A Glimpse Into the Life of a Polar Bear

Specialised bear watching tours can see you exploring the Canadian Rockies, hiding out in the Bear hides of Finland, or marvelling at the incredible environment in which the magnificent Polar Bear lives. If you choose the latter, it's fascinating to learn more about these magnificent creatures and how they go about their daily life.

A Polar Bear's Day

Polar Bears are most active during the morning and least active in the evening. In the Arctic, females with cubs have been observed spending about 19% of their day hunting during the springtime months, and about 38% of their day hunting during the summer. Males spend slightly longer hunting than their female counterparts.

So, what are they doing when they are not hunting? If you are lucky enough to spend some time observing these huge mammals on Polar Bear watching holidays, you will note that they spend quite a bit of time resting and sleeping! If it's a warm day they will spread out on the ice and sometimes put their feet in the air, but when it is cooler, they will curl up and usually cover their snout to conserve warmth.

Despite being primarily solitary, an adult female will stay with its cubs for the first two to three years, and breeding pairs will also stick together during the mating season. You might occasionally see groups of Polar Bears feeding together on a large carcass, such as that of a whale, but it is rare for adults to travel or feed together for extended periods of time.

Because of their solitary nature, on bear watching tours, you're most likely to see the animals on their own. That said, however, you might be lucky enough to see a mother interacting with her cubs or a breeding pair that mate frequently. Occasionally, two males will become aggressive towards one another when a female or food is at stake, and an altercation makes for a fearsome experience to observe.

Hibernation

In winter, when food is scarce, females hibernate in order to preserve energy. Polar Bears are not deep hibernators though, and many of their bodily functions still work as normal. Males that do not hibernate when conditions are harsh and food is scarce have an effective way of conserving their energy supplies.

Those embarking on Polar Bear tours will have the opportunity to get up close and personal to these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat, making for a very impressive wildlife experience.

Marissa Ellis-Snow is a freelance nature writer. If you're looking for bear watching holidays, Naturetrek specialises in expert-led natural history and wildlife tours worldwide. Naturetrek brings over 25 years of experience to polar expeditions and tours to other spectacular regions on Earth.