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| Class: Mammalia: Mammals | Diet: Large and small mammals, fish, birds, berries, leaves |
| Order: Carnivora: Carnivores | |
| Size: body:12.2 - 2.5 m (7 1/4 - 8 1/4 ft), tail: 7.5 - 12.5 cm (3 - 5 in) | |
| Family: Ursidae: Bears | Conservation Status: Vulnerable |
| Scientific Name: Ursus maritimus | Habitat: coasts, ice floes |
| Range: Arctic Ocean to southern limits of ice floes | |
A
huge bear with an unmistakable creamy-white coat, the polar bear is surprisingly
fast and can easily outrun a caribou over a short distance. It wanders
over a larger area than any other bear and, of course, swims well.
Seals,
fish, seabirds, arctic hares, caribou, and musk oxen are the polar bear's
main prey, and in the summer it also eats berries and leaves of tundra
plants.
Normally
solitary animals outside the breeding season, polar bears mate in midsummer.
A litter of 1 to 4 young is born after a gestation of about 9 months, and
the young bears remain with their mother for about a year. Thus females
breed only every other year.
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