Kalluk is more than ready for love!
Some of you have noticed our male polar bear, Kalluk, and his “dance” of frustration in the past few days. We only see this from him during breeding season, typically at the beginning of the season as hormone levels are building, and then just before breeding when Chinook is not submitting, and then after the breeding cycle is done and Chinook is again not submitting.
We have observed that male polar bears go into a breeding set hormonally before the females do, and it lasts longer as well. In the wild, a male would breed with a female and then go find another willing mate; thus, a good reason for their season to last longer. The frustrated walk has been observed in the wild with both polar bears and brown bears in some situations.
Luckily, it would appear that in honor of Valentine’s Day Chinook is ready to breed, and our boy is finally losing some of his frustration!
JoAnne Simerson is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Polar Bears White and Brown.
It’s great to hear Chinook may finally reward Kalluk’s ardent wooing. I have certainly seen times of frustration but guess I missed his ‘dance’.
Kalluk’s dance was so sweet Im glad his persistence and patience payed off I was feeling so sorry for him walking back and forth with no responce from our dear Chinook felt sorry for his feet what a wonderful thing we have all been able to watch maybe the making of little polar bears for the zoo,and for all of you who care and love them what a wonderful job Im thankful i can watch them every day
when i go to work! Makes going to work alittle eaiser thank you so much Barbara.
I hope he remembered to buy her chocolate.
I have seen him ‘dancing’ before. If all else fails, he can go jump into the very cool pool.
He danced last night for almost 30 minutes while I was watching and she was laying in the dirt not even paying any attention to him! I wish we had sound.. he looked like he was making lots of noise!
I saw that. Before I read the blog post I thought he was having a mental break down.
awww ….poor polar bear – lol I saw yesterday he did jump into the pool to cool off! lol -
I’ve been watching them live and on the web cam and I’m thinking… it’s time!!! He’s being such a love.
Like usual I missed this. Did they breed yesterday?
I had received an email about donating for the snow. I’ve misplaced the email and I don’t see snow on the wish list. Can someone post a link please?
Moderator’s note: Thanks to a generous donor, we now have the money we need to make it snow for our polar bears! There are still other items on our animal care Wish List, if you are interested
Can’t wait to see this!!!… Wait.. what am I saying.. I live in a state that has snow for the PB’s to roll in! But it will be fun to watch anyway. Thanks for everyone who donated.
YAYYY !!! Snow…
Any chance you already know when this will be?
Moderator’s note: It hasn’t been scheduled yet, but we will be sure to announce the date when we know.
Yay! That is wonderful news!
I caught one of the bears walking back and forth a while back. Couldn’t tell who it was. I don’t think it is the “dance” you are talking about but it was funny to watch. It went on and on for the longest time. Back and forth, back and forth.
There he goes again. He’s dancing right now!
Happy Valentine’s Day, Kalluk & Chinook!! Maybe a day late, but I’m glad that the 2 of them are finally getting interested in each other again! Now, the hard part starts again–all this time in the next few months waiting to see if Chinook is pregnant and possibly having a cub or two! Counting the days and weeks!!
Chari Mercier
St. Pete, FL
I am hoping for a polar bear cub this time. Kalluk, did you remember a dozen roses to go with the chocolate?
Maybe, Kalluk should take it to the next notch and consider something in a velvet box that says he would marry her all over again.
This is so funny. I have now seen three years of Kalluk’s dancing and you feel so badly for him! At least they both are in the mood now, which is a good sign. That is a lovely picture of him, BTW. It is always nice to see them snow white like that! He has cute lips! lol Smooch! ♥
Do you ever do AI with polar bears? We get so into the waiting game each year but when it turns out that no cubs are born we, and all the staff are so sad. Maybe this year….
JoAnne Simerson responds: We aren’t considering AI as we don’t yet know enough about polar bear reproduction to even attempt it!
