---
title: "Polar Bear"
description: "Ursus maritimus — Mammals. The polar bear is a large bear native to the Arctic and nearby areas."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/polar-bear
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Polar Bear

> Ursus maritimus — Mammals. The polar bear is a large bear native to the Arctic and nearby areas.

- Scientific name: *Ursus maritimus*
- Category: `mammals` (Mammals)
- Habitats: `sea` (Sea & coast), `arctic` (Arctic)
- iNaturalist observations: 4097
- Wikidata: [Q33609](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q33609)
- iNaturalist taxon: [41644](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/41644)

## Names

- en: Polar Bear
- de: Eisbär
- es: Oso Polar
- fr: Ours blanc
- nl: Ijsbeer
- pt: Urso-polar
- pl: Niedźwiedź polarny

## Countries with the most observations

CA (1544), SJ (583), US (163), GL (110), RU (73)

## Summary

The polar bear is a large bear native to the Arctic and nearby areas. It is closely related to the brown bear, and the two species can interbreed. The polar bear is the largest extant species of bear and land carnivore by body mass, with adult males weighing 300–800 kg (660–1,760 lb). The species is sexually dimorphic, as adult females are much smaller. The polar bear is white or yellowish-furred with black skin and a thick layer of fat. It is more slender than the brown bear, with a narrower skull, longer neck and lower shoulder hump. Its teeth are sharper and more adapted to cutting…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polar_bear

## Photo

![Polar Bear](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/polar-bear/medium.jpg)

Photo: steve b · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/179552115

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/polar-bear?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).