Some scientists used to think these hollow hairs might do more than just help bears blend in. In coastal Alaska, an adult dries off after taking a dip in the Chukchi Sea, south of the Arctic Ocean. When the bears stand in the sun and all that light bounces off them, they look white. These tubes are too small to see without a microscope, but there’s enough room for light to scatter inside. Unlike human hair, polar bear fur is hollow like a straw. But polar bear hair has a structural color, which comes from the way light bounces around the structure of the hair itself - no pigments required. Different types of pigment form in different amounts to create various colors when light hits them, sort of like when you mix shades of paint. Your hair gets its color from something called pigment. And their skin is black! Polar bear fur is actually see-through, but it takes on a white color because of its structure. Can you imagine a dark brown bear trying to hide against bright, white snow?Īlthough while polar bears usually look white, their fur isn’t white at all.

The most famous of these adaptations is their bright white coloring, which lets them blend in as they roam across ice and snow in search of seals to eat.

Though closely related to the brown bears you might find in the most northern regions of the United States, polar bears have a special set of adaptations that allow them to live in the cold Arctic.

Eq polar bear skin