Most commonly found in or around the ice-covered waters of the Arctic, a scientific explanation approximates that there are anywhere between 25,000 to 40,000 polar bears currently living in the world. The areas in which they are most likely to be seen are Alaska, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Svalbard Archepelago in Norway, Canada, and Greenland; the majority being in the Canadian Arctic. Due to the extreme and harsh conditions of which they live in, it is necessary for them to have all of the adaptations that they have.

The polar bear’s white coloring is perhaps one of the most crucial adaptations that they possess. The white coloring acts as a camouflage, being able to blend in with anything – whether it is land, ice, or water. The camouflage is useful when hunting and also when being hunt

In the thirty years that a polar bear is present on the earth, it changes into a very large and powerful creature with a unique body structure, except for some similarities to those of any other type of bear. Although it is equipped for water though, its body structure is still very similar to that of other bears, especially its feet. Its feet, like other bears’ feet except flatter, are called plantigrade feet – feet that have both the sole and the heel coming in contact with the ground at all times. Different than other bears though, the polar bear’s foot has five claws that are sharp and curved in order to make grasping ice and holding onto prey and easier task. Also, to make living on the ice easier, their feet have long hair between the pads. The long hair provides protection from the cold as well as traction on the ice. To swim through the water in which they live, on their forelegs they have stiff hair and their front feet are rather broad. The polar bear’s unique foot structure is very helpful while living and maneuvering themselves throughout the ice and water, but is not the only helpful thing that helps them in these parts.

The prime hunting time for the average polar bear takes place during the months of April through July. At this time ringed seals, the preferred food of the polar bear, are easily spotted and caught. In order to catch a seal, a few different tactics can be utilized by each polar bear. Some of the more common tactics, however, are the ‘stalk’ hunt and the ‘still’ hunt. When the polar bear is stalking the seal, it picks up its smell from far away and slowly gains on it. This is when the color of the polar bear comes in allowing it to not be seen as it inches closer. When the polar bear has come close enough to capture the seal, it does so. This stalking method is the quicker more assertive way of hunting, as opposed to the still method of hunting. When a polar bear decides to hunt a seal by still hunting, this requires usually an average of about fifty minutes of waiting time. The polar bear simply places himself in a strategic position next to the breathing hole of a seal that it has previously spotted. Therefore, when the seal comes up for air, the polar bear will dive into the hole simultaneously capturing the seal. Each method of hunting is equally successful although one may be preferred over the other by different polar bears depending on their strategy.

The ti

Some topics in this essay:
November January, April July, Arctic Due, Greek English, polar bear, , polar bears, polar bear born, polar bear’s, Canada Greenland, bear born, harsh conditions live, late november january, bears polar, born late november, born late, aquatic lifestyle, bear equipped, method hunting, capture seal,