Snow bears

"Oh, that was bloody beautiful! Fucking Asher! You were pale as a snow bear's arse!"

- Croft

A snow bear is a species of bear.

"The Sword in the Darkness"
When Asher Forrester, Beskha and Malcolm Branfield reach Meereen, they meet with Croft of the Second Sons, who orders his men to apprehend them. Croft gives Asher the choice of losing an eye or a hand, as retribution for stealing from him. Once Asher makes his choice, Croft plunges his knife into the tent support that Asher is pinned to and burst into laughter. Revealing that he was only playing a joke on them, Croft comments that Asher went as pale as a snow bear's arse.

In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, snow bears can be found Beyond the Wall. They are similar to real-life polar bears, but much larger. Adapted to the cold climate of the far north, snow bears have white pelts and can grow to massive size, with one described as thirteen feet tall. Snow bears are not exactly the same as "polar bears", however, because real-life polar bears usually have a maximum size of only five feet tall at the shoulder (still the largest living species of bear). The difference between snow bears and common bears is similar to the difference between direwolves and common wolves.

A large female snow bear is among the animals that the wildling skinchanger Varamyr Sixskins controls, and he rides it into battle as a mount. Greatjon Umber's uncle Mors "Crowfood" Umber wears a cloak made of a snow bear's pelt, with the head section serving as a hood.