Hello to everyone, you all do such amazing work at the San Deigo Zoo that I hate to complain. I know the cams are ran by different people at different times and most of the time it`s awsome. But today at 12:30 pm cst who ever was running it made it very frustrating to watch. they would just run past the bears & look at anything but the bears. Even a blank wall. I love to watch them even when they are just sleeping. I just thought you would like to know. I wish I still lived in San Deigo I would love to run a cam. Keep up the great work, & again i`m sorry for complaining.
Moderator’s note: Our server went down for a while, so our Cam operator could not control the Cam. It seems to be working now.
I’m soooo sorry, I never even stopped to think that the cam might be broke. I guess we are so spoiled to watching our bears that I just got frustrated. Thankyou for explaining!
Is Kalluk also likely to breed with “sister” Tatiq? It doesn’t appear that she has been physically separated from the other two, so I’m curious as to whether she is as sexually attractive to him as Chinook during his breeding season. If so, does she have some sort of birth control in place to prevent an inbred pregnancy?
Moderator’s note: Tatqiq has a contraceptive implant.
I’m watching now and one of the bears (the biggest one) is walking backwards and swaying his/her head from side to side. Is this kalluk doing his dance? The other smaller bear is around, sniffing her/him. Who is bigger, Chinook or Kalluk?
Moderator’s note: Yes, that is Kalluk’s “dance.” He is much larger than the two females.
YAY! I’m happy I finally caught him dancing. It was cute how they were flirting. The cam was having issues so I don’t know what happened after her “cornered” her, but hopefully some mating occured.
When Chinook is in her corner and Kalluk is dancing backwards, almost trying to lure her out with his swinging of his neck and his adorableness, is this when Chinook is playing hard to get? Is she retreating from him? I cannot see close up enough, but do you have the burlap bags down again? I remember that seemed to give them a romantic mood for getting on with things!
i was there on the 9th – and there was so much swimming and *roughhousing* going on – was that chinook and kalluk? it was adorable when chinook balanced the red ball on her nose – like a seal. i’m assuming it was tatiq who was way in the back of the area…
It is very heartbreaking to see Tatqiq be by herself all the time .. does she get any extra special attention seeing that she is left alone so much?? She was just down by the water all by herself and she looked so sad
I saw her too! She was all brown! Maybe she wants to be transferred to the brown bear enclosure
Jo-Anne, just wondering… How would it be like if we were to put a polar and brown or black bear in the same enclosure? Has it been done? Immediate fight, or same reactions as if they were two bears of the same color/species introduced to each other?
Hard to say, but it would mostly depend on the individual bears, their age and gender, their history, and their personality. It has been done in the past, but I am not aware of it recently.
Is Chinook playing hard to get – poor Kalluk has to go for a swim in the cold water and she just sits there eating her carrots – does she not know that Kalluk is the only game in town and he is such a handsome devil to boot.
Hi JoAnne!
So cute to see those two flirting…
Any timeframe yet on when the snow is coming?
There is another snow day anounced on the wish list page, for those who want to donate.
Moderator’s note: Yes, we’re trying to get a 2nd snow day for the bears! Here’s the link…
what’s up with the camera pointed at a rock for the last 15 hours?
I’m beginning to feel Kalluk’s frustration.
Moderator’s note: We are having some problems with our camera and are working to correct them.
I am also frustrated, all day today the camera begins moving; but ends up staying anyplace where the bears aren’t. It may pass the bears but instead of stopping on them it continues moving until it lands on a wall or a rock and stays there for hours.
I hope this is not what we have to look forward to on the days that the snow is there.
Why does Chinook just seem to ignore Kalluk’s constant dancing? Is she still not yet ready to breed?
The cameras aren’t focusing on our loving polar bears today. Have they mated yet? We are anxious to know if there might be cubs.
Moderator’s note: We continue to have Cam issues we are working to resolve. As for future cubs, we won’t know for a long time if Chinook is pregnant this year. Have patience
who is the dirty brown bear as of late? I cant figure it out. ????
