First wild polar bear-grizzly cross

[gd357]

A hunter killed the first documented crossbreed of a polar bear and a grizzly. The hunter from Idaho killed the bear he thought was a polar bear in the Northwest Territories last month.

gd

[Cal Sibley]

Maybe it's a good thing. Global warming is allowing a lot of animals to extend their range. It's predicted that polar bears will disappear by the middle of the century. It's primarily an aquatic mammal, and I hate the thought of it becoming extinct. I guess a male grizzly and a female polar bear are about the same size so the breeding is not all that surprising or a first. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

[Valigator]

Looks like a polar bear to me...what should I be noticing?

[Cal Sibley]

Hello Valigator,

I think mainly the dark eye color and the dark coloring around the eyes. The size will be somewhat smaller than a pure polar bear.
Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

[M.T. Pockets]

Seems that I heard he got some heat from authorities somewhere for shooting this bear on a Polar Bear license. I don't know the whole story but I think he was able to convince the geniuses that he wasn't a criminal. Imagine, shooting a big white bear on a polar bear license and getting in trouble because it may not be a "pure" polar bear, even though a hybrid has never before been documented.

I think I've read that the polar bear is very similar genetically to the grizz and it evolved over the years. I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often.

Quite a trophy, I'm happy for the hunter.