of 450 kg. However, such solid indicators do not in the least prevent brown bears from moving silently and easily, like a knife through butter, and crossing thickets inside the forest and, if necessary, through windbreaks.

Brown bears have an innate caution, which does not allow this animal to show itself to people.

However, there may be exceptions to this rule, if the animal gets hungry. Then hunger can push the bear to do things that are usually unusual for a wild animal. A person must always remember that, being on his territory, he always very jealously monitors the boundaries of his possessions and the places where he hunts and eats.

A sudden meeting with a bear, so to speak, face to face, can be explained by his lack of vision (myopia) and the inability to clearly see objects further than 45-50 meters. However, compensating for the lack of vision, he has excellent hearing, is well oriented thanks to it and is therefore able to react to even the quietest rustle. In particular, you should be wary of “connecting rod” bears, which for some reason woke up in the middle of winter and cannot fall asleep again.

Invincible and severe grizzly

Although the figure for the weight of a brown bear inspires respect, it still does not mean that it is the largest animal on the planet. The grizzly bear represents a very serious competition for him. The average weight of this huge animal is about 700 kg. If someone decides to take a chance and weigh a grizzly bear on a scale, then the brute will need to provide at least three brown bears to counterbalance this. If the weighed individual is larger than usual, then 4-5 brown ones.

Interestingly, it was once documented that a grizzly bear shot while hunting weighed 726 kg. If he stood on his hind legs, then his height would exceed the three-meter mark, and this animal would absolutely calmly be able to look out the window on the second floor if he wanted to be a guest. Those who decide that when they meet him they will simply run away from him, do not flatter themselves and do not harbor false hopes. This bear is fast, agile and an excellent swimmer. The raking gait of this animal is often deceptive. Besides, his clumsiness is a kind of myth. In fact, clubfoot is just a feature of a bear’s gait, which consists in the fact that the animal simply steps on both right or left paws at once.

Conclusion

It has always been common for people special attitude towards bears. These are frequent heroes of legends, fairy tales, and instructive stories. This is probably due to the fact that the power and greatness of this wild animal not only frightened - they often aroused admiration and a desire to imitate in the best qualities.

The image of bears is often used in heraldry. Both in our time and in ancient times, observation of the existence, characteristics and habits of this giant has not stopped. Groups of researchers from the group still carry out various activities to study bear territories.

Sensors and video cameras installed for these purposes can give a very complete picture:

• about the number of individuals in general,
• about the number of newborn babies,
• physical parameters of each individual.

This is also done in order to preserve bears as a species. After all, we must understand that only people are able to protect even such harsh and strong representatives of the animal world from harm and protect from extinction.

Polar bear, oshkuy.

Area: Circumpolar region bounded by the northern coast of the continents, the southern limit of the distribution of floating ice and the northern border of warm sea currents.
The southern border of the polar bear's habitat usually coincides with the edge of drifting ice or the coast of the mainland. Over the past few centuries, the range of this species as a whole has not undergone any noticeable changes. At the same time, the southern limit of the distribution of polar bears experiences significant seasonal changes, following changes in the ice cover limit.

Description: The polar bear is one of the largest land mammals and the largest predatory animal on the planet. It differs from other species of bears in its more elongated body, long neck, thick, short and strong legs, whose feet are much longer and wider than those of other bears, and the toes are connected by a thick swimming membrane for almost half of their length. The head is elongated, flat on top and relatively narrow, the forehead is flat, the wide muzzle is pointed in front, the ears are short and rounded on top, the nostrils are wide open. The mouth opening is not as deeply cut as in a brown bear. The tail is very short, thick and blunt, barely visible from under the fur. There are several stubbles on the lips and above the eyes, and there are no eyelashes on the eyelids. With the exception of a dark ring around the eyes, a bare nose, the edges of the lips and claws, the polar bear is covered in thick fur. The long, shaggy and thick fur consists of short undercoat and smooth, glossy and rather soft hair. The hairy soles of both the hind and front paws serve for thermal insulation and reduce slipping when walking on ice and snow. Females have four nipples.

Color: The polar bear is covered with snow-white clothing, which in young ones is silver in color, but in old ones, due to the consumption of fatty foods, it acquires a yellow tint. The time of year does not affect the color of the coat. The white color helps to camouflage the predator when it lies in wait for prey.

Size: The polar bear is much larger than all other bears, since at a height of 1.3-1.6 m it reaches 2.5-2.8 m in length. The fangs are 5 cm long.

