Size Matters

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/board/77/ursus-maritimus

Size & Weight. Male polar bears weigh about 375-600 kilograms (825-1320 pounds) while occasional individuals may reach 800 kilograms (1760 lb). They sometimes exceed 250 centimeters (10 feet) in length, measured in a straight line from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, although most male polar bears are a bit shorter. They are roughly twice the size and weight of adult females, which weigh 200 to 350 kilograms (440-750 lb) and achieve an adult body length of about 190-220 centimeters (up to about 7 ft). Females first breed at four to six years of age and most often give birth to two cubs in snow dens on land (some cubs are born in dens on the sea ice). Cubs stay with their mothers for two and a half years before weaning which means that unless cubs die prematurely, females do not breed more frequently than every three years. Both sexes live twenty to twenty-five years and sometimes to over 30 years. Their primary prey is ringed seals and, to a lesser degree, bearded seals.

[brobear]

Animal facts and feats by Gerald L. Wood.
The greatest weight recorded for a polar bear in the wild is an incredible 1002 kg ( 2,210 pounds ) for a white colossus shot by Arthur Dubs of Medford, Oregon, U.S.A., at the polar entrance to Kotzebue Sound, NW Alaska, in 1960. In April 1962 the 3.39 m ( 11 feet 1.5 inch ) tall mounted animal was put on display at the Seattle World Fair.
That it is possible for polar bears to exceed 907 kg ( 2,000 pounds - 1 ton ) has also been confirmed by Ognev, who says that some of the old males killed on Spitzbergen have scaled as much as 60 poods - 979 kg ( 2,160 pounds ), but even a weight of 725 kg ( 1,600 pounds ) must be considered exceptional.
There are few records of captive polar bears exceeding 453 kg ( 1,000 pounds ). A large male which died at New York Zoological Gardens ( Bronx Zoo ) in 1960 scaled at 467 kg ( 1,030 pounds ) ( Crandall, 1964 ). Another male named "Harold" who died at Dudley Zoo in November 1965 reportedly measured 2.74 m ( 9 feet ) nose to tip of tail and weighed 508 kg ( 1,120 pounds ), but the compiler has not been able to confirm these figures. Even larger examples have probably been kept in Russian zoos, but no statistics are available.

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/

Sports Illustrated 1961 Text Extract:

This fierce new competition has led to some bitter rhubarbs, with Fitz making supreme decisions from his trophy-tilled penthouse in Manhattan. The most recent controversy involved a mammoth polar bear killed by Arthur Dubs of Medford, Ore. Mounted, the bear stands 11 feet 1½ inches, the tallest ever. But Fitz and the B&C Club take the position that bear records are meaningful only if based on the size of the skull. "The taxidermists seem to operate on the principle that what the hunter wants is altitude," Fitz grumbles, "and they mount these bears straight up in a position no polar bear has ever taken. Then they measure the height. And this can vary by as much as a foot or two for the same size skin." One can only pity poor Dubs. He may well have taken the biggest polar bear ever, but he can't even submit the skull for measurement because a piece of it was chipped off in the dressing operation. He is left with a gargantuan trophy totally lacking in official status.
         
                                       

[brobear]

The Arthur Dubs polar bear might have been the biggest heaviest bear ever killed since the Pleistocene. But sadly, maybe not. We will never know for sure.

Polar bears are heavier on average than the largest population of brown bears, the Kodiak bears. It is also true, I feel certain, that in the wild, the polar bear has a higher size potential. Never-the-less, the heaviest polar bear confirmed weight stands at 1,541 pounds while the heaviest confirmed brown bear tipped the scales at 1,653 pounds - beating the polar bear by 112 pounds.
Problem is, few of these Goliath bears are actually weighed. There have very likely been bears, both brown and polar which have exceeded these record weights. It is the polar bear's diet of almost exclusively blubber that gives him the advantage of size and weight-gain. The white giant is, after all, a descendant of the grizzly. Although unconfirmed, I do not find it so difficult to believe in the 2,200 pound polar bear.  
 