Moderator’s note: It could be Chinook. Check out the post Polar Bears Brown and White.
thanks for keeping us informed here in cyberland. we really appreciate your keeping us abreast of everthing!!! I so love the bears and all their fun antics when in the water and playing with the balls and each other!
I wonder moderator if at all possible you could ask the people that work with the gorillas for an up-date! the last up-date was in sept. 2010 I don’t know how to reach them. they are also my favorite but they are kind of sketchy on information.
thanking you in advance. bear, elephant, and gorilla lover!
Moderator’s note: We hope to have a new ape post soon.
I think kalluk is playing guardian of the carrot piles today. it’s so funny. tatquq goes after a carrot & he tries to stand over them. she kind of pushes her way in and steals a carrot and then swims off with one. when she gets out of the water to get one he chases and follows her all over until she runs away & dives into the water. then it starts all over again! too funny! it’s like a game with them. I never see all three bears together anymore, how come? one is a loner or what?
I stand corrected. maybe that wasn’t kalluk’s sister after all I now see the big guy trying to mate with the female! maybe that’s why he wouldn’t leave her alone eh?
hopefully, something good comes from this. shows how much I know!
They’ve just done it, all in front of the crowd. I watched it all. So now they’re officially steadies.
YAY! Hopefully her impregnated her! JoAnne what is the gestation period?
195 to 265 days!
omg! Miss Chinook was playing with a bone and at 6:30 am Pacific time floated from the glass window over to the “shore” with it on her head. She looked like Pebbles Flintstone hahahaha
Kalluk is being very patient and gallant letting Chinook eat all his carrots, but she is in the water and he is refusing to go in. We all know what is on his mind! Poor Tatqiq seems so out of place and unhappy. This stress must not be very good for her, every year for several months. Does she get her own private time in the plunge so she can play and swim anywhere she wants and use her toys? Can Kalluk and Chinook take private sessions to the other enclosure and trade the bears off like you used to do? I wish I were a polar bear to keep Tatqiq company. We would play with pink balls and stash things in the tube and shelf all day long!
Yes, Tatqiq does get some private time in the plunge and good social time in back with her keepers. And yes, we do trade enclosures off, just not as frequently when the lovebirds are active!
February 21, 14pm
Where are the cute polar bears ?????
I am very curious about some bear behaviour, with Kalluk, right now. He is doing the same thing right now as he did yesterday. Chinook is eating all the carrots and he is just standing there, mostly still, head down in almost a submissive way, while she happily munches away. What is he doing? Is he protecting her? Claiming his rights and making sure no male bear sneaks up to mate with her? Is he showing her love by sharing his food? It is adorable and serene, and Chinook is making the most out of this attention! She is crunching away like there is no tomorrow! No sign of poor Tatqiq.
I think it’s just sort of a submissive posture, intended to show that he is deferring to her. In bear terms, I think this is meant to be romantic.
It is kind of cute, isn’t it? He reminds me of Eyore from Winnie the Pooh. He just looks so humble, but you know he is thinking about what happens after the carrots! lol
Some of Kalluk’s behavior is standing by guarding Chinook. But now, after a week of breeding, much of it is just plain tired! Tatqiq may be in the polar bear park yard or with her keepers getting extra attention!
It begs the question: Does he have any idea what he might be guarding her from?
JoAnne responds: Yes: moving independently away from him. He’s not worried about any other bears challenging him, but he’s not going to let her wander off, either!
Ah, so the old ball and chain works both ways! Aha! Thank you, Kalluk! I would send you a smooch but Chinook might get jealous!
Whomever or whatever is manning the Polar Cam really knows when to move away from the polar bears – I guess he/she wants them to have some privacy – haha.
Moderator’s note: We are a family cam
i have sat in front of this computer all day and when chinook finally seems willing the camera was turned all the way to the other side of the plunge. Why is it we dont get to know if the deed is done?
