Sierra+B.

Wiki Post #1 - Genetics: October 11, 2013

Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid The Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid is a rare hybrid that occurs in captivity as well as in the wild. Depending on the gender of the mother, they are also known as a Prizzly Bear or a Groalr Bear. The offspring share many characteristics from each parent. The body of the hybrid bear is smaller than a Polar Bears' but larger than a Grizzly's. They have long necks like Polar Bears but have shoulder humps like Grizzlies and only have hair partially covering the soles of their feet rather than having bare soles like a Grizzly or fully covered in hair like a Polar Bear. Their behaviour is more similar to the Polar Bear because they exhibit mainly carnivorous behaviour and Hybrid cubs in captivity will stomp their toys around much like a wild Polar Bear would stomp a seal to death.

The first wild Grolar Bear was discovered in 2006, when Jim Martell shot and killed a strange looking bear near Banks Island, Northwest Territories. The DNA from the bear was then analyzed and confirmed that the hybrid's father was a Grizzly and its mother was a Polar Bear.



The discovery of the Grolar Bear occurring naturally seemed to come as a surprise to everyone, even Ian Stirling, a polar bear expert with the Canadian Wildlife Service in Edmonton when he stated "I don't think anyone expected it to actually happen in the wild" in an interview for National Geographic News. But experts were even more astonished when a second generation Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid was found in 2010. After inspecting the bear and having it's DNA tested it was discovered that the bear's mother was a Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid and the father was a Grizzly Bear. The reason the discovery of the second generation hybrid came as such a shock is because most hybrids, such as mules and Male Ligers, are sterile and are unable to reproduce unlike the Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid which is capable of reproducing.



Even though Polar Bears and Grizzlies come from very different living conditions, global warming has been causing their habitats to over lap on the edges. The melting polar ice has been forcing polar bears towards solid land into Grizzly territory. Scientists believe this poses a threat to biodiversity because each type of bear has its own niche that fits into their own ecosystem, but they could eventually become one niche and disrupt equilibrium.

Here is a video to farther explain what a Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrid is and how they interbreed. media type="custom" key="24078244" width="140" height="140"

__**For mor information on the first Grolar Bear discovered:**__ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/05/bear-hybrid-photo.html

__**For more information on other animal hybrids:**__ http://www.readersdigest.ca/pets/breeds/8-strange-animal-hybrids

__**For more information on Grizzly-Polar Bear Hybrids in captivity:**__ http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8321000/8321102.stm

__**For more information on what scientist believe will happen to the grolar bear in the future:**__ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/05/polar-bears_2.html

__ References __ http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/photos/11-amazing-hybrid-animals/grolar-bears http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/more-grolar-bears-spotted-in-n-w-t-1.1201745 http://www.cracked.com/article_19213_7-animals-that-are-evolving-right-before-our-eyes_p2.html http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/polar-bears-and-grizzlies-producing-hybrid-offspring-as-arctic-melts-a-859218.html