| Polar
Bears of Churchill - Waiting for the Ice
By mid-October, cooler temperatures bring a change in the bears.
Restless, sensing a change in the season, many return to Churchill
and gather along the coast in eager anticipation of the coming ice.
Once here, some pace along the coast, roll around the willows,
graze on some kelp or spar with a friend.
Most, however, pass the time in a ‘day bed’. A ‘day bed’ is simply
a good resting spot, comfortable and sheltered. Preferred locations
include willow thickets along the shallow tundra ponds and the
deep kelp beds on the coast. There are certain ‘day beds’ along
Cape Churchill that are used day after day, often year after year.
Resting is not without its complications. Larger, or simply more
aggressive bears, often approach and displace sleeping bears.
Once ‘victorious’, however, they may occupy the bed for only a
short time.
Many times, the displaced bear will return, after walking a large, cautionary circle back to its original resting area. Once here, it is
again, time to rest and wait.
Waiting pays off. With each succeeding tide, a little more ice
clings to the shore. Each day, the ice reaches out a little further
into the bay. And each day, the bears test the ice more and more.
Though considered a marine mammal, bears still prefer not to get
wet in cold temperatures. Walking on newly formed ice, polar
bears often spread all four legs further and further apart until their
belly almost touches the ice. Their large paws distribute their
weight very effectively, allowing them to walk on ice that would
not support the weight of a person…and especially not the weight
of a tundra vehicle.
Alternately, they may test the strength of the new ice as they
progress, giving a little pump with their front paws. As the shore
ice builds so does the bears’ anticipation. By season’s end, many
bears will be seen wandering along the ice’s edge, far out onto the
bay.
RETURN
TO POLAR BEARS OF CHURCHILL PAGE |
