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“Wonderful” And “Stressful”: Researchers Wake Up To Visit From Family Of Polar Bears

Two polar bears walking through the snow.

It’s not surprising to see polar bears in the Arctic. However, if a group of them were right outside your research base first thing in the morning, you’d probably get a little nervous! Meteorologist Katarzyna Kudłacz and her fellow researchers shared some photos from their close encounter with the wild animals on Facebook. They’re equal parts adorable and terrifying!

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My Modern Met tells us that Katarzyna was stationed at the Polish Polar Station Hornsund on the island of Spitsbergen when a family of polar bears dropped by for a visit. She was preparing breakfast and minding her own business when she saw the creatures peering in at her through the window. Needless to say, she was quite startled!

“We didn’t need coffee to wake us up this morning,” wrote the research station in their translated Facebook caption.

Photos show the three polar bears standing right outside the windows of the research base, looking inside as though curious. Judging by some of the translated comments, many users found the pictures kind of cute!

“I would like to experience such a wake-up call at least once in my life,” one person wrote.

“Good morning, please open, we have come for breakfast,” another joked.

These polar bears made an amicable exit.

According to My Modern Met, the group of polar bears were actually a mama and two cubs. It wasn’t too difficult for the researchers to shoo them away from the base with some noisemakers. Thankfully, it sounds like no one was hurt in the process!

“It was wonderful experience,” said Katarzyna Kudłacz. “But also a bit stressful.”

Two polar bears walking through the snow.
Photo by Hans-Jurgen Mager on Unsplash

This wouldn’t be the first time that someone managed to get some adorable up close and personal pictures of wild bears. In fact, trail cameras have become an excellent source of hilarious wildlife photos.

Of course, the wonderful thing about these devices is that you don’t have to be close to an animal to take their picture. Similarly, Katarzyna and her fellow researchers were safely inside their base while getting snapshots of the polar bear family. Although some bears might look cute, it’s always best to keep your distance!

You can find the source of this story’s featured image here.

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