Mansoor could not get enough of talking to his new friend the
polar bear. He wanted to learn everything there was to know about
him. He had more and more questions to ask:
"What other characteristics do you have that I don't know
about?"
"Let me think," said the bear. "We polar bears have interesting
tactics that we use in winter and summer. Now think about our
white fur which makes us resemble snowmen. Do you think that if
we lay down in white snow we would be visible? If you only con-
sidered our white fur, then you would probably say, 'No, you
wouldn't be noticed,' but don't forget that we polar bears have
black noses. Our noses prevent us from being completely camou-
flaged amongst the snow. So, what do we do? We very cleverly
cover our noses with our white front paws. That way we hide the
color difference. We wait completely hidden in the snow for our
prey to approach us."
Mansoor cried in amaze-
ment: "That really is very
clever!"
"Yes, Mansoor. Bears
know that they can
camouf lage
78
