I knew they were big bears but not TWICE A HUMAN size! I didn’t even google this image for the polar bear I wanted to see how big a black bear is.

guess I’m never going to Antarctica!

edit: okay we got ANOTHER TIL. Apparently polar bears don’t live in Antarctica!

…I need to watch more nature documentaries…

  • Jay@lemmy.ca
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    1 month ago

    They’re northern Hemisphere, not Antarctica. We have them in our province (Manitoba), but yes they’re big. On average tho not quite as big as the painting there shows.

    • CosmoNova@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      I knew it! Seeing them in a Zoo many years back I got the impression they were pretty big but not THAT massive.

      • Jay@lemmy.ca
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        1 month ago

        I think the painting shows the largest they’ve found, not the norm. It’s like showing Robert Wadlow (The tallest guy in the world at 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Wadlow) to show the size of humans. Yes we can get that large, but it’s an extreme example.

        • LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.world
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          1 month ago

          Just let it happen. If someone is looking at my stat sheet Im not going to complain if they say I can run 100 meters as fast as Bolt did in the Olympics. *limps to the kitchen…

    • TrackenDaKracken@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      If one of the average sized ones rises up in front of you and roars, I bet it would look just as big as that painting.

      Can anyone confirm? Probably not.

      • Jay@lemmy.ca
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        1 month ago

        Yup, Not many people get the opportunity to see one up close and live to tell about it, unless there’s something REALLY solid in between them. Like that Nat Geo guy in the cage. https://youtu.be/U-S4NbX5IYE They’re absolutely terrifying up close…

        They don’t typically roar tho, unless they’re fighting or f…uh screwing. And they’re not scared of anything.

          • Jay@lemmy.ca
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            1 month ago

            Pretty much, if you let them know you’re there you’re just making more work for yourself when you gotta chase them down.

            I prefer quick meals too over having to waste time and effort lol! I’d just prefer to stay off the menu.

  • Not_Dav3@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    If it’s black, fight back. If it’s brown, lay down. If it’s white, say good night.

    • Grandwolf319@sh.itjust.works
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      1 month ago

      I like the rhyme but I mean, what the fuck are the chances of running into a polar bear. As in, if you live near polar bears, you definately know how terrifying they are and don’t need to have a guide like this.

      No, I’m not fun at parties.

      • Rcklsabndn@sh.itjust.works
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        1 month ago

        Your interest Un-funness saved your ass that one time you wandered into a bear party after misunderstanding an advertising flyer.

    • Rezurektme@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      If it’s brown, also say good night because a grizzly will still fuck your shit up no matter what you do.

  • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    Arctus = “Bear”, Anti = “against” in ancient Greek, or “opposite” in modern meaning.

    Arctic = bears are here

    Anti-arctic = opposite bears, or “no bears”.

    • Earthwormjim91@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      Has absolutely nothing to do with actual bears though.

      The name comes from the constellation Ursa Major, which in Greek was Arktos Megale. Both mean the Great Bear.

      Basically it just means north and not north because the Ursa Major constellation has the North Star in it.

      It does just kinda work out that bears are in the northern hemisphere and not the southern hemisphere. There’s only one bear native to the southern hemisphere, the Spectacled Bear native to the Andes mountain in South America. There are no bears native to Africa or Oceania at all.

    • ThatWeirdGuy1001@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      So did the Greeks traverse the whole planet? Like the idea isn’t too far fetched but it’s just weird to think about Mediterraneans traveling to the arctics

  • flop_leash_973@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    It is not just that they are enormous and strong. Its that they will actively hunt you for food unlike most brown or black bears.

    I think they are fairly unique among the animal kingdom for being willing to chance attacking a human. Most other predators don’t find the risk of not knowing exactly how it would go to be worth it.

    There is a reason that a lot of the people that you see that live or spend a lot of time in the parts of the world that Polar Bears live in don’t often go outside without high caliber weapons.

  • insanemantis@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    If it’s brown lay down
    If it’s black fight back
    If it’s white say goodnight

    There’s a reason why they say that

    • PhoenixDog@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      There’s reasons in rural communities in Canada that polar bears frequent that it is custom to keep your car doors unlocked at all times, so if someone walking runs into a polar bear they can dive into a random car for safety.

  • huquad@lemmy.ml
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    1 month ago

    I’ve studied bears for a while now. There’s actually a proven strategy for fighting polar bears. First you dodge to the left, then jump as high as you can and punch them in the eye. By the time they realize what’s happened, it’ll all be over and you’ll be opening your eyes, hoping you prayed to the right god

  • MyDogLovesMe@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    I will say, those bears represent the upper end of the ‘weight ranges’ for those 3 species. Average sizes would be a bit less.

  • pachrist@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    I think the sizes shown are probably biggest specimen. Black bears can get pretty big, but I’ve never encountered one that was taller than me.

    • RFKJrsBrainworm@sh.itjust.works
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      1 month ago

      I saw a black bear in Virginia crossing the street on a polite Tuesday mid- morning a few years ago…the god-damned thing was as big as I imagined grizzly bears are…it was huge.

    • Raiderkev@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      The first black bear I ever saw in the wild was this beefy boi. Fucker was huge. Didn’t see him on his hind legs, but I would imagine he was close to 6’ if he did stand on them.