Canadian researchers document a rare case of a wild female polar bear adopting an untagged cub, boosting its survival chances in the Hudson Bay.
MANITOBA: Researchers in northern Canada have captured rare video footage of a wild female polar bear caring for an adopted cub.
The footage was recorded during the annual polar bear migration along the Western Hudson Bay in Churchill, Manitoba.
Scientists first encountered the mother bear in spring as she left her maternity den with a single, tagged cub.
Weeks later, they observed the same female with a second, untagged cub, confirming an adoption.
“Cub adoption is relatively rare in polar bears,” said Evan Richardson, a scientist with Canada’s ministry for environment and climate change.
He noted that only 13 cases have been documented in their study population over the last 45 years.
The video shows the two cubs, both aged 10 to 11 months, surveying a snow-covered landscape with the mother pacing behind.
One sequence shows a cub hurrying to join the others.
Researchers do not know what happened to the adopted cub’s biological mother.
However, having a maternal figure significantly increases the cub’s chance of survival into adulthood.
“It’s really a feel-good story to know that this female bear is looking after this cub and that it has a chance at survival,” Richardson said.
He added that female polar bears are “maternally primed” to care for offspring.
The cubs will likely stay with their mother until they are about 2.5 years old.
