Polar Bears Get Piggy With It

Scientists re-evaluate thoughts about bear behaviour

A snapshot taken by a British tourist in Svalbard, an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, has caused scientists to re-evaluate their thoughts about polar bear behaviour. The photograph shows a young cub riding on its mother’s back as she swims through the freezing water.

Polar bear cubs have been known occasionally to clamber up while the mother walks through deep snow, but the recent photo indicates the behaviour may be more widespread.

Getting a ride like this may be beneficial in two ways. Firstly, it prevents the cub being submerged in the freezing Arctic water - when cubs are young they have not yet developed a blubbery layer of insulation, and so the cold water could be fatal. And secondly, giving the cub a ride allows the mother to move much faster through the water if she does not have to wait for her baby to catch up.

Adult polar bears are strong swimmers; one tagged polar bear was recorded swimming over 73 kilometres in open water in just one day. Such powerful creatures can easily take the strain of a small bear cub, so the arrangement benefits both members of the duo.

Another adaptation witnessed in polar bears was the adoption of a motherless cub into another litter. Researchers from the University of Alberta, Edmonton recorded a four-month-old cub being taken into an existing litter of two cubs, also in Svalbard.

Unfortunately, behaviour of any kind by polar bears may well cease to be recorded soon, as they are in serious danger of extinction. Experts predict that unless action is taken to stop climate change and the rapid melting of ice at the Poles, the polar bear could disappear within a hundred years.