stuny Posted November 9, 2010 Share #1 Posted November 9, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Polar bears fast most of the year around, and once the sea ice forms they go out on it to hunt seals. Normally they double their weight, allowing them to fast the rest of the year when their favorite food is to rapid and distant to catch. The bears are normally solitary, but do congregate waiting for the ice to form, and once on the ice they mate. Most females mate with multiple partners and it’s not unusual for them to have twins or triplets, each fathered by a different male. The fertilized eggs will split only to blastocyst stage and then await the female to gain enough weight and to den before implanting in the wall of the uterus. If she has not gained enough weight the blastocyst will be expelled. If she has gained enough she will give birth in the den to what almost amounts to fetal offspring – the difference between the sizes of the new born and the adult is the largest in the mammal kingdom. Of late the ice breaks up two weeks earlier, the females don't have opportunity to fatten up enough, and many blastocysts never develop any further. In all locations on Earth where proper monitoring of the bear population is practiced the bears are steadily losing numbers. There are some places in the world, such as arctic Russia, where the populations are listed as “stable,” but the latest data in those locations is from the early 1980s and is highly questionable. Pictured here is a mother with a pair of 2 ½ year-old cubs. At the end of their feeding she will drive off the cubs to survive on their own. These are near Churchill, in northern Manitoba, which is the best place on earth to find bears (between 900 and 1000 will congregate there this year). If you go, go soon, between mid October and mid November. Too soon and few bears will be there. Too late and they’ll all be far out to sea on the ice pack. We traveled with Natural Habitat and can recommend them highly. You can see many more photos on our site in the Churchill photo gallery. I shot these with R8/DMR/80-200/APO 2X, but others on the site are made with the D2. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 9, 2010 Posted November 9, 2010 Hi stuny, Take a look here Attentive mother with twins (x3). I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
k_g_wolf ✝ Posted November 9, 2010 Share #2 Posted November 9, 2010 Great shots, thx for sharing ! Best GEORG Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernstblofeld Posted November 9, 2010 Share #3 Posted November 9, 2010 Stuart, Even better than previous photos. Thanks for sharing. Kind regards Ernstblofeld Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdb Posted November 9, 2010 Share #4 Posted November 9, 2010 Stuart, this is spine tingling for me. What a gift. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
roguewave Posted November 9, 2010 Share #5 Posted November 9, 2010 Stu, among your best reportage. They are so beautiful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted November 9, 2010 Author Share #6 Posted November 9, 2010 Georg, Ernst, Virgil & Ben - Thank you Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauledell Posted November 10, 2010 Share #7 Posted November 10, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) Stuart, Wonderful shots of those remarkable animals. Outstanding photography. Paul Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Hiles Posted November 10, 2010 Share #8 Posted November 10, 2010 Stuart these are simply outstanding. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEB Posted November 10, 2010 Share #9 Posted November 10, 2010 They sound like Me...except that I fast for about 1/2 day and then go out and double my weight! Great photos Stu. Mark Blumer Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted November 10, 2010 Author Share #10 Posted November 10, 2010 Paul & Michael - Thank you. Mark - Thank you. Very funny. Does that happen when you visit both Eataly and La Maison du Chocolat on the same day? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
michali Posted November 10, 2010 Share #11 Posted November 10, 2010 Stuart- You're making me envious! I agree with Ben, these are absolutely fantastic! Regards Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinchico Posted November 10, 2010 Share #12 Posted November 10, 2010 Stuart One of the best Polar Bear images I have seen in a while. Herb Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Hines Posted November 10, 2010 Share #13 Posted November 10, 2010 They are three great photos, thanks Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
allamande Posted November 10, 2010 Share #14 Posted November 10, 2010 Stuart, I agree with all of the above. They are terrific, heartwarming images of the highest order. Ece Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted November 10, 2010 Author Share #15 Posted November 10, 2010 Mike, Herb, Hines & Ece - Thank you. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bscott Posted November 10, 2010 Share #16 Posted November 10, 2010 Excellent and a pleasure to view. It must be a great photo trip. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted November 10, 2010 Author Share #17 Posted November 10, 2010 B - Thank you, and it was. Barbara always plans trips exquisitely, and there are always terrific photo opportunities. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Geschlecht Posted November 11, 2010 Share #18 Posted November 11, 2010 Hello Stuart & Barbara, Nice photos. The bears do look skinny........ for polar bears. Very interesting & informative. Best Regards to both of you. Michael Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted November 11, 2010 Author Share #19 Posted November 11, 2010 Michael - Thank you. The bears are as skinny as you'll ever seen them, but that is the natural order for them. They seldom eat anything when the pack ice is broken up, and feed voraciously on seals in the winter (doubling their weight, or more) when the ice provides them the ability to get at seals, which are far more rapid and nimble in the water than bears. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delcredere Posted November 11, 2010 Share #20 Posted November 11, 2010 All beautiful images, but my favourite is the first - such simple and complementary colours making the composition. Thank you. Mike. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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