How do polar bears raise their young cubs to survive in the wild and why must they stay with them for so long?
Mother polar bears are pregnant for about eight months at a time and they usually give birth about every three years. In order to become successfully pregnant, mother polar bears must gain at least 441 lbs or 200kg, to support her cubs. Mother polar bears almost always give birth to twins, but they have a one percent chance of giving birth to triplets. The scientific process of the baby development in the mother includes a period of delayed implantation. The fertilized egg divides into a hollow ball of cells one layer thick (a blastocyst),and then stops growing and it lies free-floating in the uterus for about four months. After this period of time, the blastocyst then implants in the uterine wall and continues to develop. The embryonic development (the making of the cub in the uterus) takes about four months. The reason for delaying implantation is so that the cub will be born during the best time of the year for survival and it allows the female to get into good physical condition and use her energy for nursing her newborn cubs.
Mother polar bears either look for a den or construct one in October to prepare for the birth of their young in November. They need an insulated place to keep their cubs warm throughout their first 12 to 18 weeks because they aren't born with enough blubber to insulate their bodies themselves. The den also provides the young cubs with protection from their predators: the arctic fox and competitive adult male polar bears. As the pups are bonding with their mother, she is providing them with very nutritious milk that helps them to grow very quickly in size and weight (they build insulating layers of blubber during this time) and in a few months, they'll be able to eat solid food. The cubs' new fur comes in from 8-10 weeks. Throughout this time, they are learning from their mother and copying her habits.
At three to four months, the cubs venture outside of their den with their mother. "Mom" teaches them survival and hunting skills out in the wild and they stay close to her every step of the way. The mother shows her cubs how to stalk prey that is on the surface and teaches them to keep their heads low and blend with the snow drifts. They are taught to use stealth to follow their prey and then rapidly advance when the opportunity is right. Seals in particular are very vulnerable when they are cut off from their escape hole back in to the water. The baby polar bears observe and follow their mother during the hunt as they will have to do for themselves once they reach adulthood. The pups, however, learn to swim on their own, as soon as they touch the water. There is a lot of training that these cubs need to go through and they can't leave their mother until their old strong enough to survive on their own. At age two, the cubs are old enough to venture on their own into the Arctic by themselves.
Mother polar bears either look for a den or construct one in October to prepare for the birth of their young in November. They need an insulated place to keep their cubs warm throughout their first 12 to 18 weeks because they aren't born with enough blubber to insulate their bodies themselves. The den also provides the young cubs with protection from their predators: the arctic fox and competitive adult male polar bears. As the pups are bonding with their mother, she is providing them with very nutritious milk that helps them to grow very quickly in size and weight (they build insulating layers of blubber during this time) and in a few months, they'll be able to eat solid food. The cubs' new fur comes in from 8-10 weeks. Throughout this time, they are learning from their mother and copying her habits.
At three to four months, the cubs venture outside of their den with their mother. "Mom" teaches them survival and hunting skills out in the wild and they stay close to her every step of the way. The mother shows her cubs how to stalk prey that is on the surface and teaches them to keep their heads low and blend with the snow drifts. They are taught to use stealth to follow their prey and then rapidly advance when the opportunity is right. Seals in particular are very vulnerable when they are cut off from their escape hole back in to the water. The baby polar bears observe and follow their mother during the hunt as they will have to do for themselves once they reach adulthood. The pups, however, learn to swim on their own, as soon as they touch the water. There is a lot of training that these cubs need to go through and they can't leave their mother until their old strong enough to survive on their own. At age two, the cubs are old enough to venture on their own into the Arctic by themselves.