Polar bears breed in the late spring as the temperatures begin to rise in the Arctic. Like other bear species, however, they don’t really become pregnant at the time of breeding… This is called delayed implantation and allows a female bear to physiologically assess her condition prior to starting gestation and the process of birthing.
Sustained by their mother’s milk in warm dens during long winter months, [the cubs] emerge in the spring large enough to survive with the help of their mother… When they emerge and start exploring the world, their mother heads out to the ice to catch the seals she needs to replenish the weight she’s lost during her period of fasting. Over the next two years the cubs will learn from their mother how to catch seals themselves and to develop the other skills needed to survive and grow to adult size. (NWF)
See polar bear, Siku and his family on the Live Cam here as they enjoy the springtime weather in Ouwehand.
Are Polar Bears more or less successful, on average, at hunting seals than the ocean-going (apex predator) Great White Shark?
This is a great question! We’ll ask Polar Bears International for you and check back in.
Question 2 (while Question 1 remains unanswered) : How long have humans been observing/recording the predation habits/statistics of Polar Bears & Great White Sharks, to date?