Page 40 - World of Animals - Deadly Predators

THE PERFECT The powerful

Arctic grizzly

predator

Polar bears are the world’s largest land
carnivores, weighing up to nearly 730
kilograms (1,600 pounds) and three metres
(ten feet) long. These marine mammals spend
most of their lives on the sea ice of the Arctic
Ocean, which provides the bear a home and
a source of food.
With their 42 long, sharp teeth and long claws,
polar bears can catch, grasp and tear apart the thick
blubber and flesh of their prey. Their favourite foods
are ringed and bearded seals, although they will
scavenge on carcasses or small animals if they are
unable to make a kill. They can also smell their prey
from one kilometre (1.6 miles) away, and can detect
the movement of a seal beneath a metre (three feet)
of snow. These are patient hunters that will wait at a
breathing hole – sometimes for days – for a seal to
come up for air, quickly striking its prey before it can
make its escape.
However, the future of these beautiful, iconic
creatures is at risk. Arctic ice is warming twice as
fast as the rest of the world, threatening polar bears’
capability of raising their young. Other threats to their
habitat include oil and gas exploration work.

Polar bears
are dependent
on the sea ice © Thinkstock
for hunting
and raising GRIZZLY BEAR
their young Ursus arctos horribilis
Lifespan Up to 25 years
Adult weight 363kg (800lb)
Conservation status

A grizzly bear’s bite packs
LEAST CONCERN
enough force to crush a © Getty
bowling ball

Most grizzly bears are found in Alaska and they are able to run at speeds of 48
Canada, just two per cent of their former kilometres (30 miles) per hour.
territory. A pair of these giants even lived Its peculiar shoulder hump gives the
on the grounds of the White House. grizzly bear extra speed when hunting
Grizzly bears are powerful hunters, larger mammals such as reindeer. They
able to break the necks of large prey with also have claws that are ten centimetres
just one strike, yet most of their diet is (four inches) long that they use for
composed of fruits, nuts and roots, and destroying the homes of small animals
animals from mice to moose. One of their and eating them as they attempt to
favourite foods is moths – they can eat escape, or to dig tree roots as food.
POLAR BEAR 40,000 each day. They will even eat other Although grizzly numbers have
Ursus maritimus bears. They are scavengers that can smell increased as a result of conservation, they
Lifespan 20 to 30 years
Adult weight 408-726kg carrion from a distance of 3.2 kilometres are still under threat from overhunting –
(900-1,600lbs) (two miles) away, and despite their size, they are highly prized as trophies.
Conservation status

“Its peculiar shoulder hump gives the
VULNERABLE
grizzly bear extra speed when hunting”

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