Sunday, December 12, 2010
TT - 13 Interesting Facts about Polar Bears
Polar bears are the largest land predator in the world.

A polar bear’s fur is not white; it is colorless. A reflection off the bear’s fur shatters light and makes the fur look white.

If you plucked out a polar bear’s fur (which I don’t recommend) you would find that its skin is black. The black skin absorbs the light from the sun and keeps the polar bear warm when temperatures plummet to -50 degrees Fahrenheit

Almost five inches of blubber provides polar bears with an insulating blanket.

If temperatures plummet, polar bears dig a snow cave, curl up into a ball and cover their nose with a paw. Why? Because the bear’s muzzle radiates heat and helps it to keep warm.

A polar bear has small ears and a small tail in proportion to the rest of its body. Being so compact heat cannot be lost through these areas.

Polar bears can communicate with others of their species through body language and vocal sounds.

Adult polar bears love mock battles and fighting. It’s their form of entertainment.

Submissive polar bears always travel down wind of dominant polar bears in order to avoid confrontation.

Polar bears signal aggression by lowering their head, hissing and snorting. If a polar bear is planning to attack, its head will be down and its ears will be laid flat on its head.

Male polar bears, called boars, can weigh 770 to over 1,400 pounds. Female polar bears, called sows, weigh about 330 to 550 pounds. But the biggest polar bear ever known was a male weighing 2,209 pounds and measuring twelve feet long.

Their nostrils actually close up under the water and they can easily swim for many hours at a time.

A polar bear's tongue is black

posted by Nature Mad @ 8:05 AM  
21 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home