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Researchers monitoring wild polar bears in Canada's northern regions observed something exceedingly rare this autumn: a mother bear taking in a cub that was not biologically her own.

The half-decade-old maternal bear and her 10- to 11-month-old cubs were observed and captured on camera during the yearly polar bear journey along the Western Hudson Bay near the Manitoba town of Churchill, an locale known for its polar bear population.

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

It's only the thirteenth documented instance of fostering out of 4,600 bears researched for nearly five decades in that region.

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

In the autumn, she was spotted once more, but this time with two cubs - the initially tagged cub and another that was untagged. Researchers are uncertain what became of the new cub's birth mother, but they are attempting to identify her using DNA analysis.

"The bears need all the help they can get in the current era with a warming climate," noted a wildlife biologist. "When mother bears have the opportunity to pick up another cub and care for it and see it to independence, it's a good thing for the population."

Polar bears in the natural world only have a fifty-fifty survival rate of living into maturity, but having a maternal figure providing care improves their chances.

The young bears are reported as in good condition, according to experts, and they will likely stay with their adoptive mother until they are about two-and-a-half years old.

Following this, the family is anticipated to venture out to sea ice, where the cubs will be taught from their mother bear how to hunt seals and live on their own.

"It's just nice to know that the bears are caring for each other," added the scientist.