Infanticide and cannibalism of juvenile polar bears (Ursus maritimus) in Svalbard

• Author(s) / Creator(s)

  • Wiig, O.
  • Derocher, A.E.

• Two instances of infanticide and cannibalism in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) were observed in SE Svalbard, at Hopen Island. In the first, an adult male killed three young cubs at a den site and consumed one of them. In the second, an adult male actively pursued, killed, and consumed a dependent yearling. Infanticide of dependent polar bear offspring by adult males may be more common in Svalbard than in other populations because the population is close to carrying capacity or because geographic features reduce spatial segregation of age and sex classes.

• Date created

  1999

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Polar bears
  • Infanticide
  • Ursus maritimus
  • Barents Sea
  • Cannibalism
  • Svalbard

• Type of Item

  Article (Published)

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3JC5H

• License

  This version of this article is open access and can be downloaded and shared. The original author(s) and source must be cited.