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Researchers tracking wild polar bears in northern Canada witnessed something remarkably uncommon this autumn: a mother bear adopting a cub that was not biologically her own.

The five-year-old mother and her 10- to 11-month-old cubs were observed and filmed during the annual polar bear migration along the Western Hudson Bay near the Manitoba town of Churchill, an area known for its polar bear population.

"This is uncommon," stated a scientist with an international bear organization. "We don't really know why it occurs...but we know it is a rare event at all."

This represents only the 13th known case of adoption out of nearly five thousand bears researched for almost fifty years in the area.

The mother bear was initially tagged as she emerged from her maternity den this spring. At the time, she had a single offspring, which scientists tagged for research.

In the fall, she was spotted once more, but this time with a pair of cubs - the initially tagged cub and a second without a tag. Researchers aren't sure what became of the new cub's birth mother, but they are trying to identify her using genetic samples.

"The bears need all the help they can get these days with a warming climate," noted a wildlife biologist. "When mother bears have the chance to take in an additional youngster and care for it and see it to independence, it's a positive development for the population."

Polar bears in the wild only have a 50% chance of living into maturity, but having a mother providing care improves their chances.

The young bears appear to be healthy, according to experts, and they will probably stay with their mother until they are about 30 months of age.

Following this, the family is anticipated to head out to sea ice, where the youngsters will learn from their mother how to hunt seals and live on their own.

"It is heartening to know that the bears are looking out for each other," added the scientist.