Mr Morgan, who works for the Canadian Coast Guard on Canada's largest ice breaker, the Louis S. St. Laurent, said that the bear approached their ship while he and his team were redeploying a mooring.

As the bear left the thicker ice, it reacted swiftly to stop itself from falling through the thinner surface.

Luckily for the bear, it was able to manoeuvre its way back onto the thicker section - even though polar bears are just as comfortable in the water as they are on land.

In the past, Mr Morgan and his team have seen polar bears as far are 20 to 30 miles off the coast, the photographer said.

The plucky mammal may have approached the boat in the hope of catching a seal in the open lead that had been created, said Mr Morgan, who observed the bear for 30 minutes before heading off to deploy the mooring.

He said: 'I could spend the whole day watching and taking pictures of these majestic animals.

'These animals are king of the hill in the Arctic and are not afraid to approach a 400-foot red ship to investigate the strange visitor to his area.

'It was funny to watch this large male polar bear slide on his belly and spread his stance on the ice as he made his way.

'They roam the Arctic all winter, and judging by his weight, he had no trouble finding food.'

The polar bear lies on the ice having been unable to walk properly while spreading his weight

However, he managed to safely make it back to thicker ice without having fallen through into the water below