
Ursinology Part 2 (BEARS) with Thea Bechshoft, Lana Ciarniello, Drew Hamilton, Wes Larson, Tsalani Lassiter & Danielle Rivet
Ologies with Alie Ward
00:00
What Is the Difference Between Transparent and White Hair in Polar Bears?
Polar bears are born with a pink tongue, which after a couple of months starts to become modeled with black. The roof of a polar bear's mouth and its inside cheeks are also dark in colors. Sometimes you will see pictures of adult polar bears with very blue or even pink tongues and cheeks. There is no specific ecological reason for polar bear tongues to be modeled this dark color that they often are. And my best guess is that it may be genetically linked to polar bear skin color - which also goes from being pink to being black over the course of a few months.
Transcript
Play full episode