8o THE WORLD OF ANIMAL LIFE 



alarmed. But the polar bear creeps up so quietly that the walrus 

 does not hear it coming. Springing upon it, he imprisons it by 

 his powerful claws, and ends its life by crushing in its skull. 



It was believed that bears tried to hug their enemies, and that 

 they were able in their embrace to crush the breath out of their 

 bodies. This was a popular delusion. But the polar bear bites; 

 and its teeth are so large and strong, and its jaws so powerful, that 

 it can inflict terrible wounds. 



The polar bear is not nearly so courageous an animal as is 

 often imagined ; for if it is attacked it will nearly always run away. 

 If it is brought to bay, ho^'ever, it will fight most fiercely, and 

 is then a very dangerous antagonist. 



THE BROWN BEAR 



The Brown Bear is more frequently met with than any other 

 member of its family. Although, of course, the bear, like all other 

 wild animals, is gradually disappearing in most civilized countries, 

 it is still to be found in almost all the colder districts of the Old 

 World, from Western Europe to Eastern Asia, and in the Atlas 

 Mountains of Northern Africa. At one time it was common in 

 this country, but the last bear found in a wild state in Britain is said 

 to have been killed about the time of William the Conqueror. 



The brown bear has a shorter muzzle, a larger head, and a 

 shorter neck than his cousin at the Pole. Although, as his name 

 indicates, his colour is usually brown, it varies considerably in shade 

 according to the character of the country in which he lives. In 

 the Himalayas, for instance, where the lower slopes are thickly 

 wooded with silver birch, and where in winter the snow lies much 

 longer on the ground than in the mountains of Europe, the brown 

 bear is much lighter in colour than his relations in the west. This 

 of course helps to make him less visible to his prey and his enemies 

 — another example of the manner in which animals are adapted to 

 meet the conditions under which they happen to live. 



The brown, bear eats as great a variety of food as almost any 

 animal under the sun. It will eat vegetables and fruit, insects, fish. 



