Surely tempers will flare. Over half a tonne of bear slams into the other when they fight for real. Polar bears will fight to the death over mates, but not in autumn. Now these fearsome predators display a surprisingly tolerant side to their natures.

Perhaps these bouts are a way of testing rivals in case they aver meet again out on the sea ice. One thing’s for sure, the famous loners are revealing a social, playful side we rarely see.

It’s all just boisterous fun but with so many big males around, the females keep their cubs at a safe distance. The wary mother will lead her young to to a quieter beach along the coast while she waits for the ocean to freeze

Being marooned on land means the bears no longer have access to the seals they usually hunt and they have to scrape by on whatever they can find…

Like bears the world over, they’re not choosy feeders. They even turn vegetarian, delicately picking out berries from between the thorns. There are plenty to go around so there’s no need to squabble over them. Any fighting is just for fun. The bears select sparring partners who are well-matched and they always pull their punches, no-one wants to get hurt in a play-fight.