Arctic Ursine Mother Takes In Cub in Infrequently Recorded Case
Scientists tracking wild polar bears in northern Canada witnessed something exceedingly rare this fall: a female bear taking in a cub that was not biologically her own.
The half-decade-old maternal bear and her nearly year-old cubs were observed and captured on camera during the yearly polar bear migration along the Western Hudson Bay near the Manitoba town of Churchill, an area known for its concentration of Arctic bears.
"It's unusual," stated a scientist with a polar bear conservation group. "The reasons are unclear why it occurs...but we know it is a rare event at all."
This represents only the 13th known case of fostering out of nearly five thousand bears researched for almost fifty years in the area.
The female bear was first captured as she came out from her maternity den this spring. Initially, she had one cub, which researchers marked for study.
In the autumn, she was spotted once more, but this time with two cubs - the initially tagged cub and a second that was untagged. Scientists aren't sure what became of the second cub's biological mother, but they are attempting to identify her using genetic samples.
"These animals need all the help they can get these days with a warming climate," noted a polar bear scientist. "When mother bears have the chance to pick up an additional youngster and raise it and successfully wean it, it's a good thing for the bears."
Polar bears in the natural world only have a fifty-fifty survival rate of living into maturity, but having a maternal figure caring for them improves their odds.
The cubs appear to be healthy, according to experts, and they will probably remain with their mother until they are about 30 months of age.
Next, the family is expected to head out to sea ice, where the cubs will be taught from their mother how to hunt seals and live on their own.
"It is heartening to know that the animals are looking out for each other," concluded the scientist.