Weight: Reaches 300-800 kg, and sometimes even tons. Ross weighed one bear that, having lost 12 kg of blood, weighed 513 kg, and Lyon points out one bear weighing 725 kg. Of the 17 bears killed in the Bering Strait and surrounding areas during the Pehuel-Leche voyage, five reached the above-mentioned heaviest weight. The fat of one large bear can weigh up to 180 kg.

Lifespan: In natural conditions it lives for about 19 years. Mortality among adult bears is estimated at 8-16%, among immature bears 3-16%, and among cubs 10-30%. The maximum lifespan of a polar bear is 25-30 years, although a female at the Detroit Zoo was still alive at age 45 in 1999.

Roar, because of the addiction to loneliness, they rarely raise their voice.

Habitat: Polar bears are associated with drifting and fast sea ice all year round, where they hunt seals. However, he likes to live in secluded bays and bays, in shallow waters between islands, where tidal currents regularly break up the ice. In winter and early spring, bears were most often observed in the fast ice zone and at the edge of stationary polynyas, and in heavy ice conditions at sea - in areas with increased ice fragmentation. In summer and early autumn, most polar bears concentrate along the southern edge of the ice.
If bears do come to mainland land, it is usually not for long. Only on the eastern coast of America, near Baffin and Hudson Bays, in Greenland and Labrador, on Spitsbergen and other islands can it be seen both on land and on ice floes. In Lapland and Iceland, a polar bear can only be found when it is driven here on an ice floe.

Enemies: This giant has no enemies, except for humans. The decline in the number of animals is associated with poaching, as well as poisoning with pesticides and water pollution with oil produced on the shelves.

Food: The polar bear is a 100% predator, active and with a narrow specialization in hunting seals, mainly ringed seals, as well as bearded seals (in a year the bear catches and eats up to 40-50 seals).
The bear hunts for seals, lying in wait for them at the holes. He delivers a terrible blow with his paw to the head of a sea animal that appears from under the water and immediately throws it onto the ice. First of all, it devours the skin and fat, and the rest only in case of great hunger. During one feeding, the predator usually eats 6-8 kg, occasionally up to 20 kg.
The polar bear catches fish by diving or driving it into crevices between ice floes. It attacks terrestrial animals only when it lacks food. Occasionally attacks walruses, beluga whales and narwhals. Reindeer, arctic foxes and birds are also not protected from its attacks.
It creeps up to the spotted prey from behind the cover, crawling, spread out on the snow or ice, freezing every time it looks around. The bear covers its black nose and eyes with its paws.
Seals try to lie closer to holes and crevices of ice floes, which give them the opportunity to escape into the sea. A bear swimming under ice floes finds these holes with extraordinary skill. If he sees a seal lying on land from afar, he silently plunges into the water and swims towards it against the wind, exposing only his nose, eyes and ears, camouflaging himself behind the ice floes. He swims up, approaches with the greatest caution and suddenly emerges right in front of the seal, which becomes his.
Whenever possible, polar bears pick up dead fish, sea debris, eggs and chicks of seabirds, which otherwise does not happen often. In addition, they rob the warehouses of travelers and hunters. He eats carrion as readily as fresh meat, but he will never touch the corpse of another polar bear. In seas frequented by seal hunters and whalers, the polar bear happily eats the skinned and blubbery bodies of seals and whales. Where possible, they also eat plants, especially berries and moss, which is fully proven by the contents of their stomach.

