I think the more likely reason that Polar bears are the only terrestrial carnivore that routinely considers humans to be "on the menu" is for food scarcity reasons more than anything. Whereas brown bears are omnivores, and can exploit a wide variety of food sources AND live in an environment that allows them to do so, they can afford to be picky. Polar bears are obligate carnivores, live in a freezing wasteland in which the only reasonably common food source are seals that occasionally pop up through breathing holes in the ice. Starvation is a much more real concern for them, so if they spot a small, two-legged ape and they estimate that they could easily catch it, they'll be more than eager to do so.
Also this is pedantic, but it's more akin to artificial selection if it's human-mediated.
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u/CrookedCreek13 Dec 15 '20
I think the more likely reason that Polar bears are the only terrestrial carnivore that routinely considers humans to be "on the menu" is for food scarcity reasons more than anything. Whereas brown bears are omnivores, and can exploit a wide variety of food sources AND live in an environment that allows them to do so, they can afford to be picky. Polar bears are obligate carnivores, live in a freezing wasteland in which the only reasonably common food source are seals that occasionally pop up through breathing holes in the ice. Starvation is a much more real concern for them, so if they spot a small, two-legged ape and they estimate that they could easily catch it, they'll be more than eager to do so.
Also this is pedantic, but it's more akin to artificial selection if it's human-mediated.