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Scientists monitoring free-roaming polar bears in Canada's northern regions observed something remarkably uncommon this fall: a female bear adopting a cub that was not genetically her own.

The five-year-old maternal bear and her nearly year-old cubs were spotted and filmed during the annual polar bear journey along the Western Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, an area known for its concentration of Arctic bears.

"This is uncommon," stated a researcher 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 nearly five thousand bears studied for almost fifty years in the area.

The female bear was initially tagged as she emerged from her maternity den this springtime. At the time, she had one cub, which scientists marked for research.

In the autumn, she was spotted once more, but this time with two cubs - the original cub and a second that was untagged. Scientists are uncertain what became of the new cub's birth mother, but they are attempting to identify her using genetic samples.

"The bears need every advantage they can get these days with climate change," commented a wildlife biologist. "If females have the opportunity to take in another cub and raise 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 appear to be healthy, researchers said, and they will likely stay with their adoptive mother until they are about 30 months of age.

Next, the bear family is anticipated to venture out to the frozen ocean, where the youngsters will learn from their mother bear how to catch prey and live on their own.

"It's just nice to know that the bears are looking out for each other," concluded the researcher.