Polar Bears for Kids | Learn all about these apex predators

Polar bears. Hello there, everybody. Today, we are going to learn about polar bears. You can read along with us by downloading the polar bear lesson plan from our website, learnbright.org. What are polar bears? Do you know what animal is the world's largest four-legged predator? That's right, a polar bear. Adult male polar bears weigh around 1,000 pounds and females weigh about 500 pounds. Scientists measure the height of bears when they are standing on all fours. They measure from their shoulder to the ground. Polar bears are about three to three and a half feet tall when on all four paws. But when they stand on their hind legs, they can be over 10 feet tall. Unlike brown bears, polar bears have pointed teeth, very sharp claws, and a long nose with a highly developed or keen sense of smell. The Latin name for a polar bear is Ursus maritimus, meaning sea bear. These bears are very talented swimmers. Their front paws are slightly webbed, so they can use them like a paddle. They hold their back legs flat like a This helps them to swim quite quickly. In fact, they swim about six miles per hour. Polar bears have a thick body fat and a water-repellent coat that helps them insulate from cold water and air. This is most important because they spend a lot of time on sea ice. Some polar bears have been spotted hundreds of miles away from their homes from using the sea ice and swimming to travel. They are a powerful symbol of strength and endurance. What do they eat? These massive bears roam around the Arctic, spending half of their time hunting for food. Polar bears primarily eat ringed and bearded seals because they need large amounts of fat to survive. They will rest silently outside a seal's breathing hole in the waiting for it to surface. As soon as it does, the polar bear pounces and grabs its meal. While this seems like a foolproof plan, most polar bears only catch one to two seals out of every ten they hunt. But they don't just wait at breathing holes for seals. Polar bears will also hunt when they are swimming below the ice. They will also eat belugas and narwhals. And some polar bears love to eat eggs. So they specialize in plundering an area for eggs or climbing steep cliffs to get them. Other interesting facts. Since polar bears have to walk on ice all day long, their paws have natural no-slip treads. The bottoms of their paws, which are as big as dinner plates, have what's called papillae. Papillae are small, soft bumps that grip the ice to help keep the polar bear from slipping. What color is a polar bear? If you said white, you are wrong. Polar bears actually have black skin and hollow, colorless hair. Their skin is black to attract the sun's rays, and the hollow fur reflects light to trap the sun's heat. This is another way polar bears can stay warm in the cold Arctic temperatures. And I bet you thought their tongues were pink like yours. They aren't. Polar bear tongues are blue. While people bathe in water to keep clean, polar bears stay clean by rolling in the snow or swimming. Rolling in the snow also helps them to cool off when they get too hot. And can you believe that polar bears can overheat? It seems impossible to get too hot in the Arctic. However, on long summer days, there is a lot of sun. Polar bears' black skin soaks up that sun, causing them to overheat. They are built for the cold, so when temperatures rise to about 68 degrees Fahrenheit, it is way too hot for them. Why are they important to the environment? Polar bears are apex predators, meaning they are at the top of the food web in their ecosystem. And large predators serve an essential function in their habitat. In addition, they regulate and control the population of other species. When an animal group loses its natural predators, overpopulation and sickness can occur, damaging the environment. Polar bears rely on sea ice for everything, from hunting to traveling and resting to mating. Unfortunately, polar bears have difficulty adjusting to sea ice loss due to climate change. In fact, the loss of sea ice is the primary threat to polar bears all over the Arctic. As the climate warms, the sea ice melts earlier and forms later, so polar bears have less time to hunt. Whoa! We have learned some cool facts about polar bears. Let's review. Why is sea ice important to polar bears? Sea ice is important for hunting, traveling, resting, and mating. True or false? Polar bears have a keen, highly developed sense of smell. True. Choose the word the author would say best describes the polar bear. A. Minuscule B. Venomous C. Bland D. Enormous E. Gawky D. Enormous Excellent work, polar bear pioneers! Remember to head over to LearnBright.org for more fun animal-themed lesson plans. See you next time! Hope you had fun learning with us. Visit us at LearnBright.org for thousands of free resources and turnkey solutions for teachers and homeschoolers.