Animal field note
Hidden warmth
The Bear's Black Skin
Under all that white fur, a polar bear's skin is actually jet black.
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Let's look closer
Wonder traits
- Animal group
- Mammal
- Diet
- Meat eater
- Habitat
- Ice & snow
- Awake when
- Any time
- Size
- Car-sized
- Abilities
- Cold survivor
Let's look closer
Why would a snow-white bear hide black skin underneath?
lack skin soaks up the sun's warmth far better than white would, helping a polar bear stay warm on the ice. Each strand of its fur is also hollow and clear, not white at all β it just scatters light the way snow does, making the bear look white while its dark skin quietly collects heat underneath.
Look for this
Explorer clue
Watch a video of a polar bear and look closely at its nose and paw pads, two spots where the black skin peeks through the fur.
Your turn to wonder
Curiosity question
What's something about you that looks one way on the outside but is different underneath?
Keep wandering
