Original photo by Hans-Jurgen Mager/ Unsplash
Standing as tall as 10 feet on their hind legs and weighing from 800 to 1,300 pounds for males, polar bears are as imposing as they are majestic. They’re the world’s largest land carnivores, don’t fear humans, and have no natural predators — another way of saying that Ursus maritimus is at the top of the food chain. Though they're sadly considered a vulnerable species, with just 22,000 to 31,000 left in the wild, their conservation status is a result of climate change reducing their sea ice habitat rather than direct threats from other (non-human) animals.
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It's a fibPolar bear fur appears white because it’s translucent, but their skin is actually jet black. Their fur is hollow and causes light to scatter when sunlight bounces off of it, resulting in the snow-white color they’re known for.
Polar bears aren't the only apex predators, of course; they’re joined on that intimidating list by bald eagles, saltwater crocodiles, snow leopards, orcas, and other creatures. Whether humans count as apex predators now is a point of some debate: We certainly dominate the ecosystem, but we eat lower down on the food chain than other apex predators usually do. And as long as bears, sharks, hippos, and other imposing species continue to do their thing, humans will continue to have natural predators, even if most of us are usually lucky enough to avoid being preyed upon.
Numbers Don't Lie
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______ is known as the polar bear capital of the world.
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Churchill, Manitoba, is known as the polar bear capital of the world.
Polar bears can turn green in captivity.
It isn’t just sunlight that makes its way into that translucent fur. When polar bears find themselves in warmer climates — most often in zoos or wildlife sanctuaries — algae can grow in their hair and turn it green. The effect is completely harmless (not to mention oddly adorable) and easily reversible with a salt-solution-infused bath.
Michael Nordine is a writer and editor living in Denver. A native Angeleno, he has two cats and wishes he had more.
