The specific behavioral needs of polar bears in captivity and the evidence-based approaches to meeting them.
Polar bear behavioral welfare in captivity represents one of the most honest examples of the limits of zoo welfare provision. For a species whose wild life is defined by covering hundreds of kilometers of sea ice, the behavioral mismatch between wild needs and captive provision is extreme. The persistence of stereotypies even in significantly improved facilities — because stereotypies established in early inadequate housing become neurologically fixed — means that welfare improvements are more effective when applied early rather than remedially. This argues for raising the standards of polar bear housing at birth rather than attempting enrichment corrections in adults with established behavioral abnormalities. The honest welfare assessment for polar bears is that they are among the species most challenging to house adequately in any zoo setting.