                              

[brobear]

The polar bear is the largest of living bears and the largest terrestrial carnivore even though classified as aquatic - shaggygod.proboards.com/ 
 

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/

"When fully grown, adult male polar bears in Canada range in weight from 450-550 kg and most adult females weigh between 160-270 kg."


Stirling, Ian, Wendy Calvert, and Dennis Andriashek. 1980. Population ecology studies of the polar bear in the area of southeastern Baffin Island. [Ottawa]: Canadian Wildlife Service.

[brobear]

By Polar.... Polar bears are the prime epitome of what of a hyper-carnivorous bear is like, along with its distant ursine relative Agriotherium. Other bears mainly scavenge or eat non-meat food.

They are a tiger in a bear's costume. On one hand, they must be quite swift in ambushing sea prey, and on the other hand intimidate other carnivores form their kills by physically-sizing them up, much like other bears.

A very, very different mentality polar bears have, and I wouldn't be surprised to find a major difference within the neuron wiring between the polar and grizzly (and other) bears. After all, polar bears had to quickly adapt to a frozen, limitless landacape where the only major source of nutrition was meat, particularly the fatty parts.

Polar bears seem more psychopathic, more prone to killing when attacking, than brown bears. Usually, many survive brown bear maulings, even those from large brown bears. Brown bears are more territorial with less intent to kill. But with a polar bear, these same survivors wouldn't stand much of a chance, except in rare circumstances. Polar bears are more apt to easily kill, and that's what makes them the most dangerous extant mammalian predator in my opinion: build of a huge bear with the psychology of a lunatic tiger.

[brobear]

Polar bears live by the same rules as brown bears. Size is governed by available food resources. This is why polar bears in the wild are bigger than those in captivity; especially during the 19th century and early 20th century. shaggygod.proboards.com/

www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/Ice-free_Foxe_Basin
The Foxe Basin polar bears are the largest in the world because of the rich food resources found there. Quote: This area is one of the most biologically rich and diverse areas of the Canadian Arctic, supporting colonies of bearded seals and the largest walrus herd in Canada. It is a summering area for bowhead, beluga and narwhal whales.

[tom]

Mar 26, 2017 12:02:44 GMT -5 brobear said:

 I do not find it so difficult to believe in the 2,200 pound polar bear.  
 
                              

[tom]

I can only assume the 2200 lb weight was estimated and never weighed? dunno, haven't seen anything written either way, If it was weighed it might have been done after being  field dressed?  Live weights are generally estimated using a formula. If this Polar bear had a 2200 pound field dressed weight, it is likely his live weight could have been somewhere in the neighborhood of 2500 lbs (dressed weight X 1.18).

With Bears, I believe  skull size is normally used to judge the overall size of the animal but in this case there appears that there was damage to the skull so it was never officially measured. Either way it was an enormous bear. Modern Polars in my opinion are having to travel much further distances to find food which likely would be the cause of smaller bears with less bodyweight.  

[King Kodiak]

I did not know where to post this because it really has to do with lions vs tigers, but a polar bear was involved so ill post it here.
at Peter Taylors act (Clyde Beattys mentor)
a lion and a tiger were fighting, the tiger saw that he was getting the worse of it and to escape the lion he leaped over a polar bear that was as wide as a passageway. Pretty interesting.

[brobear]

Lots of stories take place at Coney Island. It was the first place visitors to America wanted to visit.
www.coneyislandhistory.org/
 
ultimatehistoryproject.com/coney-island.html

[King Kodiak]

The lions and tigers gave the polar bear plenty of room.

[brobear]

If that polar bear was anywhere near the size of his wild brothers, you can bet the big cats kept their distance.

[King Kodiak]

Oct 25, 2018 5:15:54 GMT -5 brobear said:

If that polar bear was anywhere near the size of his wild brothers, you can bet the big cats kept their distance.


exactly. But they still kept their distance anyways.