Are there things you can’t show on camera with the bears? I ask because twice now the cameras have been on the bears when he starts to ‘engage’ and then the camera moves to show us the wall or the empty water.
Out of curiosity, if this is a family cam, do you shoo away all the kids from the plunge area when they are mating, as well? I say this in all seriousness. I am just as curious as the next person about the mating process of polar bears and keeping the species alive. When I was little I saw animals mating at the local zoos we visited, and always in the wild or our backyard. It never scarred me and my parents were very strict, yet approving of this. I could not swear or drink or smoke, at all, (wonderful rules, I might add) yet I was brought up on National Geographic magazine, backyard birding at a young age, watching Jacques Cousteau and Wild Kingdom for tv (not allowed to watch cartoons!). I was taught the facts of life in a natural and gentle way. Through our fellow animal kingdom. If I had children, I would be teaching them the same way. I would far rather they watch nature take place in a normal setting than through rated R shows or internet sites! Let nature lead the way!
Debi, I am glad you asked that question. Yes, when we go to the zoo and mating is happening, they do not shoo the people away (especially monkeys).. When Gao Gao and Bai Yun mated, I believe we saw it on the cam or was that on You Tube.
Who is that brown bear on the Cam at the moment – it is a solitaire bear – usually Chinook likes to wear her brown coat but Kalluk is not shadowing her.
There is a bear that is currently passed out flat on his/her tummy, surrounded by carrotts. Is this Kalluk?
The bear on camera is sleeping so peacefully. Maybe OD’ed on the carrots?
I missed the dance – darn. I love these bears.
FYI – the panda cam has shown the ‘dirty deed’ in the past.
Are those little white foxes in the background of the polar bear exhibit?
Moderator’s note: Yes, those are our Arctic foxes. See post New Neighbors for Polar Bears.
Thanks for the post – the foxes are very entertaining and they enjoy watching the polar bear plunge being cleaned in the morning. I hope they do have little ones eventually.
Why are we staring at a wall???? I can see in the reflection of the glass bears swimming and playing with a pink or red ball.
Moderator’s note: We are still having difficulties with our Polar Cam, which we are working to resolve.
I think Taqiq is playing with her red ball but the camera is turned away – she seems to be have a great time against the glass.
Taqiq seems to be enjoying her carrots. Great picture – the cam seems to be working very well.
Thanks again.
I just noticed one of the bears is practicing his backstroke for the upcoming Animal Olympics.
That’s usually Chinook, practicing HER backstroke.
Hmmm… I see two very dirty bears napping, but they are not sharing the mulch bed. Has the romance been rather fleeting this year?
is mateing season over? I missed everything just started watching it today or can you see it on places like youtube now? Love polar bears can’t wait to keep watching!
I have a question relative to where the polar bears sleep at night. Are they taken inside during the evening hours and then released after the pool is cleaned in the morning? I understand this might be considered a security question, but trust me, I have no plans to kidnap a polar bear
just curious because I don’t see them out early in the day like the pandas, or often the elephants. Do they have their own rooms? and do they have a common area for evening visits with each other? i.e. this time of year! Many thanks.
I saw one of the polar bears out one morning about 6:30 a.m. San Diego time. I guess the bear was out before the cleaning crew came in.
Thanks Shirley – I’ll keep watching, but I’m still curious if they have bedrooms!
The bears have access at night to both bedrooms and either the exhibit or the polar bear park.
I guess everything is back to normal at the Polar Bear Plunge – the bears are doing their normal thing – eating carrots and going for a swim when the fancy suits them.
I just saw Kalluk doing a vigorous version of his frustrated polar bear dance, but no sign of Chinook. Either she is hiding in the water or off screen in a corner! Is she playing hard to get or figures it is about time for JoAnn to do fun belly rubs accompanied by yummy, yummy treats?!!
