A DNA test has confirmed what zoologists, big-game hunters and aboriginal trackers in the far northern reaches of Canada have imagined for years: the first documented case of a hybrid grizzly-polar bear in the wild.
That’s right, folks, a polar bear and a grizzly bear have mated and produced offspring — a bear mutt of sorts. As the polar bear’s habitat disappears (thanks, global warming!) and the range for both bears continues to overlap, will we see more hybrids?
I certainly hope so! But only if I get to be on the naming committee. Check out these proposed monikers (emphasis mine):
[Big game hunter Jim] Martell told the newspaper he has dubbed the hybrid creature a “polargrizz.” [Polar bear biologist Ian] Stirling said others in his office have been tossing around in jest possible names for the hybrid: a “pizzly” or a “grolar bear.” One colleague said they ought to call it “nanulak,” combining the Inuit names for polar bear — “nanuk” — and grizzly bear, which is “aklak.”
Can we call it a “pizzly”? Pretty please?!