[King Kodiak]

Ursusmaritimus 

An interesting account there, yet there is an account posted here saying the polar bear can usually kill any big cat but lions have been seen killing polar bears and another regarding the female polar bear name velox killing two full grown lions on seperate occassions.
Big bons has further mention an account of a polar bear acctually killing a tiger though it itself died from getting overheated and tigers usually come out the winner when in confrontations with sloth bears.
Yet polar bears do not grow to their full size outside their natural environment and thats why Singapore zoo decided to stop taking anymore polar bears. The female polar bear Inuka was too old to be released back into the wild sadly and if you have seen her, she is extremely small in size.

shaggygod.proboards.com/thread/817/polar-bear-sloth-account


I wish we can see that account of the polar killing the tiger, we dont have none.

[brobear]

Polar bear vs anything in captivity is absolutely meaningless to me as a wild polar bear is an entirely different animal.

[King Kodiak]

Oct 30, 2018 6:03:25 GMT -5 brobear said:

Polar bear vs anything in captivity is absolutely meaningless to me as a wild polar bear is an entirely different animal.


absolutely right, we have talked about that already. Especially if it loses because its a general fact the polar was sick. But if it wins, you know it won being sick and all. But i really would love to see that account of the polar killing the tiger.

[brobear]

www.outdoorhub.com/stories/2014/10/16/4-largest-bears-ever-taken-hunters/

Polar bear
The polar bear is the largest land carnivore in the world. A lot of bears have a nasty reputation, but polar bears back it up. More people have been killed and eaten by polar bears than by all other bears combined. The opportunity to hunt a huge polar bear has been turned upside down in the past couple decades. That’s not to say that you can’t shoot a huge polar bear because all adult polar bears are huge by bear standards, but the areas that produce the biggest ones are off-limits except to indigenous Alaskans.

All of the top 25 white bears and more than 90 percent of all Boone and Crockett record book bears have been shot out of coastal Alaska. Most of them have been shot out of Kotzebue, with the Diomede Islands area a distant second place. Only indigenous natives are allowed to hunt these bears. It stands to reason that subsistence hunters are not looking for bears with big skulls, and if they shot one of record-book size, the odds that it would be entered would be low. All of the top 50 in the record book were taken before 1968. The world record, taken by Shelby Longoria, was taken off the coast of Kotzebue in 1963. It scored 29 15/16. Will there ever be a 30-inch polar bear entered in the record books? Not in the foreseeable future.

There are, however, opportunities to hunt smaller polar bears. In fact, the polar bear population has expanded in the past decade across its range. Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut offer excellent bear hunting, but they rarely reach the Boone and Crockett minimum of 27 inches. There is a catch in this scenario, too: non-Canadian residents are not allowed to take their bears across the border into the United States or any other country. You can hunt a polar bear and take photos (and even have it mounted), but you can’t bring it home. That’s a significant roadblock to many people who have an interest in hunting this bear, which can only be taken in the most harsh and unforgiving conditions imaginable.

There has been significant effort by several parties and organizations to change this odd situation. Time will tell if it ever changes. In the meantime, there are a lot of bears in storage and on display at sporting goods stores, airports, and museums that may someday be allowed out of the country so they can go home to the hunters who bagged them.

Follow Bernie’s bowhunting adventures on his blog, bowhuntingroad.com.

[brobear]

Polar - as you have some scientific knowledge in morphology - could you give us a clear comparison between Ursus maritimus and Arctodus simus in size and weight? Your thoughts. Your opinions. Your analogy.

Arctodus simus (2 to 1.9 Ma.), 110.2 kg (240 lb) and 800 kg (1,800 lb) as noted by Legendre and Roth, inhabiting a generally more northern and larger range. It was native to prehistoric North America from about 800,000 years ago, and became extinct about 12,500 years ago. It has been found from as far north as Ikpikpuk River, Alaska to Lowndes County, Mississippi. It is one of the largest bears in the fossil record and was among the largest mammalian land predators of all time. The type specimen came from Potter Creek Cave in Shasta County, California. Males from the Yukon region - the largest representatives of the species - would have stood about 1.80 m (5.9 ft) at the shoulder (on all fours), 4 m (13.1 ft) upright and may have weighed about 800 kg (1,864 lb). Arctodus simus was the largest carnivorous mammal that ever lived in North America.