Behavior: The polar bear has a high level of mental development, an exceptional ability to assess the situation and an excellent orientation system. Wandering in the vast expanses of icy silence, often in conditions of months-long polar night and hurricane winds, he never wanders and knows exactly where he is going and why.
The polar bear has well-developed sensory organs: it has a phenomenal sense of smell and excellent vision. Therefore, when he wanders on large ice floes, he climbs high icy cliffs and from there notices prey from afar. He can smell a dead whale or a piece of bacon roasted over a fire at a great distance (several kilometers), and even tens of them downwind. This determines his hunting style: he slowly walks across the ice fields from ice hole to ice hole against the wind, sniffing and listening, and patiently waits in the wings.
Polar bears are extremely resilient, and although the polar bear's movements on land are clumsy, in the water he is agile and graceful.
The bear's front paws are wide and act as oars while swimming. The speed with which it moves in water is 4-5 kilometers per hour. Shaggy wool soaked in fat does not get wet in water. A thick layer of subcutaneous fat protects against cold and equalizes the specific gravity of the animal’s body with the specific gravity of water. Therefore, it costs a bear nothing to swim several tens of kilometers in the icy sea. He can dive as skillfully as he can swim on the surface of the water. Under water, he keeps his eyes open and his nostrils and ears compressed. It jumps out of the water onto the ice playfully, dives, even jumping from icebergs and hummocks, almost silently and without splashing.
He walks straight, freely jumping over two-meter hummocks and wide cracks in the ice.
Only pregnant females hibernate; all others are active most of the year. Males and bachelors can go to the den mainly when they are starved of food, but not always and not everywhere, and they do not sleep for so long. These predators are not afraid even of severe frosts; the main thing for them is that the sea on which they live and hunt is not completely covered with ice. These animals spend the entire winter on the edges of ice floes, constantly moving from place to place in search of prey.
Most of the life of polar bears is spent wandering. Radio beacons are used to track the movements of polar bears, but they can only be used on female bears. The fact is that they are attached to the animal on a collar, but the males’ necks are thicker than their heads, and the collar simply will not hold on.

The polar bear is one of the largest predators on the planet and a real mystery of nature. We will tell you when it appeared, why it is white, and why it is considered a marine mammal.

Mystery of origin

The origin of polar bears is still a mystery to scientists. It was previously believed that polar bears separated from brown bears about 45 thousand years ago, somewhere on the shores of Ireland.

The closeness of the species was confirmed, among other things, by the possibility of the appearance of fertile offspring as a result of crossing, which rarely happens if the parents are “distant relatives.”

In 2011, scientists, based on genetic research, pushed back the date of the appearance of the polar bear by one hundred thousand years ago. Then zoologists, under the leadership of Frank Huyler, reported that the ancestor of polar bears was a certain brown bear who lived about 150 thousand years ago in the late Pleistocene. Moreover, according to the results of the study, the species formed quite quickly, which was explained by the next cold snap and the need to survive in Arctic conditions.

But a year later, a group of researchers from the German Research Center for Biodiversity and Climate (BiK-F) refuted all previous versions. After analyzing the nuclear DNA of 45 not only white, but also brown and black bears (baribals), they found that brown and polar bears once separated from a common ancestor, Ursus etruscus. So, the polar bear is not a “modification” of the brown one, but its brother. According to this theory, the polar bear appeared 600 thousand years ago, which means it emerged victorious from several ice and inter-ice periods. True, this version also has many opponents, and the question of the origin of polar bears still remains open.

Hibernation is not a habit

Polar bears, unlike their brown counterparts, do not hibernate. In winter they sleep more than in summer, but still this is not hibernation. During the latter, the body’s vital activity practically stops: the heart beats weakly, body temperature decreases. Polar bears' breathing and temperature remain normal no matter how long they sleep. In good weather, they often leave the den to hunt seals on the ice - inaccessible prey in warm seasons.
The situation is different with pregnant females. Polar bear cubs, which are born in the middle of winter, are no larger than humans at birth, and they cannot survive the Arctic winter. Therefore, the female lies in a den when the ice melts and hunting becomes difficult. Cubs are usually born in November-January, and remain in the den until February-March. Males and single females hibernate for a short period of time and not every year.

White color – salvation from the cold

Studying the life of polar bears, you involuntarily sympathize with them - how can one possibly live in such conditions, where the temperature can drop to -70 degrees. However, polar bears themselves usually have problems not with freezing, but with overheating. Especially while running. And all this is due to the physiological characteristics of the bear, which are responsible for maintaining heat.
One of the main secrets of polar clubfoot is its white color. It's all about one of the main methods of heat transfer - infrared radiation, which is scattered between numerous layers of fluff or light-colored fur and slows down cooling. According to the researchers, this blocking of thermal transfer, formed during the process of evolution among the inhabitants of the polar regions, provides effective thermal insulation. This is why polar bears are white - they are warmer.

Marine mammals

The scientific name of the polar bear is Ursus maritimus, that is, “sea bear.” Polar bears are excellent swimmers; they can swim hundreds of kilometers without stopping at an average speed of 10 km/h, which is much faster than their leisurely and measured pace on land. The record polar bear swim was recorded in 2011, when a female bear covered 687 kilometers in 9 days without stopping in search of food. These animals spend so much time in the water that some classifications classify them as marine mammals, along with whales, seals and otters.

