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

The five-year-old mother and her nearly year-old cubs were observed and filmed during the annual polar bear migration along the Western Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, an area renowned for its polar bear population.

"It's unusual," stated a researcher with a polar bear conservation group. "We don't really know why it occurs...but we know it doesn't happen often at all."

It's only the thirteenth documented instance of adoption out of nearly five thousand bears studied for nearly five decades in the area.

The female bear was initially tagged as she emerged from her birthing den this spring. Initially, she had a single offspring, which scientists tagged for research.

In the autumn, 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 second cub's biological mother, but they are trying to locate her using genetic samples.

"These animals need all the help they can get in the current era with a warming climate," noted a wildlife biologist. "When mother bears have the opportunity to take in an additional youngster and care for it and successfully wean it, it's a good thing for the population."

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

The young bears are reported as healthy, researchers said, and they will probably 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 survive on their own.

"It's just nice to know that the animals are looking out for each other," added the scientist.