| Merlan Parkings
UP : Britannia
Ice Island - - Have you ever seen a polar bear up close? I mean
really close? Have you ever watched with fascination as it attacks and kills a walrus? The
blood runs out over the snow filled land and turns the beautiful powdery white to a deadly
shade of pink.
The polar bear is one of the most majestic creatures to walk the
land of Britannia. It can be extremely cute and cuddly at times. It can be the most
dangerous animal you've ever seen. It depends on your perspective. And how lucky you are
when you run into one.
Polar bears have been known to destroy entire generations of walrus, their primary source
of food. They have also been known to kill larger animals, like the snow leapord, when
food runs scarce. They've even been known to attack humans, as was seen at the Festival of the Ivory Tusk. But this was a polar bear taken out of
it's environment. One who was scared and angry at being moved to a place that it did not
understand or recognize. One whose entire world had been displaced.
But this is not the polar bear that is frequently found near the
Shrine of Honesty on Ice Island. These are bears who have been attacked or hurt. Bears who
have been pushed into a corner by starvation, or the deplorable fact that we as men push
them to the edge of their own land by building our homes in every available place.
Polar bears are often friendly, some would even say cuddly. It's undeniably
"cute" they way they scratch their underbellies with their back paws. Or the way
they will playfully run alongside the water's edge, splashing themselves with the cool
liquid of the icy sea.
Remember that the Polar Bear is a part of nature, and as such, we
cannot hunt these poor things to extinction. They are a part of the natural chain of life
on Britannia, and should be treated with the respect that they deserve.
Merlan Parkings is a
ranger whose main interest is in the study of flora and fauna throughout the land of
Britannia, future columns by Lord Parkings will include tropical birds, harpies, and
alligators.
From the Town Cryer - The Journal of Ultima Online, Wednesday, March 18th 1998
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