Prison for bears

The polar bear's main enemy is man. But for our “kind”, an encounter with the largest mammalian predator on earth often ends in tragedy. In recent decades, polar bears have become frequent visitors to cities in the Arctic Circle. They are attracted to “easy prey” - garbage, pets. Thus, in the vicinity of the Canadian city of Churchill, up to 1000 individuals can roam in the summer. Previously, animals were shot, today the death penalty has been replaced by imprisonment - a prison was built on the site of a former military base for troublemakers.

The term of imprisonment usually ranges from two to 30 days, but in the case of repeated catching of the same bear, the term is increased. The prison diet is quite strict - the animals are given only water. The essence of the method is to develop a feeling of fear in animals when approaching the city. The “criminals” are released closer to winter, when ice appears in the waters of Hudson Bay, and with it, hunting becomes easier.

At risk

Polar bears today are an endangered species. And it’s not even about poachers, but about climate change. According to Canadian biologist Ian Stirling, "Ice break-up in Hudson Bay is about two weeks earlier than it was twenty years ago." This deprives bears of the opportunity to gain the necessary fat reserves before the warm months, when all hunting comes to a standstill. The main prey of polar bears is seals and their cubs, which they usually take out from under the ice when the prey swims up to the hole to “sip” oxygen. In open water, clubfoot has no chance.

Therefore, along with warming and melting glaciers, the population of polar bears is also decreasing. According to researchers, since 1980, the birth rate and average weight of these animals have decreased by about ten percent. In search of food, they have to travel greater and greater distances. For example, the above-mentioned nine-day record swim of a female bear, 687 kilometers long, was caused precisely by the need to find food for her and her one-year-old cub. The latter was unable to cope with such a grueling voyage. According to preliminary forecasts, if the ice cover continues to shrink at the same rate, by the end of the century polar bears will repeat the fate of their extinct relatives.

The polar bear is one of the largest predators on our planet, which lives in very harsh conditions. Nature rewarded him with great strength and endurance, and made sure that this animal did not suffer from severe cold. Let's find out where polar bears live!

Habitats

Polar bears are solitary animals that do not live in packs or even families. They are used to wandering alone in the most remote areas of the Far North. Their home is the Arctic, located in the central part of the Arctic Ocean.

In these parts there is intense cold all year round. And even in summer it is very cold here, and the earth never warms up. This is why the Arctic is called an ice desert: trees, grasses, and flowers do not grow here. The entire territory is covered with ice at least 2-3 m thick.

Rice. 1. Arctic.

In winter, air temperatures in the Arctic can drop to -50C. To survive such harsh weather, a polar bear may leave its native Arctic for a while. Then it can be found in Greenland, Canada, Alaska, Norway, and Russia. But with the arrival of summer, he always returns to the Arctic - this animal can only live in cold climates.

The polar bear is a rare animal and is protected by all northern states. This means that it cannot be hunted, otherwise poachers will face severe punishment.

Features of a polar bear

The polar bear is an eternal wanderer who constantly travels. He is not used to living in one place, and constantly moves around the Arctic and neighboring countries. Very often he makes long journeys on floating drifting ice.

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Rice. 2. Polar bear on an ice floe.

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The polar bear is an incredibly strong and resilient animal. Just think - he is capable of swimming in icy water without rest for up to 80 km!

The King of the Arctic - and this is what the polar bear is often called - may seem clumsy and slow only at first glance. Despite its size and heavy weight (up to 450 kg), it runs very fast, and swims well in water and dives deeply.

But how does a polar bear survive in the harsh conditions of the Arctic? He comes to his aid:

• Very thick, dense wool that warms the animal not only on land, but also in cold water.
• A thick layer of subcutaneous fat that can reach 10 cm in thickness. It warms the bear and helps it survive hungry times.
• White coat color is the best camouflage during hunting.
• The polar bear has well-developed vision, hearing and sense of smell. He can see his prey at a distance of several kilometers, and smell it from 800-900 meters away.

Rice. 3. A bear with a teddy bear.

The polar bear's main prey is walruses, ringed seals and other marine animals. If he is very hungry, he can eat seaweed, bird eggs, and fish.

What have we learned?

While studying one of the topics in the environment program for 1st grade, we found out what continent the polar bear lives on. We learned how this animal adapted to life in a harsh climate, how it lives, what it eats, and how it endures extreme cold.

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