Snowy land where polar bears are found

The Arctic is the territory adjacent to the North Pole. It includes the Arctic Ocean and islands off the coasts of North America and Eurasia. This is the land where polar bears are found. Even its name comes from the Greek "arctos", which means a bear. And it is in these harsh conditions that an amazing and somewhat mysterious wanderer of ice deserts dwells.

Do not change the harsh environment

The world where polar bears are found are the ice fields of the islands of the Arctic Ocean and the coast of the continents. A truly wild edge. Despite this, the bear that lives here easily finds food and shelter among the cold endless ice. It often happens that together with floating floes polar bears get to Iceland, and also to the Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan. But after such a journey, they always return to their familiar surroundings, making huge transitions overland, moving strictly north.

Scientists have noticed that the bear white is very attached to certain places, in particular he likes sources of water that are ice-free. In winter, the beast prefers the southern outskirts of the Arctic ice. But in the summer the bears wander more widely, even reaching the north pole. The places where they are found are the entire Arctic. But from 88 degrees north and further north, the beast is very rare.

How to survive in the icy world

How much does a polar bear weigh? Adult males, especially those found in the Bering Sea, can reach a height of three meters and weigh up to a ton and even more. These are the real giants. Such an animal easily overcomes deep snow and quickly moves across the ice, passing a day to 30-40 km. Two-meter ice hummocks are also not a problem for bears, which is a bit surprising given their huge size. In addition, polar bears are fine swimmers. They are able to overcome swimming up to 80 km in the icy water of the Arctic. There was even a case when the bear swam 685 km, while losing weight by 48 kg (20% of her weight).

All of them are adapted to survive in the midst of cold ice. White wool absorbs well the light of the sun, and he in these parts is worth its weight in gold. Hollow hair contains air, helping to keep warm. A powerful layer of fat under the skin in winter reaches 10 cm in thickness.

This severe giant feeds on marine animals: walrus, seals, etc. Hunting, he strikes his head with a blow to the head, when it pops out of the water, and then pulls it out onto the ice. However, the walrus in this way can not be overcome, with it a white predator can only cope on land. The bear regains its skin and fat, if there is no special hunger, the rest of the carcass gets to the arctic foxes.

Severe conditions of the Arctic region, where there are polar bears, do not allow these animals to multiply violently. In all his life, a bear can produce no more than 15 cubs. At the same time, mortality among the young reaches 30%. If you still take into account the poaching of this beast, then the conclusion emerges about the threat of the existence of polar bears as a species.

The polar bear became the hero of many fairy tales, legends, films and cartoons. People like these furry Arctic bears, sometimes so funny. And the edge where the polar bears are found remains mysterious and unexplored for most of us.