Hi JoAnne,
I have a question for you..on the dance of love that we are watching on the cam..When he’s dancing..does he make any sounds, is he in any pain..maybe an Ice Pack might help! Thanxs for all yr updates!
Kalluk does not vocalize when he “dances.” He will, however, if he loses sight of Chinook or she walks away from him; he makes a chuffing-huff until she acknowledges him.
I’m seeing two polar bears right now, and behind a fence is a keeper and what appears to be a white fox walking about (is their such a critter as a white fox?, don’t know, but it sure is pretty, big fluffy tail) it is definitely not Boris
and is on the other side of the plunge area. Any ideas?
Moderator’s note: That’s our Arctic fox. Here’s a post about them…
Thank you Ms Moderator. Great post and the Artic Fox is very beautiful indeed.
You must go through a lot of carrots for the polar bears. I eat a lot of carrots but I believe the bears beat me by a mile?
They must have EXCELLENT eye sight.
Oooh! Who got the nice yummy bone next to the carrots? Someone is a very happy bear!!!
Is there a date set for the Polar Bear snow day or did I miss it?
Moderator’s note: No date set yet.
I was just wondering how tall is Kulluk,Tatqiq,Chinook when you look at them on their fours its hard to tell I know chinook is bigger then she looks I saw her doing her ultra sound she filled up her training cage I did not realize how large they are! Thank you all for your time and love of our wonderful bears cant wait for the snow days! Barbara from Phoenix.
Moderator’s note: They can be over 5 feet tall at the shoulder when standing on all fours. They are indeed an impressive animal!
If Chinook doesn’t get pregnant this time, is there any plans to bring in some sperm from some other zoo?
Also are there any plans to mate Tatqiq with anyone?
JoAnne Simerson responds: We aren’t considering artificial insemination as we don’t yet know enough about polar bear reproduction to even attempt it! There are no plans to breed Tatqiq at this time.
Thank you JoAnne, Kalluk must be losing weight from all his dancing. Good luck with Chinook.
To All: If you haven’t begun following the antics of the baby polar bear at the Aalborg Zoo in Denmark, I highly reccomend you do
Here is a You Tube Link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxVEpKYiou0&feature=feedu
Do not miss the first day in the snow video after you watch the link above
Ms Simerson,
I was wondering how long you have worked at the San Diego zoo? And have you always work with Polar bears. How long did you go to school and are you a vet Dr.
I think you have the best job in the world and most rewarding, careing for the wonderful bears I cant even imagine what it would be like for you on a daly basis getting so close with them. I know the zoo got the bears due to their moms being shot so you are all they have ever known why are they in cages when you interact with them is it not safe they really havent been wild bears. Just wanted to know! Thank you so much for your hard work everyone and hopeing for the baby bear paw prints this year love hugs and kisses to the bears of the plunge Barbara from Phoenix!
I’ve been at this zoo 23 years. I do have a college degree, which equipped me with a great foundation to learn from some of my greatest teachers and mentors – the animals.
Lazy Sunday afternoon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d42WETplhJg
Everyone is separated today! One bear (Tatqiq?) is under the ledge eating some snacks. Chinook looks white as can be and sleeping, or trying to sleep, beautifully on a mulch bed. Kalluk is doing his Dance of Frustration, trying to look buff and impress her. She seems very disinterested! Men. They only have one thing on their mind!
Warm for her form!
