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Scientists tracking wild polar bears in Canada's northern regions observed something remarkably uncommon this autumn: a female bear adopting a cub that was not genetically her own.

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

"This is uncommon," stated a scientist with a polar bear conservation group. "The reasons are unclear why it happens...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 nearly five decades in the area.

The mother bear was first captured as she came out from her birthing den this springtime. At the time, she had a single offspring, which scientists marked for study.

In the autumn, she was seen again, but this time with two cubs - the original cub and another that was untagged. Researchers aren't sure what happened to the second cub's birth mother, but they are trying to locate her using DNA analysis.

"These animals need all the help they can get in the current era with climate change," commented a polar bear scientist. "If females have the opportunity to pick up another cub and care for it and see it to independence, it's a positive development for the bears."

Polar bears in the natural world only have a 50% chance of living into adulthood, but having a mother caring for them boosts their chances.

The cubs appear to be healthy, researchers said, and they will probably stay with their 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 animals are looking out for each other," concluded the scientist.