Polar bears (white bears in the Seekers universe) are the largest type of bears who have made an appearance in the Seekers series and in the real world besides the Kodiak Bear.[1] They have thick, furry white pelts and long, narrow muzzles. They live mainly on the frozen sea or surrounding islands. When the ice melts, polar bears go to the land until the ice returns.
Polar bears call the North Star "The Pathway Star" because they believe it points the way to the Place of Everlasting Ice. They believe the Great Bear constellation is a polar bear spirit named Silaluk, who flees the three hunters, Robin, Chickadee, and Moose Bird every spring and summer, a period they refer to as "burn-sky". At the beginning of autumn and winter, which they call "snow-sky", the three hunters catch and spear Silaluk, and her blood falls to earth as autumn leaves. Silaluk is buried by the snow every winter, but rises again in the spring. Polar bears believe that when they die, their spirits sink into the ice and appear as bubbles, until the ice melts and they ascend to the sky and become stars. It is never stated what happens to them if no ice is around.
Many polar bears appear in this book, but the main ones are Taqqiq, Nisa and Kallik. In the book, the ice on the Melting Sea is breaking up, forcing them to head for land, where most of them gather to wait for the ice to return. Nisa dies trying to get her cubs to safety, and Kallik and Taqqiq are separated, but Kallik makes it to land safely and makes a desperate journey to find Taqqiq.
At Great Bear Lake, there is a whole section just for polar bears. The polar bears gather there at the longest day to welcome back the ice. Polar bears that appear in this book are Kallik, Taqqiq, Nanuk, Nisa, Siqiniq, Imiq, Qannik, Iqaluk, Manik, Salik, Namak, Kunik and Anarteq. There are also many unnamed polar bears. Taqqiq, Salik, Iqaluk, and Manik cause trouble by kidnapping a black bear cub, but Kallik and her new black and brown bear friends help return him to his kind.
Kallik, a polar bear, goes through Smoke Mountain. Kallik, being a polar bear, is not as used to being on land as her companions. They meet another polar bear, Qopuk, who dies of exhaustion.
The bears make it to The Last Great Wilderness and Kallik is excited to see ice. Another polar bear stops her from swimming all the way out to the ice. At the end of the book when they decide to go on the ice, Kallik is glad and leads the bears.
The bears are on the ice and it is nothing like Kallik had imagined. They have trouble finding food, and all of the bears are struggling to go without warmth, except for Kallik, who is more comfortable on ice than on land. They find another polar bear, Iniq, who is struggling to find shelter, and help her.
The bears come to Star Island and meet many polar bears. The following polar bears appear in this book: Aga, Yakone, Kallik, Unalaq, Kissimi, Tunerq, Sura, Illa. Kallik adopts Kissimi after his mother, Sura, dies of food poisoning, which is making the other bears ill. Kallik and her companions figure out the seals are poisoned and help them find other food. At the end of the book, Kallik realizes the time has come for them to return home, and she cannot keep Kissimi anymore, so she gives him to his aunt, Illa. Yakone develops feelings for Kallik and decides to leave his home to join her.
Kallik is a main character who is a polar bear. Many other polar bears live on Star Island. Notable polar bears in this book are Kallik, Yakone, Nanulak's father and Tikaani. Kallik, Yakone, and their companions cross the island. Tikaani teaches Kallik's brown bear friend Toklo how to hunt local prey. Near the end of the book, Toklo is tricked into fighting Nanulak's father, but lets him go.
Many Polar Bears are seen in this book, including Kallik, Taqqiq, Yakone, Akna, Kassuq, Iluq, Salik, Manik, Iqaluk, Shila, Pakak, Tonraq, Sakari, Olikpok and Nukka. Taqqiq and his former friends are still causing trouble by destroying other bears' dens, including Shila's family's. Kallik and her friends teach the polar bears how to fight in a group, and they defeat Taqqiq and his friends. Taqqiq develops feelings for Shila and stays with her while Kallik and Yakone follow their friends onto land.
The only polar bears that appear in this book are Kallik and Yakone, though Taqqiq, Unalaq and Kissimi are mentioned. Together with their companions, the two polar bears journey west toward Toklo's birthplace. Yakone is badly injured and loses two toes to a metal trap, slowing them down. A pack of coyotes track them for days, forcing the others to fight them off, then jump onto a firesnake to evade them.
Kallik and Yakone are the only polar bears who appear in this book. Yakone is still badly injured, his wound infected and near to claiming his life, until their black bear friend Lusa brings flat-face medicine that cures him. Yakone is still unconfident on his new paw until Lusa tricks him into leaving their den. Kallik and Yakone decide to leave Lusa and Toklo and travel to the snowy mountaintops, where Kallik decides to live with Yakone on Star Island. The two eventually reunite with their companions and form a plan to chase away the wolves that have infested the forest.
Kallik and Yakone are the only polar bears in this book. When Lusa is separated from the group, the rest of them travel to find her. Kallik falls into a crevasse on a mountain and finds her own way back to the others. When they are reunited with Lusa, the four return to Great Bear Lake, soon to say goodbye.
Kallik and Yakone appear in this book, along with these polar bears: Taqqiq, Shila, Tonraq, Kissimi, Illa, Tunerq, Kotori, Imala, Salik, Iqaluk, Manik, Tartok, Nukka, Kunik, Anarteq, Chulyin, Suka. The polar bears start a rivalry with the grizzlies that Kallik stays out of. During the fire, Kallik, Yakone, Taqqiq, and Shila help the youngest and oldest find shelter with the black and brown bears. The three species celebrate the Longest Day together. Three years later, the three species are still at odds, though Kallik and Yakone are delighted to see their old friends and their new families. They now have two sons, Chulyin and Suka.
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Appearance[]
Polar bears are very large and powerful. Their fur coats, thick for dealing in the snow and waterproof for swimming, are white, but the skin is black for absorbing sunlight.They have lean heads compared to Grizzlies. Their paw pads are covered with a layer of fur to deal with snow and ice.
Diet[]
They tend to primarily eat seal, but they will eat any type of meat. Polar bears can feed on fish, arctic foxes, beluga whales, and other whale carcasses. If pushed to extreme circumstances, they will eat berries, grubs, and roots. In Spirits in the Stars, they, along with the travelling bears, hunt musk oxen together. Male bears have been known to cannabilise polar bear cubs.
Habitat[]
Polar bears sleep in caves, snow dens, or on the ice. They live on the ice and tundra.
