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Keeping Those Whites White

Polar bears are fastidious about staying clean. Scientist Ian Stirling notes that, in summer, the bears typically feed for twenty or thirty minutes and then head for a pool of water in which to wash off.

In addition to washing, a polar bear's cleaning ritual also involves licking its paws, chest, and muzzle.

After feeding, a bear will devote up to fifteen minutes to cleaning itself up. A thorough job is important, as matted and dirty fur is a poor insulator.

Wet fur offers poor protection against the cold. Polar bears dry themselves by shaking off excess water, then rubbing their fur in the snow.

Writer Downs Matthews once saw a male bear dry his face by scooping up snow in his paws and using it like a towel.

Ian Stirling notes that polar bears feeding at the Churchill dump would become so dirty they almost looked black. After eating, the "black bears" would walk more than a kilometer to wash off in Hudson Bay.

In winter, polar bears clean themselves with snow instead of water. To do so, a bear will rub its head in the snow, push forward on its tummy, and roll on its back.

Russian scientist Nikita Ovsyanikov once observed a group of polar bears feeding on a walrus carcass. After eating, the great white bears would wash their fur in the surf, which acted "... like the wash cycle of a washing machine."

In addition to removing dirt and grease through washing, polar bears carefully groom their paws to remove chunks of ice, which they may find uncomfortable when walking.

Mother polar bears lick their cubs to keep them clean. The cubs also lick themselves and each other. After the cubs leave the den, their mother teaches them how to wash in snow and water.

Sources: Polar Bear by Downs Matthews (Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 1993); Polar Bears by Ian Stirling (University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 1988); Polar Bears: Living with the White Bear by Nikita Ovsyanikov (Voyageur Press, Stillwater, MN, 1996); Polar Dance by Fred Bruemmer (Images of Nature, Omaha, NE, 1997).

Additional german informations can be found here.

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