Which floating ice habitat in the Arctic Ocean is the primary home of polar bears?

The primary floating ice habitat of polar bears in the Arctic Ocean is Arctic sea ice.

Polar bears depend on sea ice as a platform for hunting ringed and bearded seals, their most important prey. They usually wait near breathing holes or seal lairs, especially where ice meets open water. Sea ice also provides routes between feeding areas, breeding grounds, and resting sites.

An ice floe is a piece of sea ice, so it is not a competing habitat name so much as one component of Arctic sea ice. Glaciers are made of land-based ice, while Antarctic ice shelves occur in the opposite polar region. Polar bears are native to the Arctic, not Antarctica.

The seasonal loss of sea ice is therefore a major conservation concern. Bears may be forced onto land for longer periods, where they have fewer opportunities to hunt seals and may lose body condition. Their habitat is marine ice, even though they are mammals that spend time on land.