Polar Bears

Are they actually endangered? Why?

Technically not, people class them as ‘Threatened’. They are vulnerable

because of pollution, poaching, polar ice caps melting and climate change. This
means humans are killing of polar bears. In another view, polar bears are slow
reproducers: they use ice for mating and hunting. There is about 22,000 – 40,000 of
them left, more than half in Canada.

Mating

Before they start mating, a few male polar bears would be her love interests.
The males fight violently among themselves until the strongest or largest male wins
and starts chasing the others away.
The mating season is April to May.

Where do they live?

They live in Canada, Russia, Norway, Denmark, Alaska, Finland and Sweden.

How big are they?

Usually they weigh 330 - 1,760lbs, females are smaller. They are about
6.6 – 10ft long, females are smaller.

What do they eat?

Their favourite food is the ringed seal and the bearded seal. They eat the lard,
and leave the corpse for other animals, or smaller polar bears.

What has been done to save the polar bears?

The five nations have agreed to make the polar bear a main concern, and
protect them by signing the International Agreement on the Conservation of Polar
Bears. Polar bears have suffered from different types of hunting, but not restricted to,
loose sport hunting from aeroplanes, and icebreakers, which were considered a
common hunting practice at one time. They even hunt polar bears in den areas, during
the birthing season. Many of these things are now forbidden up in the nations that
polar bears live.
Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Mammalia

Order Carnivore

Family Ursidae

Genus Ursus

Family Maritimus