North American Mammal - Polar bear | Natural History Museum of Los Angeles

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Ursus maritimus (Phipps, 1774)

Polar bear diorama in the North American Mammal Hall

Scene:

Bylot Island off northern end of Baffin Island, Northwest Territories, Canada

Sponsor:

Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Logan

Background artist:

Duncan Alanson Spencer (1911-1999)

Polar bears are a top carnivore of the arctic. The remains of their kills provide food for younger, less-experienced bears and for Arctic foxes. Polar bears are potentially dangerous to humans but contact between bears and unwary humans is rare.

Polar bear materials have historically been used by native people of the arctic for fur, meat, and medicines. Hunting by those groups is still allowed in the United States, Canada, and Greenland (Denmark).

Biological Information

Range:

Arctic coasts of North America (south to southern tip of Hudson Bay), Europe and Asia

Habitat:

Ice floes and barren rocky shores

Status:

Vulnerable

Diet:

Mainly seals but also stranded whales and other carrion, birds eggs and vegetation

Further information about this species may be found on the Animal Diversity Web page for polar bear.

Public Service Notice