Polar bear facts:
- Polar bear is the largest predator animal on land. Also polar bear is the largest of all bears.
- Polar bears evolved about five million years ago from brown bears. Polar bears adapted to survive in the Far North and also over sea ice.
- Adult male polar bears weigh from 800 to 1,200 pounds. Adult female polar bears normally weigh from 320 to 650 pounds.
- Polar bears sit on the top of the food chain in the Arctic. They prey primarily on ringed seals.
- Polar bears live along shores and on sea ice in the icy cold Arctic. When the weather is exceptionally cold - sea ice forms over the ocean, and many polar bears, except pregnant females, head out onto the ice to hunt seals.
- Polar bears live over five countries: USA (Alaska), Russia, Canada, Norway and Greenland.
- After failing to catch a seal, a frustrated and angry polar bear may kick the snow, slap the ground or hurl chunks of ice. But polar bears do not use any tools, neither blocks of ice, to kill their prey.
- Female polar bears usually bear two cubs. The baby polar bears stay with their mothers for up to two and half years, learning how to hunt and survive in the harsh arctic environment.
- Polar bears have fur and skin that allow them to absorb sunlight and to keep their internal temperature high enough. The fat below their skin insulates them in cold water.
- The polar bears are not left-pawed. Scientists observing the animals have noticed that polar bears seem to use their right and left paws equally.
- Polar bears could swim up to 100 miles (161 kilometers) when they search for food.
- In fall, pregnant polar bears make dens in earth and snow-banks, where they are going to stay through the winter to give birth.