I was lucky to witness some beautiful early morning polar bear swimming today! Kalluk (I suppose it was him) was swimming with total abandon – before 6am – and just for himself, no crowds to impress – back and forth, back and forth, with Olympic precision. He’d push off backwards from the rocky ledge with big front paws, kicking off under water, creating a big splash as his back hit the surface, and swam to the glass doing a modified backstroke, and then woosh! with one arm up to catch the wall behind him, he’d stick his two legs UP in the air, do an impressive yet effortless back flip/somersalt nose dive and completely submerged himself, as he glided under water all the way back to the rocky ledge in the quickest blink of an eye! He repeated this happy swim again and again and again: flip, splash, glide, up, out, push off, splash, swim. I watched for at least 30 minutes and wow did he have fun! Sometimes he sneak-attacked his ball and boinked it on his nose right out of the water and rolled it down the back of his neck – but then it was back to doing laps,sometimes diagonally, sometimes straight lines. I’ve seen the bears mostly sleeping, so now I know they get PLENTY of exercise when most of US are sleeping! And are talented swimmers too!
Are you sure that was Kalluk? I know Chinook is famous for her elegant precision swimming, back and forth, in a perfect line, for a long period of time. They all seem to be in the water more these days, which is always so much fun to watch!
You probably witnessed Chinook doing her famous lap swims. Like you, I have watched her do that over and over and over again. She certainly has fun, doesn’t she!
Moderator’s note: It was indeed Chinook this morning.
My bad, it was Chinook swimming this morning! Wow can that sweetie swim! Hope she teaches her babies those skills!
Have you ever tried a big tractor tire for the bears? They have one at the Aalborg zoo and they love it. I watch the baby all the time and she is so cute and fun. Hopefully you will have one next year. Is the mating season over? It looked like it did not go to well. Is that true?
Moderator’s note: We won’t know for some time if breeding season was successful.
Her body and her hormones control it all. I think it’s still mysterious why and how it prepares her to breed at some times and not at others. Fertile periods aren’t regular, as with human females. It’s early in the season, and I think she might likely come into estrus again.
Kalluk and Chinook are having fun in the water. Chinook swimming about playing hard to get and occasional little muzzling with Kalluk. Kalluk chasing her back and forth, diving near her so he has her boxed in. Poor Tatqiq watching from the other side of the plunge, eating carrots, staring at the others having fun. While I want cubs for Chinook and the Polar Bear world in general, I will be glad when breeding season is over so Tatqiq can have fun again and not be so isolated. Poor Princess.
Out of curiosity, when breeding season is over, who approaches who to get all the bears playing together again? Does Kalluk give his sister some kind of gesture or invitation to play? Does Tatqiq try to approach one of them again? Or does Chinook come over and try to play with her? How does that process work? Also does Tatqiq ever swim in the plunge right now or is that considered off limits from the courting couple? I seem to be seeing Kalluk and especially Chinook swimming more in the past week or so.
All of the above happens until one day, whoosh, all three are playing in the pool.
Ms Chinook is swimming again this morning! I learned a thing or two about her aquatic abilities from past blogs and comments – I’m late to the party, but better late than… Awww, she warms my heart. Look at her go!
Maybe I just happen to look on the web cam at the wrong time, but I have only seen one bear instead of two for quite awhile now! and, I think it has been kalluk on shore eating carrots with no other bear in sight! is my timing just off, or is there another reason?
I stand corrected ( again! ) the cam person moved the camera around real fast and I got a fleeting look a another bear before he turned it back to kalluk under a log like thing across from the pile of dirt that they like to lay and dig in and roll around. I couldn’t tell which other bear was in view. is mating season over now?
Other people have commented on Tatqiq looking sad and Kalluk looking very frustrated and for me who found the cams a sheer joy to watch when I started tuning in pleasure has become tinged with concern, concern that the bears have become a little too much the subjects of a ‘controlled experiment’ being seperated when people try to get the bears to do what they want instead of letting them trying to behave naturally in what for polar bears is already an unnatural environment.
I wonder if any communication goes on with zoos elsewhere – at least two in Europe now boast bouncing baby cubs…
I loved watdhing the bears who looked suprisingly happy now Im not so sure – I cant help thinking of rats in a maze which i wouldnt want to watch ..perhaps taking away the ‘microscope and the notebooks’ and letting nature take its course might work wonders…
I have to voice my concenrs because I like those bears too much to see ‘em frustrated and upset because we humans as usual think we know whats best….
