This phenomenon is called delayed implantation. Dens protect newborn cubs from winter's temperature extremes. Listen to the podcast episode about this process. A: During the fall, if a polar bear is pregnant, she digs a den into a snow drift. The females dig maternity dens for their cubs deep in snowdrifts, which insulates them from the fierce Arctic cold. Only around half of all new-born polar bear cubs make it through the first couple of weeks. “After giving birth to one-pound cubs, the mother will nurse, clean, and protect the cubs, not leaving the den until the cubs are ready,” said Alysa McCall, Polar Bears International’s field programs manager and a polar bear biologist. Pregnant female polar bears dig a snow den, give birth, and emerge three months later. However, pregnant polar bears enter dens during the winter to give birth. Come with us on an unforgettable journey behind the scenes during a SeaWorld or Busch Gardens Camp. Every autumn, as the days shorten and temperatures drop, pregnant female polar bears throughout the Arctic begin migrating to den locations to give birth to their cubs. The fur is very fine at birth, making the cubs look hairless.. As we explore their movements and seasonal cycles we will discover what polar bears are doing each season of the year and how they are adapting to their environment. Females can give birth when they become mature but males do not usually start mating until they are eight to ten years old. Losing the polar bear, as well as other plants and animals, is not only a deeply tragic loss: It has huge ramifications for human life as well. For example, female black-bears go into hibernation during the cold winter months in order to give birth to their offspring. Take a closer look at these encyclopedia books including information about animal habitats, behavior, and scientific classification. Pregnant female polar bears dig a snow den in early winter, give birth to cubs usually weighing 500-600 grams in late December, and emerge with cubs weighing 8-10 kg three-to-four months later. Aurora had moved 1,900 miles from Krasnoyarsk in Siberia, to Izhevsk, the Urals Female brown bear usually give birth to two cubs during their hibernation. As they wait for the water to freeze allowing them to begin hunting again, it probably feels like waiting for the holidays to begin! Cubs open their eyes within the first month. Territories may overlap and are not strictly defended. A boar (adult male) weighs around 350–700 kg (770–1,540 lb), while a sow (adult female) is about half that size. Mother and cubs emerge from their den in late March or April. Female polar bears often give birth to twins. Pregnant polar bears will enter a den, and actually give birth during the winter. FOR the first time in a quarter of a century, the UK is hearing the pitter patter of tiny polar bear paws. Interestingly, a female polar bear does not actually implant fertilized eggs until late fall, and only if she has enough fat to sustain herself and her cubs during the long denning season. Historically, polar bears in Hudson Bay weaned in half the current time, due in part to high productivity in that region. In some areas, dens are more than 100 km (62 mi.) During the breeding season male bear growls in order to show aggression to the other male. Females usually dig dens in snowdrifts on southerly facing slopes. The autumn is a very exciting time for polar bears. Other than this polar bears remain active throughout the whole year. Pregnant mothers choose to digs dens on the sides of mountains or where there is a slope. info@pbears.org Mother and cubs emerge from their den in late March or April. However, the fertilized egg does not implant in the uterus and begin to grow until mid-September to mid-October. After feeding throughout the summer and fall, a pregnant female polar bear starts to build a maternity den, where she will give birth to her baby cubs and nurse them until spring. Yes. Each bear occupies a territory from 100 – 300,000 kilometers. During her entire time in the den—four to eight months—the mother doesn't eat or drink. For general questions regarding Polar Bears International and our work, please contact us at They grow rapidly on their mother's rich milk (31% fat), and continue nursing for at least 20 months. Polar bear cubs learn to hunt by watching their mother. Young polar bears may die of starvation or may be killed by adult males, and for this reason female polar bears are extremely defensive of their young when adult males are present. At birth, polar bear cubs weigh about 454 to 680 g (16-24 oz.) Delayed implantation assures that the cub is born during the best time of the year for survival and allows the female to get into good physical condition and use her energy for nursing her newborn cubs. Newborn cubs are 12 to 14 inches long and weigh a little more than a pound. She then waits for the snow to close the entrance tunnel. Some females may seek out maternity dens as early as late August, but most enter dens in mid to late October. Twins are most common. They will continue to care for their young in the first two to three years after birth. The bear has a complicated life cycle and scientists faced extreme difficulty in studying it because one-third of the females return to their den during breeding months. Polar bear mothers retreat to a maternity den during pregnancy, never once emerging for food. Adult males stay with the female for a few days before taking off on their own. By the time the mother and cubs emerge from the den in late March or April, the cubs weigh 10 to 15 kg (22-33 lb.). When a male polar bear crosses the tracks of a female in mating season he will turn to follow in her wake, ... she’ll give birth, and nurse her cubs before the next seal season. It is adapted to living in extreme cold weather conditions. While Polar Bears are isolated animals most of the time, during mating season they will be found in numbers. Polar bears breed between March and May, meaning Victoria only has a few weeks to settle if this year is to be a fruitful one for the programme. The cubs begin walking while in the den at about two months. A female polar bear is less than half the size of a male polar bear. Frequency of Birth. Mating season occurs in the spring, but embryos do not begin to develop until the female enters her den. 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