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From cub to parent, the polar bear lives an extraordinary life that’s uniquely adapted to the frigid Arctic sea ice.
Totally dependent on their moms, newborns are 30-35 centimeters long (12 to 14 in) and weigh little more than half a kilogram (1 lb). They’re blind, toothless, and covered with short, soft fur.
Cubs generally stay with their mother for up to 2 1/2 years, learning how to hunt, feed, swim, and survive.
Sea ice is as important to the Arctic ecosystem as soil is to a forest. Polar bears rely on sea ice to hunt, mate, travel, and sometimes den.
Calorie-rich ringed and bearded seals are the polar bear’s main prey, which they catch from the surface of the sea ice.
While climate change remains the biggest threat to polar bears, other concerns include conflict, development, and overhunting.
The main threat polar bears face is sea ice loss from climate warming. The bears are listed under a variety of classifications, depending on international, national, and regional regulations. Internationally, they are listed as a vulnerable species by the IUCN. However, in Canada, the U.S. and Russia, they have more specific classifications.
Polar bears play an important role in Indigenous Arctic cultures, and have done so for thousands of years. Today, many communities and Indigenous peoples co-exist with polar bears across the North, both on the Land and on the sea ice.
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