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Scientists tracking wild polar bears in Canada's northern regions witnessed something exceedingly rare this fall: a mother bear taking in a cub that was not genetically her own.

The half-decade-old maternal bear and her nearly year-old cubs were spotted and captured on camera during the annual polar bear migration along the Western Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, an locale renowned for its polar bear population.

"It's unusual," stated a researcher with an international bear organization. "We don't really know why it happens...but we know it doesn't happen often at all."

This represents only the 13th known case of fostering out of nearly five thousand bears researched for nearly five decades in that region.

The mother bear was first captured as she emerged from her birthing den this springtime. Initially, she had a single offspring, which scientists tagged for study.

In the fall, she was spotted once more, but this time with a pair of cubs - the original cub and another without a tag. Scientists aren't sure what became of the second cub's birth mother, but they are trying to identify her using DNA analysis.

"These animals need all the help they can get in the current era with a warming climate," noted a wildlife biologist. "If females have the chance to pick up another cub and raise it and successfully wean it, it's a positive development for the population."

Polar bears in the natural world only have a fifty-fifty survival rate of surviving into adulthood, but having a maternal figure caring for them boosts their chances.

The cubs appear to be healthy, according to experts, and they will likely remain with their mother until they are about two-and-a-half years old.

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

"It is heartening to know that the bears are caring for each other," added the researcher.