Species Saturday Vol 12: Pizzly Bears or Grolar Bears?

One this Species Saturday we continue with the Christmas animals, and this week it's the turn of the polar bears!

🐻‍❄️ Big bears famous for being white are actually black skinned. This helps to absorb sun for warmth. Their transluscent fur reflects light to give the white look and help keep them camouflaged
🐻‍❄️ They are the only bear species to be classifed as marine animals
🐻‍❄️ They can swim constantly for days at a time (as someone who can swim 50m at a time, I'm pretty impressed)

🐻‍❄️ Genetic testing has proven that grizzly-polar bear hybrids exist, although they behave more like a polar bear as birthed from a femal polar. They are quite appropriately named 'Grolar Bears' or Pizzly Bears'. Polar bears only genetically diverged from Grizzly Bears 150,000 years ago

Polar Bears are classed as vulnerable 🤍

Sources from Treehugger and WWF