 |
PB1 |
Polar bears are animals that
know no boundaries. They pad across the ice from Russia
to Alaska, from Canada to Greenland and on over to Norway's
Svalbard archipelago. |
 |
PB2 |
Biologists estimate the polar bear population
at 22,000 to 27,000 bears, of which around 15,000 are
in Canada. |
 |
PB3 |
1973, the five nations with polar bear populations
(Canada, Denmark, which governed Greenland, Norway, the
U.S., and the former U.S.S.R.) entered into the International
Agreement for the Conservation of Polar Bears. |
 |
PB4 |
Scientists believe that Ursus maritimus,
the "sea bear," evolved about 200,000 years
ago from brown bear ancestors. |
 |
PB5 |
Polar bears are superbly adapted for survival
in the Far North. |
 |
PB6 |
Polar bears are the world's largest land
predators. They top the food chain in the Arctic, where
they dine primarily on seals. |
 |
PB7 |
Adult male polar bears weigh from 775 to
more than 1,500 pounds. Females are considerably smaller,
normally weighing 330 to 550 pounds. |
 |
PB8 |
An adult polar bear's only enemies are human
hunters and, on rare occasions, other bears. |
 |
PB9 |
Polar bears communicate with each other
through a combination of body language and vocalizations.
|
 |
PB10 |
A deep growl serves as a warning to other
bears. Growls are frequently employed to defend a food
source. |
 |
PB11 |
In the wild, adult polar bears live an average
of 15 to 18 years, though biologists have tagged a few
bears in their early 30s. |
 |
PB12 |
For at least 20 months, polar bear cubs
drink their mother's milk and depend on her for survival.
|
 |
PB13 |
Their mother's success at hunting seals
directly influences the cub's own well-being. |
 |
PB14 |
The world's densest concentration of polar
bear birth dens lies off the Siberian coast of Wrangel
Island. |
| |
|
|