I ask the question if you were one of a declining group of humans and something which considered itself superior to you was trying to control your mating patterns , your relationships with your fellows how much would you feel like indulging in a ‘reproductive act’ – or is it different because we consider ourselves ‘clever’ than other animal life ?
JoAnne responds: Your concerns are not ignored. It is so important that in taking animals into our care we DO treat them as the incredible species and individuals that they are. Chinook, Kalluk, and Tatqiq are given this, along with great love and respect every moment we share our lives with them. Every day we watch and respond to what their needs are beyond just a clean home and fresh food and water. The relationship we have with them is two way, and breeding season and the hormonal fluctuations offer us challenges in knowing exactly what our bears need at any given moment. With the hormonal changes, sometimes those needs do change moment to moment.
Kalluk and Chinook are never separated if that is their choice, and Tatqiq chooses every day during breeding season where she wants to be as well. We do communicate with other zoos both in North America and Europe. If the only information we had to take care of our bears came solely through the lens of the Polar Cam, we would miss so much and definitely question what was really going on. Luckily we have the joy of strong, long-lasting relationships that these three wonderful bears share with us and trust us to listen.
I watched a program last night on Animal Planet. It was called Spies On Ice. The program was about motorized, disguised cameras that would follow the PB’s around. I don’t know who was filming the cameras filming the PB’s.
Anyway the show was focused on 2 females, Asa who had 2 cubs, and another female with one cub. The cameras were named Bizzard, Drifter and I forget what the other one was called. It was like a round big snowball. The cameras followed the bears as they were looking for food. Asa with her 2 cubs did better than the female with 1 cub. She timed it wrong and the ice was breaking up so she couldn’t make it to the ice cap. A male was taped stalking a seal sitting on ice. The bear backed down into the ocean so as to not make a splash. It swam so it came up on the opposite side of the ice flow the seal was sitting on. He checked his position, then swam under the ice flow and shot up out of the water at the seal..He almost got the seal.. It was amazing watching the male plotting out his strategy.
I do have a couple of questions though: Are PB males the only males in the bear family that is a danger to cubs? Will a female with only one cub go into estrus faster than a female with two, due to lower milk production? Why won’t PB’s go after walrus more often? They are comparable in size and walrus seem pretty slow on land. It was also mentioned that PB’s are social and will share food… but Female with 1 cub chased off a big male because she wasn’t going to share a carcass. And I thought it was amazing that the 2 cubs swam 50 miles to get to this place that Mom wanted to go to find food…. PB’s are fascinating..
You are right, the program was very interesting. The filmmakers went to great lengths to tell an entertaining and compelling story.
-A male polar bear can be a threat to a family group, but sometimes this is represented as something that occurs more often than it does in reality.
-One or two cubs should not make a huge difference in estrous for a female; most likely cubs will be pushed away around the same time.
-Walrus are a dangerous prey for polar bears as they can deliver life- threatening blows with their tusks. A polar bear’s greatest chance at walrus prey is in the event the walrus stampeded and some are killed under the crush.
-Polar bears can definitely be social when there is a large food supply or as seen in Churchill, Manitoba, they are waiting for the ice. The female most likely chased the male off, as she and her cub were very thin, she was protecting her cub and their food; one carcass would not mean a plentiful food supply.
Finally, the program showed me that as keepers we are given the gift that wildlife filmmakers and biologists don’t get to share. All of the antics and incredible inquisitiveness that seem to surprise the producers are part of what we share with our polar bears every day. Now you know why we are so passionate about saving their habitat!
Poor Chinook. She is trying to do her elegant laps and Kalluk keeps pestering her and getting in her way. She just wants to swim and he just wants to be with his woman! I think Tatqiq should come play with her brother. I miss the three together. Is the mating season over? Chinook doesn’t look like she is particularly interested in Kalluk’s advances.