Arctic wildlife

There is no better place than the Arctic to see polar bears, puffins and reindeer. While most of the Arctic tends to be inaccessible, there are many places in the Subarctic where you can see just that.

Understand
The Arctic is divided between the Nearctic region covering most of North America, and the Palearctic region covering Europe and northern Asia. In the far north, most of the species are similar.

Polar bears
Polar bears, Ursus maritimus, live in and around the Arctic Ocean. During winter, they can be found on and under the rim of the Arctic ice cap, hunting ringed seals in the water. During summer, part of the ice melts, and they retreat to land for a lean season.

This huge habitat area contains only about 30,000 bears. Luckily, they tend to be concentrated in a few coastal areas where it is possible to see them, particularly in the summer and fall.

Contrary to popular belief, there are no polar bears in the mainland of the Nordic countries – don't go roaming around the Finnish Lapland hoping you'll eventually find a polar bear because the weather is a tad warmer than Northern Canada. This also extends to northwestern Russia for the exact same reason. The only places where you'll be able to find polar bears in the Nordic countries and/or northwestern Russia is either in Svalbard or the Russian Arctic National Park, and both archipelagoes are well off the beaten track.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.
 * Russia has many regions where polar bears can be found. Unlike the Western Hemisphere, polar bears live further north so that means they can only be found in the northern regions of the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East.

In captivity, polar bears can be seen in zoos worldwide.