Slim Pickings for Polar Bears

[Gottshotz]

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A year old male Polar Bear cub tackles the 2 year old remains of a whale exposed on the beach at Lomfjorden, Svalbard following the summer ice melt --- his sister and their mother relax on the shingle behind him.

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However, the smell of the decomposed meat has attracted other bears who want to muscle in on this meager meal . Polar Bears can smell a seal on the ice 20 miles away and their sense of smell is reckoned to be 2,100 times better than a human's ! In an effort to deter the other potential intruders, especially males , who would not only steal their find but may also try to kill her cubs, the female gets up and displays aggressively towards the approaching male, seen in the background.

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This seems to have deterred the nearby Male --- but then she gives us a warning look too, as she guards the meat.

Happier now that the danger has passed, she checks out the rest of the shoreline, before going back up the beach to rest beside the "kids".

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As we move back from the beach, we see that 3 other bears have been lurking behind the shore, but are now moving off in search of an easier meal. Very seldom are you able to get 6 Polar bears into a single framed shot, but with the ice retreating much earlier each year these scenes will, unfortunately, become more common.

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[Winston Churchill (Sir)]

Beautiful and amazing images. wow

 

[Gottshotz]

Beautiful and amazing images. wow

Thanks Elsa, we were very privileged to spot 13 Polar bears in total on this trip last August.

 

[Charles Loy]

Nice. Last showing the vastness of the area is a nice image also

 

[Ralph]

View attachment 56543


A year old male Polar Bear cub tackles the 2 year old remains of a whale exposed on the beach at Lomfjorden, Svalbard following the summer ice melt --- his sister and their mother relax on the shingle behind him.

View attachment 56544


However, the smell of the decomposed meat has attracted other bears who want to muscle in on this meager meal . Polar Bears can smell a seal on the ice 20 miles away and their sense of smell is reckoned to be 2,100 times better than a human's ! In an effort to deter the other potential intruders, especially males , who would not only steal their find but may also try to kill her cubs, the female gets up and displays aggressively towards the approaching male, seen in the background.

View attachment 56545

This seems to have deterred the nearby Male --- but then she gives us a warning look too, as she guards the meat.

Happier now that the danger has passed, she checks out the rest of the shoreline, before going back up the beach to rest beside the "kids".

View attachment 56546

As we move back from the beach, we see that 3 other bears have been lurking behind the shore, but are now moving off in search of an easier meal. Very seldom are you able to get 6 Polar bears into a single framed shot, but with the ice retreating much earlier each year these scenes will, unfortunately, become more common.

View attachment 56547

Awesome shots!

 

[Gottshotz]

Nice. Last showing the vastness of the area is a nice image also

Thanks Charles, yes, I think there are times when we forget to put our images into context with their environment-- after all this is the controlling factor that has encouraged these animals to evolve into the shapes and colours that we find so attractive today to photograph.

 

[Gottshotz]

Awesome shots!

Thanks Ralph--there is something very compelling about apex predators and seeing these Polar bears was worth waiting 3 years (due to covid) before getting a chance to photograph them in their natural habitat.

 

[Patrick M]

superb set of images

 

[Gottshotz]

superb set of images

Thanks Patrick, it was interesting to see that the female's threat display was enough to put off the big male behind---maybe he thought that the lump of very old carcass wasn't worth the risk ?

 

[Patrick M]

Thanks Patrick, it was interesting to see that the female's threat display was enough to put off the big male behind---maybe he thought that the lump of very old carcass wasn't worth the risk ?

I think you're correct. He could get quite seriously injured as that female will fiercely protect the cubs.

 

[aj500]

Nice portraits of the bears. Showing the environment in the last image brings the whole series together. Well done.

 

[PhD69]

Beautiful photographs perfectly completed by interesting comments

 

[ssheipel]

Very nice; great commentary too.

 

[Gottshotz]

I think you're correct. He could get quite seriously injured as that female will fiercely protect the cubs.

Exactly Patrick, his "risk assessment" was spot on , in my opinion !

 

[Gottshotz]

Nice portraits of the bears. Showing the environment in the last image brings the whole series together. Well done.

Thanks aj, often the "bigger picture" tells the real story.

 

[Gottshotz]

Beautiful photographs perfectly completed by interesting comments

Thanks Philippe-- I see that you have traveled to many great destinations, but not yet to the Arctic ? I think you would enjoy seeing its specialized wildlife and breathtaking scenery-- go for it if you get the chance, its also very thought provoking about man's negative impact on remote habitats.

 

[Gottshotz]

Very nice; great commentary too.

Thanks Steven-- I think you know me well enough by now that although "a picture is worth a thousand words", a few well chosen sentences can make those same pictures spring to life.