As one of the largest land predators, the polar bear needs a lot of food to survive. Thanks to a PBS special called “Canada: Surviving the Wild North,” we see methods that polar bears employ to catch their food.
Polar bears will wait near ice-hole openings while seals take a breath. Hours can pass while they wait for their prey in complete stillness. Polar bears sneak up on their prey by skulking through the water and hiding.
The skilled hunters known as polar bears employ a variety of tactics to surprise their victims. In comparison to other bear species, polar bears are carnivores and eat the most meat. Ringed seals are their main food source for them.
Polar bears thrive on seals since they are a great source of fat and can sustain them for many days’ worth of sustenance. Most of the nutrition that polar bears consume come from seal fat. A typical seal contains more than 100,000 calories.
These bears can grow to a height of over eight feet when on their hind legs and a weight of 1,100 pounds, thus they require a daily caloric intake of 16,000 calories. Polar bears need at least 4 1/2 pounds of fat per day to keep healthy.
On Canada: Surviving the Wild North, we see a polar bear wait and wait for a tasty beluga whale. One of the top comments on the video reads, “Fascinating and such a wonderful video documenting these bears. I find it interesting that they are just studying each other in how to hunt and almost like they are socializing together through hunting.”
Hunting in the Arctic
Belugas are exceptionally social creatures that move, reside, and hunt in groups of a few whales to dozens of whales. Adults often weigh between 1,100 and 2,500 pounds and measure 11 to 15 feet in length. The highest documented adult weight is 3,600 pounds, which would be more than enough food for a polar bear.
©Luna Vandoorne/Shutterstock.com
The white skin of a beluga is an evolutionary characteristic that enables them to blend in with Arctic sea ice and hide from their main predators, orcas, and polar bears. As we see in the video below, it doesn’t always work to keep them safe.
Another comment on the video says, “Honestly, it’s pretty satisfying to see a polar bear find some food and feed itself.”
Swimming speeds for belugas range from two to six miles per hour. They can travel at fourteen miles per hour for roughly fifteen minutes when necessary. This usually happens when they’re attempting to swim away from predators.
Many belugas will go to warmer bays as the coastal glaciers melt in the springtime. Interestingly, belugas thrive close to the coast because they can withstand being trapped on land until the following high tide and can swim in water that is just slightly deeper than their body.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2Q09XMflHE
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