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Scientists monitoring free-roaming polar bears in Canada's northern regions observed something remarkably uncommon this fall: a female bear adopting 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 yearly polar bear journey along the Western Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, an locale 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 happens...but we know it is a rare event at all."

It's only the thirteenth documented instance of adoption out of 4,600 bears studied for nearly five decades in the area.

The female bear was initially tagged as she emerged from her maternity den this spring. At the time, she had a single offspring, which researchers marked 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 are uncertain what became of the second cub's birth mother, but they are trying to locate her using genetic samples.

"These animals need all the help they can get these days with a warming climate," noted a polar bear scientist. "If females have the opportunity to take in an additional youngster and raise it and see it to independence, it's a good thing for the population."

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

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

Following this, the bear family is expected to venture out to the frozen ocean, where the cubs will be taught from their mother how to catch prey and live on their own.

"It is heartening to know that the animals are looking out for each other," added the researcher.