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Scientists monitoring free-roaming 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 captured on camera during the annual polar bear journey along the Hudson Bay's western shore near the Manitoba town of Churchill, an locale known for its polar bear population.

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

This represents only the thirteenth documented instance of adoption out of nearly five thousand bears researched for almost fifty years in the area.

The mother bear was initially tagged as she came out from her birthing den this springtime. At the time, she had one cub, which scientists tagged for research.

In the fall, she was seen again, but this time with a pair of cubs - the original cub and a second that was untagged. Researchers are uncertain what happened to 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 climate change," noted a wildlife biologist. "When mother bears have the opportunity to take in another cub and raise it and successfully wean it, it's a positive development for the bears."

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

The cubs are reported as 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 the frozen ocean, where the youngsters will learn from their mother how to hunt seals and live on their own.

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