Polar bear found 700 km away from the Arctic

That's not where polar bears are supposed to be!

An Arctic Polar has been located deep in western Russia, more than 700km from its natural habitat.

Photos released by the Ministry of Natural Resources for the region of Yakutia show the bear, named Umka, paddling in the Kolyma River.

According to the Siberian Times, Umka was fed on fish by locals, before being taken thousands of miles east to Moscow Zoo.

Umka was reportedly tranquillised for the journey on 29 September, and was transported to the zoo.

Polar bears in the region are a rare sight.

In April, surveyors working for the regional government only counted 20 polar bears in a 1000km area.

Experts suggest the reason she was able to get so far from home was because her mother had been shot by poachers, who then took Umka south to the Kolyma.

Yakutia wildlife exp[ert Fedor Yakovlev however ruled out poaching, due to the good health of the bear.

He told the Siberian Times:

I rule out a version of poaching in relation to the bear's mother.

The bear was quite well-fed, indicating that she had lost her mother relatively recently.

My version is this: the mother of the cub was weakened, perhaps old, or too young.

She gave all her energy and strength to her baby.

Perhaps it was attacked by a brown bear, and the bear cub managed to escape.

HT Siberian Times

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