A mother polar bear loitered with her four cubs by the Arctic Bay shoreline earlier this month, before being scared off by wildlife officers.
photos courtesy of Josia Akpaliapik
Josia Akpaliapik spotted the bears while driving his wife to work.
Though Akpaliapik has seen three cubs before, spotting four cubs is a first, he said.
Typically a bear will have a litter of two. Litters of three and four are possible, though uncommon.
According to elders, sometimes a polar bear will adopt another cub from another bear.
Wildlife officers tried to use boats to deter the bears, which were in close proximity to four or five dog teams near the airport.
“One of the cubs was kind of scary. Sometimes she would go to the dogs but never harm them.
The owner untied a few dogs,” he said.
By nightfall, the bears were gone, he said.
