In the wild, bear cubs rely completely on their moms to hunt and feed them. They also need their mothers to educate them on how to hunt for themselves once they’re old enough. Tragically, on Bolschevik island in the Arctic, a tiny polar bear cub was orphaned. The cub was identified by a group of miners who realized that the bear lost its mother and understood that the cub would perish if they did not act.
In February 2021, the first word emerged about the polar bear cub at the base of the workers. Apparently, the bear was possibly lured by the smell of food, that had been hung around the base. So, the personnel decided to feed her. A few months later, the Bear cub became so acquainted with the miners that they were totally comfortable and even tried to play with them.
The video released by The Siberian Times shows this conduct. The polar bear cub climbs a ladder and tries to investigate a nearby window on the picture. The person who captures the footage can be heard giggling loudly as the bear climbs the ladder perfectly. It is a sight to look at! Finally, the bear descends off the ladder and leads to the men. She is rushing over and jumping up to one of them for a hug. The guy gently pets the bear like a big dog. The bear seems totally peaceful and even glad to be with the people shown in the video.
Gorban added, “We only knew that the cub’s mother was dead and that the cub was attracted to the smell of food, months ago. Gorban told me. Shift employees rescued his life, but that was not adequate to help him survive. They fed and tamed the endangered animal.” And then animal could not be released into the wilderness because it was domesticated.
The Bolsheviks and Gorban team communication was a little challenging. “Only at the end of their work could the workers contact us because they have no link at the base. It had told us the men left the mainland and the cub remained alone there. Our only hope was that they would have left a large, waste disposal site, so it was possible for the cub could feed on it over weeks,” said Gorban. Luckily, the bear was loaded with food and was safely retrieved.
The major reason the bear was brought to a zoo and not freed in the wild is that she never learned how to hunt from her mother. According to the World Wildlife Fund, polar bears spend roughly half their lives hunting.
This is because polar bears seek seals primarily, even though they scavenge for carcasses and when they locate them, they will settle for plants and birds.
Due to the heightened sense of smell, the rescued polar bear cub was quite likely to reach the worker’s base. Up to one kilometer distant, polar bears can smell their prey.
These animals are considered vulnerable species. It is prohibited to feed these animals as they become tamed and will lose their ability to survive in the wild afterward. But these workers were not in trouble as they saved this bear’s life.