Polar BearPhotos, Pictures, Prints

View polar bear photos, license polar bear stock pictures, and buy stunning polar bear prints by award winning professional photographer Jon Cornforth. To license an image for editorial or commercial use, click on the License Image button and fill out the form. To purchase a fine art print, select your image size and presentation style before clicking on the Buy Print button.

Endangered Giants

The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is a carnivorous marine mammal who lives in the land and seas of the Arctic Circle. As large as the omnivorous Kodiak bear, Ursus maritimus are a sister species of smaller brown bears. However, unlike brown bears, the polar bear occupies a narrow ecological niche, and is dependent on sea ice for survival. At the edge of the ice, these bears hunt for seals. As Arctic ice dwindles, these majestic creatures have become a symbol of nature in peril.

Jon endeavors to capture images of these white giants while there is still time and has traveled to remote locations in Alaska and Svalbard to be near them. Mother bears arch protectively over their young. In the freezing water, a polar bear swims for the nearest ledge of ice. Sometimes, a bear sits on the ice alone, thinking about and seeing the world in ways mere humans cannot dream of.

For time immemorial, these bears have been part of the spiritual, cultural and material life of peoples in the Arctic. Hopefully, with human help and efforts at preservation, their species will survive many more winters.

Explore with Cornforth images.