Polar bears are the only bear species to be considered marine mammals.
Beneath all that thick fur, polar bears have jet black skin.
Polar bears can swim for long distances and steadily for many hours to get from one piece of ice to another.
Although about half of a polar bear’s life is spent hunting for food, their hunts are rarely successful.
An innovative new technique developed by WWF and DNA specialist firm SPYGEN allows scientists to isolate DNA from a polar bear’s footprint in the snow.
While climate change remains the greatest threat to the polar bear’s survival, that is not all that the predator is up against.
As recently as 2006 genetic testing confirmed the existence of polar bear-grizzly bear hybrids, also known as ‘grolar bear’ or ‘pizzly bear’.